You were born November 1, 2003. You came home with us from the animal shelter on May 29, 2004. You had been at the animal shelter since you were a baby kitten and we brought you home when you were almost seven months old. We will never understand why you were in the animal shelter for so long. You were so sweet, so beautiful, so playful, so loving; why didn’t anyone take you home? We think it was because you were meant to be with us. The day we went in to choose a kitty, you walked back and forth between both of us, loving on both of us, insisting on coming home with us. We knew you had chosen us. We adopted you along with two others in there with you, and another who came along a little later.
The day we brought you three home you slunk into the basement along with the other two. You all hid behind the big tv down there. When your siblings ventured out to explore their new home, you slunk out behind them, the last of the three, but you wanted to stay close to them and kept them in sight. You went upstairs with them and looked around. As long as you could see your siblings you were okay. You settled into the house quickly…and into our hearts even faster.
You were 16 years old when you died. You lived with us for 16 wonderful years. We will forever be thankful for the time we had with you. You brought so much love, joy, and laughter into our lives. You were always so happy, sweet, and loving. We were so blessed that you chose us that day in the shelter. You loved everyone and would greet everyone who came to the house. You loved your Daddy most of all, but you loved Mommy lots and lots too. You loved your siblings so much. You were always tucking up with other kitties, cuddling with them, giving them head butts and kisses. You would groom your siblings and if they weren’t grooming you at the same time, then you would duck your head right under their face, because you really wanted them to groom you too. Grooming time with Eclipse always led to wrestling time, because she was rough in her grooming and the wrestling matches were such fun to watch. You were so close with your siblings. You missed Garfield when he died in 2013 and Eclipse died just 10.5 months before you. You were so close with them both, you were “the original three” we rescued from the shelter that day. You outlived the other two. Now the three of you have been reunited in Heaven. When your ashes return to us, there is a spot on the fireplace mantel between Garfield and Eclipse’s ashes, and that will be for your ashes. It’s fitting that your ashes will be between your siblings who you loved so very much.
You were such a gentle soul. Words cannot express how pure your spirit was. You were the best kitty, right along with your siblings. You could always be found right by your Daddy, sleeping tucked up tight beside him on the bed, “pushing” him over on the bed, because he was afraid he would squish you if he moved your way at all…or laying on your Daddy anywhere else. You laid on Mommy too. In the final months, whenever we weren’t home and the other two kitties in the house didn’t want to snuggle with you, you would sleep in the kitty igloo. Sometimes you would poke your head out of the igloo like a turtle, to check out what was going on and see if there was a lap needing a kitty.
You loved to lay on our laps and to tuck up tight with people or snuggle with your siblings. You didn’t like to be carried and would squirm if picked up. You didn’t like to be brushed, but you always wanted to be pet. You gave so many sweet kisses, head butts, and you purred so loudly for us. You would have purr-offs with other kitties, to see who could purr the loudest. You would knead your dough with all four paws on us. You would gaze straight into our eyes, like you understood whatever we were saying to you. You would lay on us with your head upside down and then look back at us, wiggle around a little, and be sure to throw your head back upside down again. When Mommy would bend down to give you kisses you would always duck your head as low as you could get as soon as her long hair would touch your head.
We named you Spooky because you were an all black cat, with just a few spots of the touch of the angel. But you seemed to think we named you Spooky because you were scared of everything. You were so cautious and careful. You would slink around the house, slink around the corners, and would walk so carefully. The crack in the carpet between the hallway and the front room, you didn’t dare touch that crack. You would leap over that crack every time, though in your final few years you stopped.
Daddy liked to call you “The Dark Lord” because you were a black cat. You were always such a talkative kitty, so vocal. You meowed at us often. What we wouldn’t give to hear your meow again.
You always jumped on Daddy’s leg while he was eating, would turn around on his leg and he would have to block your tail from dipping in his food, and then would settle yourself on his leg, gazing adoringly at him and giving him kisses. You were always so graceful.
