I'll Never Forget Picasso

I would like to take a few minutes to remeber Picasso and share his story. I find this to be a great way to remember, so I may post more stories sometime.

Picasso was a shorthair orange male Persian who came to our shelter about four years ago. He had been rescued from his owner who had kept him shut in a closet for his whole life so no one would know he was there. He was declawed on all four paws, but it wasn't right. Whatever vet had done the procedure had done a terrible job, and his paws were sore and dysfigured. The problems didn't stop there. He had chronic watery eyes, and breathing problems, probably from having no circulation. His teeth were almost all gone, so he could only eat canned food, and it was impossible to tell his age. It ranged from 2-20. No one could tell.

When Picasso came to our shelter he had every reason to be "vicious" or scared of people. But not Picasso. He was the sweetest, most gentle cat alive. Everyone who worked there fell in love with him, and so began the second part of his life.

Picasso was adopted once or twice, but he was always brought back because he couldn't use a litterbox. We tried everything from a cookie sheet with waxed paper, to a puppy pad. He did eventually use it, usually. From then on my sweet baby was plagued with even worse health problems. For a while he fostered kittens, but we found that they were to rough with him and he had bites all over him. So he was a resident cat. He'd live there till the end.

Picasso had to be spoon fed most of his life, and we'd make a pointed hill of his food so he could grab it. Picasso and I bonded tremendously during those feedings, and when he was let out, he would stare under the door crack for me to come back. He followed me around and I admit, I was truly in love with him. Once a month he would get really sick and almost die. The vet encouraged the manager to put him down, but he was everyone's favorite.

About 2 years later, I had no choice (or so it seems) but to stop volunteering. I'll never forget the last time I saw him. When I said goodbye I felt like the worst person on Earth. A month later I saw on their website that he had been found dead in his condo.

Even now (at this moment), I still cry my eyes out. I should have been there for him, taken him home, or something. I wonder if he thought of me when I left and thought I abandoned him. I would do anything to see him again. Anything.

Thanks for letting me remember, and share the story of the kindest cat who ever lived. I'm sorry about the length!


I love you Picasso. Wait for me at the bridge! I'll be there.

Kidney/heart Disease

Lately I have had an onslaught of problems with my 8 cats. You name it, we've had it.
However, in the past few weeks the first cat I raised as diagnosed with kidney disease and early renal failure. The cat who raised ME died of that in a heartbreaking episode.
Frosty is doing okay, but my life is filled with worry. In another post I wrote about my rabbit's sudden death. And then there is Garfield, I've had him since November. He's 4 years old and was just diagnosed with heart disease. He almost didn't make it through his vet trip. Now he has 2 meds. 3 times a day but he's not responding well. The vet told me I could either find him dead of a heart attack someday, or he could have a severe heart cough(he has light ones 3 times a day) and slowly cough himself to death.
Now a weird question:
When my first cat died I was like 13, and I cried. Crying is a problem because my face turns bright red! Now I'm facing euthanasia in the coming year(Frosty has 1 year to live) and I'm pretty worried. Crying is the least of my worries, but how do you all stay strong at the vet clinic? Even when just hearing bad news?
Thanks for any ideas.

A Way To Cope

I just told this to Caroline, but I thought everybody should do this. Volunteer at a shelter. I, personally could only handle a no-kill shelter, but maybe you guys are tougher. Those animals really need your help. There are many things to do like clean, and do paperwork, but the most important thing is really to socialize them so they can be happy and find good homes. They are awesome animals who appreciate everything you do. And, if you are trying to deal with a death, that is a great way to find the animal perfect for you. There are so many out there who are lonely and waiting for someone to rescue them.

A Loss, I Was Not Ready For.

Hi everybody, this is my first post here, and I'll quickly introduce myself. I am a girl who used to volunteer a LOT at an animal shelter until some issues came up. I have 8 cats, 1 dog and fish. I have raised wild bunnies and a raccoon.

Anyway, 2 days ago my 4 yr. old rabbit died and it could be my fault. A week or 2 ago Kashmir began to have puddles of blood in her cage, and I told the vet it was in her urine, so I got her Baytril. After 4 doses, I saw that it was actually in her feces. The vet found that she had coccidia, and gave me Albon. It turns out that Baytril made it worse. After her first dose of Albon(which I'm not sure she ever swallowe) I left her alone for 2 hours. Next time I look, my fluffy, sweet bunny is dead. I don't know why, but I know I'll never forgive myself.

Ya know, when a pet dies, you think of everything you've ever said or thought about her, and regret so much. If only I could have her back again, I would do so much more.
I live only for the day that I will meet all the animals I've lost again. Life stinks!