Dear Elliot, our oldest kitty, had been getting weaker, finally to the point where he couldn’t eat any longer, could barely walk, and had trouble breathing. We had to find out if there was anything to be done for him. There wasn’t. We’ve just returned from having his suffering put to an end. He was a sweet boy, born in our living room 18 years ago. Of course, it’s very sad, but he was so old and went downhill so far in the last few days. It’s a difficult decision to make, a guilt-ridden one, even while knowing he’s suffering. Ignoring a sick, suffering pet is far worse.
Elliot was the cat who let Steven know it was time to eat by standing on the end table and staring at him until he got up to feed him. No matter if there was food in their dishes, when it was time to eat, it was time to stare. When he was only a couple of months old, he dove under my chair just as I sat down, and there was a horrible screech. The daughter and I rushed the whimpering baby to the vets, where he was pronounced ok and adorable. Seriously, the vet brought purring Elliot back to us and said he had nothing broken, maybe just pinched, and he was the cutest kitten he’d ever seen. I don’t remember how much that cost, but it was a lot for a professional to proclaim the obvious. Elliot was an adorable kitten. He also got into a lot of trouble.
We brought him home and set the carrier with him in the living room for the other cats to say goodbye. Non-pet owners may scoff at this, but we’ve lived with cats for all our long-married lives. We speak from experience. Except for the two newbies, if the others don’t get to say goodbye, they’ll soon start looking for him and crying. The reactions of the other cats were sad yet intriguing. They recognized Elliot. Winky is six months old. He batted at Elliot as if asking why he wouldn’t come and play. Bob is Winky’s littermate, and he is clearly wigged out. He keeps approaching the carrier like he’s terrified, crouching, and licking his lip. After getting close to him several times he finally left. So far, the other cats have come by and sniffed him. Only PeeWee, his longtime friend and now the oldest, stands by, just staring at the carrier. He and Elliot were always friends, with PeeWee giving Elliot a bath at least once a day. He’d cry the most, as he did when Moggy, Elliot’s brother, died. They know!
And we have our memories, while he suffers no more. We’ll miss you, Elliot!
4 responses to “Goodbye, Elliot”
So sorry for your loss, Debi. Still, it’s wonderful that Elliot had such a long and happy inning.
I find it touching to read about the other kittens’ reaction and believe it was wise to bring him back to say goodbye.
Thank you, Hanne. I believe only people who’ve been around animals for a long time can realize there are no “dumb” animals. They have instincts and seem to know things that never cease to surprise me. I can relay this now that I feel a little better– Homer died several years ago while my husband was away. I didn’t know what to do, so I put him in the unused freezer part of our soda refrigerator. When Steven came home, of course, poor Homer was a popsicle. We buried him in the backyard with the other kitty, and it was a bit difficult because we couldn’t get the end of his tail to go down. I happened to look up and the other kitties were standing with their paws on the windowsill in the sunroom window, watching us. I just imagined what they were thinking–OMG, what are they doing to Homer? We better behave, hadn’t we? Those cats acted differently toward us for several days. I’m going to share that in WP someday, or as part of short stories.
I am so sorry, Debi. What a great kitty
On Tue, Oct 26, 2021, 15:27 Books by Debi Ennis Binder wrote:
> debiszoo posted: ” Dear Elliot, our oldest kitty, had been getting weaker, > finally to the point where he couldn’t eat any longer, could barely walk, > and had trouble breathing. We had to find out if there was anything to be > done for him. There wasn’t. We’ve just returned f” >
Thanks so much! He was a sweetie.
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