Thankful & Throw Back Thursday

I'm combining both Thankful Thursday and Throw Back Thursday because they will deal with the same subject. One year ago today, my sweet Pooka Bear passed away after having a blood clot cause a stroke.

I adopted Pooka {and his brother Higgy} in May of 1998. He was this tiny little black kitty sitting in a very large wicker basket. I leaned down and he ran right over. I picked him up and he immediately started purring. I was done. He had to come home.

Over the years he was the friendliest kitty I've met. He was like a dog in that he would run up to anyone and rub against their legs purring. He made friends with all our friends and all service people who came to the house. He loved attention!

My little boy overcame so much too. He had multiple bladder infections each year, until we learned he had bladder stones. Once that was discovered, he had surgery to remove them so he didn't die. He had more than we thought, but came through with flying colors!

Next, he was diagnosed with diabetes and had to have daily insulin. He handled it way better than I! We would put him on the counter, grab his meds, fill his needle, then give it to him. He purred the entire time. Afterwards he would jump off the counter and head to his bowl, knowing breakfast was on it's way!

We were lucky that his diabetes went into remission. For a couple years he led a normal kitty life. He was so loved by all that when we went to Europe in 2010, the boarding kennel we left him at almost didn't give him back! They loved him that much and said to bring him back soon.

A couple years ago he was diagnosed with hyperthyroid, which was rough on him because his body wanted to eat, but his diabetes said no. He wasn't thrilled about not getting more food, but he was still his happy self.

Then in Feb. of 2013 he lost use of his back leg. One moment he could walk, the next nothing. They couldn't figure it out, but sent us home thinking he might gain some use of it. He did. He limped around, but he could get around pretty well. We were so happy.

Then a year ago today, I was sitting at my computer desk. The same one I'm at now and looked down. His cute little face looked up at me with his typical, "Hi Mommy!" smile. I picked him up, petted him, cuddled him, and softly put him down. He walked away purring.

A few minutes later I saw him in front of the bathroom door, his normal spot. I called to him, but no response. I got up and checked on him, but nothing. He was breathing, but non-responsive. I kept petting him and talking to him. Eventually he started to come around. He scared me. I tried to get him to walk, but nothing.

I took him to the kitchen and he kinda walks, but not really. We put him in his bin from his paralyzed days and call the vet. We get an appointment at 3:00 p.m. And we wait. I kept him with me at the desk, talked to him, and petted him.

We go to the vet to find out a blood clot broke off, went to his brain, and caused a stroke. There was nothing they could do for him. In all the years we took Pooka to our vet, they had never not  been able to fix him.

So, for today's Thankful Thursday I am so very thankful I was able to have my Pooka Bear for 15 years. He was one of the best kitties you could ever have {he even converted my husband from a non-cat person to a cat person!}. I love you buddy and miss you horribly.

A pretty normal Pooka position

He was a big boy and loved watching the birds.

He loved the Christmas Village...and knocking the Christmas Village over...

Probably my favorite photo of Pooka. He loved drinking water from the sink. I walked by the bathroom one morning and he was just sitting there...waiting. {I caved and turned on the faucet.}

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Oh my little boy

This past Tuesday, we made the extremely hard decision to say good bye to my sweet little boy Higgenbaffum {Higgy}.

In January, Higgy was diagnosed with lymphatic cancer. His front left paw had swelled up to three times it's normal size and that was why. The vet removed 2.5 ml of fluid from his lungs, but we didn't anticipate him having long to go honestly. We brought him back a week later and while the fluid in his lungs hadn't come back, the cancer had increased 5-10%. We were told to come back in two months, unless something happened between this appointment and two months.

Two months later we brought Higgy back. His lungs sounded good, as well as his heart. As the vet left our appointment saying to schedule a follow-up one in a month's time, he told us he didn't expect Higgy would have lasted this long. He assumed Higgy would pass on his own or we would bring him in due to the cancer.

At the beginning of April, we brought him in due to bathroom problems. He wasn't going well at all. Apparently, he was really constipated. We left him at the vet's office for a few hours while they did their magic to help him. Unfortunately, whatever was the issue caused him to leak. We spent about six weeks trying to find a way to stop this.

Throughout this time period, Higgy seemed to lose muscle in his back hips and legs. He started having a hard time standing, walking, balancing.

The week before Mother's Day, he seemed to go downhill very quickly. None of the medication seemed to be helping him. He would stand, then fall over. We went to the vet on the 5th hoping there would be something to do, but prepared to say good bye. The vet felt a change in his meds would help. So, we went with it.

In our hearts, we knew that nothing was going to help. We decided to wait til Friday to see if he was any better and if not, we would make the decision to say good bye. He was too good a friend to allow to linger in such a manner. Unfortunately, he was no better on Friday. By Sunday, we made the decision and Monday set the appointment to say good bye on Tuesday at 7:00 p.m.

