Hi all,

It's been two months now since Babe had to leave me. I've been staying away from the boards because I just couldn't handle reading anything sad. I've been doing okay - as well as to be expected. I still have my ups and downs and miss her SO much. I miss the sound of her drinking her water, eating her food - just everything. Sometimes I hear her and see her.

I'm starting to look at kitties and hope I will know when the time is right for me to get another one. I have this irrational thought of it upsetting Babe if I get another cat - she never liked other animals........

I'd like to thank you all for your wonderful support during the long 8 months that Babe was dying. It is so nice to know that there are others out there that understand exactly how I was and still am feeling.

Very sincerely,
Sheri

Dear Sheri,

Our love for each of our own seems to match no other, yet it appears that all of us feel so many of the same pains and remembers so much the same.

Your memories and feelings of your beloved Babe are so like mine of my little Annie. I hope that your hope continues to grow. I wish for some hope of my own.

Annie's mommy

Hi Sheri, I am glad to hear from you, that things are easing somewhat. These days I am housing a barn cat who doesn' t get along with any other. The whole family wants this house to remain catless, its their turn but at least they're letting the cat stay in because it's winter time. Yesterday he followed me downstairs to where Yukon would sleep, his basket is still there. I 'spoke' with Yukon, explained that what else can we do, this cat needs help and I felt that this was all right with Yukon, I really did feel it, he never would have accepted that when he was here, even if he would have been without his partner for over a year he wouln't have liked this other cat, no more than the rest of my family has any like for the little fellow. But Yukon seemed to agree, we have to help when and where we can. So it's okay....for now, for the future, we'll cross each bridge when we come to it. I like to feel as I pet the other cat that it is in hommage to my great cats of the past, they will never be replaced but the hole that they left is a little less deep with a little sorry soul in there to fill in a bit of the void.

I know what you mean about seeing her! I see our cat who passed on Oct 20 in the shadows at night when my eyes play tricks with me. Or is it him? I feel sometimes it is him, his way of letting me know he is still here. I too have a hard time coming here, because it makes me cry, but then I am crying everyday still anyway by myself. I cry myself to sleep, cry when I look at a picture, cry when I think about giving him his meds at mealtime, so I figure it might be better to be HERE to cry WITH others where there is so much love and support for one another. No one else can know this pain unless they too have been where we are and I have found everyone here to be so comforting and loving to each other. We can all help one another. It IS sad to hear another's story, but we who are a little farther out then they who have just lost their beloved pet kids the last few days, NEED us to tell them the truth, it will hurt for a long time, but there will be smiles amidst the hurt too.
I think the nature of uncondiotional love that our animal children are capable of, means exactly what it means. There are no conditions. They want us to be happy and if getting a new friend will do that, I think they would be happy for us. They KNOW our love for them will never be diminished by another's love. The way we love each petchild or person in our lives is as different as each of those petchildren and people are!
We have 3 cats still that have been with us for a long time and were *friends* to Orion. They are not anything like him, he was our snuggle cat, they are more solitary and aloof and like attention when THEY want it, but not when you need to hug them. Some loved Orion more than others one of our cats allways picked fights with him, BIG mistake, he always won, but she never gave up ... We are still thinking of adding a kitten or two to the mix. We are avid cat lovers and there are so many who need love and are lonely for hugs from someone who knows how to love them. Not everyone is cut out to be a pet parent, but those of here are and we know the joy of loving a very giving and beautiful soul inside a furry body!
Don't feel guilt or that you are betraying any memories, because you will never change how you feel for your beloved cat. You will be adding more love to your life, when you are ready.That is the key. WHEN YOU ARE READY...
Please stay and talk with us. We can all help each other. I thought I was ready to post a memorial/tribute page and I find I cannot bring myself to do it yet. That would be a final kind of move for me. I tried to close my thread about Orion and move on to tributes and it was too soon. I am still in too much pain to do that. We treat out cats as our children, because we never had human children and we believe our cats ARE our children. I guess I was hit harder and with a grief that only a mother could know. It is foreign to me, this deep pain, but coming here and reading encouraging words does help. I am glad you came back to post and I send warm Hugs your way and wish for you to find some peace in your heart.

susan