Our Beautiful Boy Beau Left Us This Morning

We lost our beautiful boy Beau this morning. He was 14 and became ill very suddenly with liver problems just 10 days ago. He had been healthy his whole life and had been a strictly indoor only cat and this sudden illness was such a shock. In spite of our best efforts we could not save him. Beau was a feral cat that I rescued when he was six months old. I belong to a group that does feral cat rescue. Beau came to us with his brother Georgie (who we lost 4 years ago). This may sound strange to many but in all the time he was with us we could almost never pet him athough his brother came around after 5 1/2 years. And Beau started to come around as well, let us pet him when he chose but when Georgie passed on (they were brothers and best buddies) he reverted back to his old ways and then attached himself to one of our other cats Ben. I was just starting to get him to come around again 5 months ago.

He would sit under the kitchen table when the other cats were not around (we have a mutti-cat household, one of the hazards of doing rescue work with cats) and I would roll treats to him and he would put his paws out and catch them, kind of like playing hockey. It was our special time. Even though he was not a cuddly lap cat he still brought joy to our lives and we let him dictate how he wanted to live his life with us. Now whenever there is a full moon I will miss him tearing up and down the stairs (he used to do this with his brother) and "talking to the moon". The last few days when he was so ill he finally gave in and allowed us to touch him. He knew that we loved him and that we were trying to help. I am grateful that he passed at home with us in his basket in front of the fire surrounded by his cat friends. We had medication to control any pain and he passed peacefully. Even though we have other cats they are all special and unique.

All our cats are seniors and we try to prepare ourselves as best we can for their leaving us, but we have lost three in one month, the other two from kidney failure (which ws treated but ultimately not curable). Harvey and Cleo have gone to
The Rainbow Bridge to wait for us and now Beau is with them waiting for the day we will all be together again. We are devastated but they are at peace and free from pain. They each have taken a piece of us with them and will live on in our memory.

I am so grateful for these forums. They allow us to express our grief to people who understand and to let go and begin to heal. Thank you for allowing me to share my pain.

Molly