You watched outside the windows and would watch people and animals go by. You loved to lounge in the sunshine and bask in the warmth. You loved to get attention when we were on the computer. You would stand on the loveseat beside the computer and paw and cry at us. You always wanted to be close.
In your younger years, when we would take you outside on a harness, you would “walk” us around in the backyard and then on the sidewalk. You still hold the record for the farthest walk, the one you took with your Grandpa all those years ago, going several houses away before we insisted it was time to head home. You loved your Grandpa and would always lay on his lap when he visited. One day, right after Mommy had fed you, Grandpa came over and you ran and insisted he feed you, despite having just been fed. Your Grandpa was smitten with you. You sure loved Grandma’s coat, you would bury your face in the fur around the hood.
You loved to play. You loved to chase your siblings through the house and to have them chase you. You loved to wrestle with your siblings. You loved to roll around in catnip around the scratching posts and play with any other kitty who came near. You loved to attack the catnip toys. You loved the laser pointer, would sprint around the house like crazy chasing it, hiding under pieces of blankets dangling off the couch and then pouncing out at that red dot. You loved to attack the little toy mice and the interactive feather toys. I sometimes called you “Dracukitty” because your fangs would show. When you were playing you would open your mouth while we wiggled a toy in front of you.
You loved to get your tail, chasing your tail, hunting your tail, and doing somersaults over and over to try to catch your tail. You would swish your tail, catch sight of it, and roll over and over to get to it. When you would lay on us, we would sometimes wiggle your tail at you, you would smack at your tail over and over and would suddenly bite it really hard and we would have to remind you that it was your own tail you were biting. We would wiggle our fingers at you and you would bite our finger. You would bite our fingers so gently.
You loved to scratch at the vertical scratching posts. You would tear at those posts and loved it.
You loved to dangle off the edge of the loveseat in the study. You would attack feather toys or fingers off the edge of that loveseat and if another kitty walked close enough you would attack their tail. Many wrestling matches began because you attacked another kitty’s tail.
In the mornings you were always ready for us to wake up and feed you. You would bite our fingers, not so gently, if we didn’t get up and reached to pet you instead. If we tried to duck your efforts to wake us by hiding under the blankets or the pillows, you wouldn’t have any of it. You would dig under the blankets, scooch under the pillows, and insist we wake up and feed you.
You loved Christmas time. You loved to help put up the Christmas tree and would walk through all the branches while the tree was being put up. You loved to relax under the Christmas tree, look up at the lights on the tree and ornaments, and play under there. You would dart around under the tree, playing with any toy that was nearby, and pouncing again and again at wrinkles on the tree skirt.
You would help with all household projects. When contractors came in the house you always wanted to help out. You were such a social kitty, you loved everyone. One time someone who was scared of black cats came over and you just jumped right on her lap, because how could someone be scared of you?
You jumped on the clothes in the closet, just leaped right on to the top of the closet and balanced on the clothes on their hangers. You wanted to check things out up there.
You were always such a little guy. We would feed you so much and you were always so little. You were always so hungry and had a great appetite, but you were such a little guy, our sweet little buddy. You were always a finicky eater and would demand different foods. You liked your variety but you were such a seafood fan and you loved those little Whiskas pouches and the orange Fancy Feast cans.
You had a health crisis in October 2016 which scared us to death. We experienced a miracle when our wonderful vet was able to give a diagnosis that others couldn’t give: Exocrine Pancreatic Insufficiency. We started treatment immediately. We experienced a miracle and will always be so thankful for those extra wonderful, healthy, happy years we had with you.
Your final few weeks you started losing weight again. Then, the evening of Monday 6/29/20, you stopped eating. You had always had such a big appetite, so we knew something was wrong. We took you to our vet for an emergency visit. Because of this awful COVID-19 virus we weren’t able to go in with you. The vet said you had an infection and were dehydrated. We started treating you for those and brought you home.
