Monday, January 23, 2006

Monday Memories

Ah - late night/early morning blogging!


This week's memory revolves around my cats. So you get four memories for the price of one.

Pandora: 16 years and going (reasonably) strong. We nearly lost her as a kitten when she came down with a mysterious virus that made her paralysed temporarily. I still remember placing her in her litter tray at appropriate moments! Her life was made complete by the arrival of Ambrose when she was about 18mths old - and destroyed when he died suddenly ten years later. Since his death she has been ill a lot with her nerves and has aged really quickly. But Uncle Tim (her wonderful vet) thinks she'll see out 20!

Ambrose: We had him before the computer and before the digitalisation of photos, so no photo at the moment but the one above is the gorgeous scrapbook made by a friend at work. He came to us at three months, this huge ginger kitten. He was incredibly careless and his vet records ran to several pages as he had a habit of cutting his paws on - oh glass, barbed wire, fence splinters....... He and Pandy were best of friends for ten years, until he was killed on a road on New Years Eve 2000. We still miss him terribly. Pandy was inconsolable and, although she didn't see us bury him, she slept on his grave for three months. He was My Boy.

Echo: We were settled with Pandy but thought she was lonely. Meanwhile my neighbour's cat was pregnant. She decided to give birth the weekend they were away, so I took her in my house and acted as midwife. Good thing too, as number two kitten was huge and got stuck and I had to forcibly deliver it. And when the runt (number three) finally arrived she would not breathe. I actually gave a kitten CPR, not easy on something the size of a matchbox! MB was out that night and when he returned he poked his head into the room, saw all the blood and went to bed! We were given the pick of the litter and chose the runt - Echo. Echo had a short happy life, she was stolen from us on the same road at only 22 months.

Charlie: We were stunned by the deaths of Ambrose and Echo in less than four years. Echo in particular as it only was 10 minutes after we saw her in the garden that the vet phoned to say she'd been brought in DOA. But we toyed with ideas and names, and decided we would take a homeless kitten (if one turned up with no home) or a special needs one (deaf, blind etc) as any future feline would be an indoor cat! The name we settled on was Charlie - but this was all hypothetical (AP - After Pandy!). But then I got an email about 'Charlie'. Coincidence or Fate? Found on a roadside in hawk country with his brothers, little Charlie couldn't get a home. We thought about it for - oh - about 30 seconds and took him. The rest, as they say, is history!

cq

9 comments:

OldLady Of The Hills said...

Oh My My My, they crawl into your heart and never let it go, I'm happy to say....That's an amazing story about Pandora and Ambrose...So bonded that she knew where he was after death!! Sweet sweet Pandora..God Bless Her 16 years and still steady...
And Echo...poor sweet kitty...And then we have Charlie!!! He makes me smile..(Can you see me smiling CQ?) They are the dearest animals in the whole wide world....
Sweetie sends his love to P & C. and you two humans, as well...

The June Cleaver Diaries said...

Ohhh, you made me miss my kitties. I grew up with oneor two around at all times. But, alas, my husband, and consequentially my kids,are deathly allergic to any and all animals. Except, perhaps, for goldfish, who knows....

Mother Sharon Damnable said...

Aww, I have four Lady cats that live with me (My big Ginger girl is about to have her babies after a feral tom broke in through the cat flap!) Maybe that's why we're all so hormonal ;>)

Then there are four big feral Toms that camp in my back garden. We call the alpha Busta after busta blood vessal!

oooh I can feel a blog coming on

Thanks CrazieQueen :>)

Tabby Rabbit said...

Aww, that's so sad about Pandora sleeping on Ambrose's grave. The poor thing...

Have fun out on the slopes!

OldLady Of The Hills said...

Came back to see the photo's of the kitty's once again...Adorable!! ALL of them!

I should do a Memory on all the Kitty's I've had over the years...They sure do enrich our lives like nothing else...!

I hope you are taking that camera with you on your Ski Trip, CQ....I want to see Bavaria from YOUR point of view!

Jean-Luc Picard said...

What beautiful cats.

Have a wonderful time in Bavaria. I look forward to hearing all about it.

craziequeen said...

Coincidentally enough, I have just today taken Pandy and Charlie for their checkups and both got a clean bill of health :-)

I'm a good Mama

cq

YellowRose said...

You have beautiful kitties!! They do capture your heart and never let go, don't they? My Rocky is a toot, I almost lost her a couple years ago. I'll have to tell you that story sometime! She used up a couple of her lives with that adventure!!

When do you leave for your ski trip?

Just Ducky said...

Hi Derby here. I'm a friend of Charlie's. Sad that you losted two of your kitties to playing in the road. Glad you don't let Charlie out, mum doesn't let me out either. Bye.