Bobbit came into our family in July 1993 and 17 years later I’m sitting with her as she sleeps her last sleep, dying gently and quietly with familiar sounds and smells and her human and feline companions around her. If she was suffering I’d take her to the vet for euthanasia, but she’s slipping away peacefully and I want her to die here, in her home.
People who don’t have pets don’t get the relationship. A pet shares part of your journey through life and when a pet dies, that part of your journey is over and you take a new route without your companion. Bobbit has been travelling with me for 17 years and now her journey’s nearly over, mine will change.
It’s a long time for a little cat to share my life. When she arrived aged 8 weeks, she hadn’t ever been outside and we took her into our garden on a warm sunny day and she saw her first grass. She went bonkers romping around on the lawn and she’s loved her garden ever since. Yesterday, I thought she might be rallying because she managed to wobble on her poor little arthritic legs to her favourite spot on the grass. She stayed there for an hour or so then wobbled back indoors and has slept since. I think she wanted one last sleep in the sun, with the feel of the grass under her.
In those 17 years, I’ve moved to England to work and come back to Wales. I’ve had several career changes, run my own business and finally achieved my ambition of becoming a full-time artist. New little relatives and friends have been born, while loved family elders, dear friends and respected colleagues have died. Bobbit has been one of the adored cats who have shared my life along the way, moving from being the youngest (and only girl) out of four, to being the grouchy matriarch over two much younger kitties.
As I’m sitting here with her, I think about the people I’ve shared a path with; who is still a friend, who has disappeared out of my life, the important events, the happinesses, the regrets. The death of a pet encapsulates that period of time and all those experiences and sort of brings it to a close. I know that in a couple of weeks I won’t be so upset; that I’ll be able to tell stories about Bobbit and chuckle over them and she’ll take her place fondly in my memory with my other dear cats; Kat, Nellie, Banshee; Freddy Kruger; Sialco and Bola, but for the moment I’m heartbroken to let go of that part of the journey we have shared and to start on a new path without her.
scribblah 
Congrats on your blogging anniversary! Beautiful post about your kitteh.
Thank you. I’m glad I’m still at it 🙂
Me too!
Beautiful! I’ve never had a pet myself (except for a brief spell with a regularly visiting hedgehog to our garden) but have lived with landlords’ cats and when I think of those periods of my life, yes, they are very much another friend I remember fondly. Happy bloggy anniversary – glad to have been able to follow your creative adventures! 🙂
Thank you 🙂
The start of something that has been such fun to follow 🙂
Thanks Helen 🙂
Aww, poor Bobbit! Even I miss her and I only met her a few times!
She did used to make the most spectacular noises. I would say ‘Rest in Peace’, but that’s probably a really boring idea for a puss…
aawww yes I still miss her. She wasn’t a particularly nice cat but she was a real character
Reblogged this on scribblah and commented:
It’s a year since I started blogging, while I was sitting with my little cat who was dying. My friend has just lost her beloved cat this weekend and I thought I’d repost this first blog as a reminder of how important pets are to so many people……
Thank you Rose, that was beautiful.
I add to that my babies, Mork, Tiki, Lucy dog, Brian and Mindi.
Thank you. XXXXX
Thanks Jacki. Do you still have Cheesy Peas then?