Mommy took the next day off work, Tuesday 6/30/20…which became your final day. You refused to eat, you refused to drink, we were so worried. You were so weak, so Mommy laid a folded up thick blanket on the floor for you by the Drinkwell where you wanted to lay that last day. Mommy sat on the floor beside you, sobbing and telling you all the things she needed to say: what a good kitty you were, how thankful she was that you chose us that day in the shelter, how loved you have always been, and how sorry she was for everything she hadn’t done that she wished she had and for everything she had done that she wished she hadn’t. Mommy wanted to be sure you knew how very much she loved you and always would. You stared straight into her eyes, rammed your little head into her hands over and over, gave her sweet little headbutts, and stared straight into her eyes…like you knew. You knew all of it.
You started drinking a little and a little hope came in. Then you wanted to eat a little bit and hope flooded in. We thought if we could get you through this little hump, that you would be okay, that we could have more good time with you still. We had a miracle with you before…we desperately hoped for one more. That final evening, you laid on Mommy’s lap with your head upside down, then looked straight into her eyes, and then put your head back upside down again, over and over. You walked over to your sister Cutie, wanting to tuck up to her, but she sniffed at you and hissed, and Mommy scooped you away. Cutie loved you, my sweet little boy, but she knew you were sick…she knew so much more than we did.
Later that night things went really bad. You started foaming at the mouth and were panting. We tried to contact the emergency vet but had trouble reaching her. We rushed you to her office in the desperate hope the vet would be there to help. Two construction workers were there but the vet was not. One of the workers ran to get the other one, her boss, who called the vet at home with a different phone number. The vet rushed to get to the clinic. We will forever be grateful to those workers for helping us contact the vet. They didn’t have to help us. Thank God they did.
We sat with you in the car, waiting for the vet to get there. We told you we loved you and to hold on, help was coming. You were panting and gasping and we tried to hold you like a choking baby and pat between your shoulder blades to clear the foam…but it wasn’t helping. You started to really struggle. You made these pitiful little noises and we knew we were running out of time, but help wasn’t there yet. Then your little body went completely limp. We jumped out of the car with you and tried to save you. The vet arrived two minutes later and we ran with you to her, told her you had gone limp two minutes ago, she said “oh no” and ran with you into the building. Mommy called after her “please save him”. The vet came out five minutes later to say you were gone, that in the end it turns out you had cancer and it took you from us.
We are so sorry we couldn’t save you. We had desperately hoped for a miracle. But we had our miracle with you years before, though maybe we should consider every moment of the 16 years we had with you as a miracle. You will forever be one of our favorite blessings. You will never know how deeply sorry we were that you had the passing you had. You should have had a peaceful passing at home, or at least a peaceful passing at the vet’s office…not how it happened. Our only comfort is that you were in our arms when it happened, that you knew we were with you, that you knew how much we love you, that we gave you the best 16 years we could, that you were always such a happy cat, and that we did the best that we could…we are so sorry we couldn’t save you.
We brought home the towel which was wrapped around you when we said goodbye to your little body at the vet’s office along with two locks of your fur. We had one lock for us to keep and one lock for Cutie and Tippy, your surviving siblings. They both smelled the towel and lock of fur and they both understood you were gone. Several times over the next couple of days they went to that towel and fur to smell it or lay by it…they miss you too.
Our sweet little Spooky, our hearts are broken and our souls are shattered. Things will never be the same again. You were always such a little guy, but you left a gaping hole in our lives which will never be filled. Sweet little Spooky, take a piece of our souls with you to Heaven, that way we can still be together even while we are apart. Be reunited with your brother Garfield and your sister Eclipse, you three loved each other so very much and now you are together again. Our original three…together again.
We are so thankful that you were happy, feeling good, and enjoying your life for almost your entire 16 years. You were one of the sweetest, most beautiful, loving, precious, amazing souls we have ever been blessed enough to know. We can’t begin to say how much we love you and how deeply we miss you.
Our sweet little Spooky, our little boy, we love you so very much. We miss you and will until we meet again. We will love you forever and ever. We know that you are in Heaven right now and that we will see you again when it is our time to leave this Earth. Until then, RIP our sweet little Spooky. Remember that we will always love you.
We love you,
Mommy & Daddy
We Love You,| 6/30/2020 |
| Amy & Sean Bullington |