November 25 1998 we had to put our old cat Jock to sleep.
It was one of the hardest things we’ve had to do. He was 16
years and 10 months old. We’ve had him for over 15 years. He earned
the nickname “Meanie Cat” because when we got him he was really mean
and ornery to everyone. He had been mistreated but in our home he
finally knew what love was. He was the only cat who hugged me when I
picked him up. He would wrap his arms around my neck and rub his head
against my chin. He was a unique cat; he was a seal point Siamese but
he had 3 white toes on 3 of his paws. The fourth paw was completely
black. About three weeks ago I noticed that Jock didn’t seem to look
at me when I talked to him. He looked in the direction of my voice but
not at me. It was then that I realized he was blind. He could no
longer see to go downstairs to his litter box and he wouldn’t move from
the radiator in the kitchen. That radiator doesn’t look the same
without him; it was his perch. What’s helping me and my parents get
through the loss of Jock is remembering the funny things he did. Like
the time he came running out into the kitchen and tried to slide to a
stop on a towel on the floor. We call that his “magic carpet ride.” Or
how about the time Jock decided to sneak up on Frankie another cat of
ours while she was sitting on the kitchen radiator. All Frankie did
was turn around and Jock backed up fell off the radiator tail-first
into an empty Mountain Dew box. Then there were the wrestling matches
between him and Harry (another cat) and the way he would “patrol” each
room of the house. We’ll never forget Jock and no other cat will ever
replace him but we’ll always remember the joy he brought into our lives
and how much he made us laugh.
Gene Charlotte and Helen Meschke
and our other cats: Cisco Harry and Oink and our dog Ike who miss
Jock as much as we do.