It was one the worst things I've had to do. It was the third time I've sat with a pet and said good bye. The first two times were sudden - my dog Fluffy and cat Pooka both suffered strokes and it was the humane thing to do.  This time, it was harder. We knew it was the right thing to do, but it was horrible. He went peacefully and is now with his brother Pooka, eating treats and fighting.

It's not easy saying good bye to a friend....

Higgy at 3 months. He never grew into those ears!

Higgy in August 2013

Higgy in April 2014

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Motivational Monday

Happy Motivational Monday friends! I know you may think that this quote is only applicable to people with cats, but no. I've thought this through. Replace "cats" with "kids," "dog," "spouse," etc. and now it applies to all!

Today's quote is inspired by Higgenbaffum the cat. It is his 16th birthday today. It is bittersweet in that his brother Pooka passed away in July of 2013 and this year we do not get to celebrate with him. It is also bittersweet because in January Higgy was diagnosed with cancer and due to his age and type of cancer, the decision of all involved was to make him as comfortable as possible rather than put him through chemo. Honestly, when we were given the diagnosis I didn't think Higgy would be here to celebrate his 16th birthday. But, here is he. Celebrating with us today. We grabbed a party hat and he will enjoy cake and ice cream, plus special chicken stew cat food.

Higgy the kitten in 1996

Why is this Motivational Monday? Because we all have those things we take for granted, we assume will be there but then they go away. Maybe it's a friend we were oh so close to that decides you aren't worth it anymore. Maybe it's a spouse that finds someone new. Maybe we don't live each day with our children and all of a sudden they are off to college. Maybe we realize we didn't spend as much time with our grandparents as we should have before they pass on.

Today, we need to remember that happiness is in the simplest things ~ petting a purring cat, play fetch with a dog, reading a book to a child, having tea with your grandparents, a phone call to a good friend. Today, I am going to celebrate Higgy the cat knowing that (sadly) this is his last birthday with us. I am going to make sure he has yummy food, including cake and ice cream. He enjoys some cat nip. We take lots of pictures and we cuddle him lots. Happiness is in the little things and today I am celebrating them to the fullest!

What small thing can you do today to make happiness a priority?
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Rough Week

Hello Friends! Sorry it's been so long since I've posted. This has been a rough week for our little family. As you may remember, we lost our beloved Pooka last July to a blood clot that caused a stroke. The humane thing was to let him go rather than let him suffer. We were (and still are) devastated from him loss.

Pooka has a brother, my little tabby cat Higgy. He's been fighting hyperthyroidism for the past few years, but doing pretty decent. Monday, though, I noticed his front legs looked really swollen. Thinking it had something to do with his thryoidism, we made an appointment at the vet's. Thinking it wasn't anything serious, just some weird off-shoot of his thyroid issue, we were blind sided when the vet asked us about his breathing and wanted to do an x-ray immediately. We consented (nothing new with the cats getting x-rays). The results of the x-rays showed a large amount of fluid in his lungs. We approved the removal of the fluid and when he was returned to us he seemed so much better. They removed 270ml of fluid from his lungs and sent out the fluid for testing, but the early diagnosis was cancer.

We got a call on Tuesday from the vet asking if we could come in to go over the test results and what our options were. The results of the test did not indicate cancer, but the other levels in the fluid indicated illness, with the x-rays and cat scans supporting the diagnosis of lymphatic cancer. The vet couldn't give us an estimation of how much time we have left with him. The treatment option for all of us is not to do chemo on a 16 year old cat, but to keep him comfortable for as long as we can. He is on two new meds, cortisone and lasic (spelling?) to help with the symptoms.

So far, so good. He's breathing better than he was. The fluid that built up in his front legs has drained almost back to normal. He's eating well. He's sitting with us a lot and being cute. I am going to drink this all in. I have been taking photos of him doing the most mundane things, so I have a record of everything. We didn't have that opportunity with Pooka, so I am going to do all I can to live every moment I can with Higgy. He's a great cat and will be greatly missed when we have to let him go. Here's to living every moment in the here and now, to enjoy and love those who mean the most.

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Happy Adoption Day Miss Elizabeth the Kitten!

Seven years ago today, I signed the adoption papers on Miss Elizabeth the Kitten, a cute little thing who stole hubby and my heart at the PetSmart. She was a tiny little kitty who wasn't exceedingly playful, but loved attention. She would come out of her cage and I would put her on my lap. She would curl up in a ball and just purr and purr. When we would put her back, she would give us kitty kisses and it broke my heart having to leave her.

We talked about it for a month, then decided we had to bring her home. She has been with us since that evening seven years ago and it's like she's always been here. We still consider her a kitten since she's no bigger than a newborn baby. She is everything you want a cat to be - cuddly, soft, friendly, playful, funny. She wants nothing more than to curl up on your lap and stay there for hours. She loves to curl up under the blankets in bed and just sleep the night away with us. She get angry when you remove her from where she wants to be (she's the only cat I know that growls on a regular basis). She's often scared of things - her bowl, her brothers, car noises, us. And she may not be the smartest kitten, but she is one of the most loving.

So Happy Adoption Day Miss. Elizabeth! We love you very much!


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