Some years later we bought a townhouse and Snooky quickly found all her own private places there too. She would run up and down the stairs chasing sunbeams from the skylight at the top. At the bottom of the stairs, there was a tile landing and often she would skid across the tile at the end of her run and turn to look at us as if to say, “look what I can do.”
It was there at the townhouse that Snooky matured into an older cat and at the age of thirteen, endured the Northridge earthquake with us in 1994. As we slept at 4:01 A.M. that morning, the earth began to move and Snooky was the first to let us know something was wrong. She let out the loudest meow we had ever heard moments before the earth shook and woke both of us. Thankfully, except for a few broken dishes and some cracks we survived. For days, there were aftershocks and she was the first to run up the stairs seconds before the shaking began. We learned to brace ourselves when Snooky did a stair run.
Snooky July 1981- August 1996
A year later we moved to our first real home about 15 miles away and Snooky took her first long car ride on the Ventura freeway. She was not a happy camper. She darted between the front seat and the back seat helping us realize that an animal carrier might have been a good investment. At the new house, she soon found the special places she liked again and adapted well. There were things she liked about both of us. One of us knew just where to scratch and the other knew just how to massage her paws. She would open her toes wide and enjoy a good toe massage every evening.
At the age of fifteen Snooky began to show signs of illness. She had frequent bouts of diarrhea and vomiting, so much so that we decided to take her to the vet. They could find nothing wrong with her and told us at her age, we could expect to see declining health. She became very lethargic and lost a good deal of weight. She would still come and sit with us as we watched TV or ate our meals but often chose to sleep on the den floor instead of in bed with us as she had done for so long.
One evening when I came home from work, she was on the floor in the kitchen and seemed to be very ill. We talked about having her put to sleep but we just couldn't bear it. We felt she would be more comfortable in her last days, at home with us. In hindsight that may have been a selfish move on our part but we were family and she would still lie comfortably on our laps in the evening. She didn't seem to be suffering any pain but was just tired and much slower.
One morning when I got up, I went to the den to check on her and found her unresponsive. As we both sat on the floor with her, she breathed her last breath knowing we were both there with her. As we came into the room, she opened her eyes as if to see both of us for the last time.
Where we buried her, a pink rose bush grew and bloomed every year on her July birthday. We still speak of her often and think of her fondly.
A Rose in her Honor
The house was so silent without her. It was odd, she never made a noise but there was an emptiness that was hard to describe with her gone.
We decided in her honor to adopt another kitten soon after. Again, we visited the local Humane Society. This time, there were two little kittens that caught our eye. They were listed as brother and sister from the same litter and the little girl that had to give them up requested the adopters contact her.
The eight year-old girl told us that they just had more animals than her mom was willing to deal with and the two kittens had to go. She hoped they would go to a good home and we assured her they had.
One was a gray shorthair with a white tummy and the other was all black with longer hair. Still, there was something about the strange little Roman nose on both of them that gave them away as siblings. We were fond of the movie “Tess” and chose to name them after a character in the movie, Angel Clair. The gray one was Angel and the black one was Clair.
Again they were taken to the vet for spaying and neutering respectively. The veterinarian looked them both over and told us he would call when we could pick them up. Shortly after arriving home from the vet, the phone rang and the vet told us he was terribly sorry but there was a problem. Our hearts sank thinking something was wrong with our new kittens. When we asked what the problem was he told us that the black kitty was a boy also. I laughed out loud and asked if that was the only problem. He told us it was and that if we wanted, he would neuter both of them. We of course agreed but were inclined to change Clair's name to Clarence.
Clarence and Angel, 6 Months
As all cats do, they too have their individual personalities. Angel remained very small but very dominating while Clarence grew to be a hefty 15 pounds and very shy.
Angel Does a Houdini
(He was not placed in this position on the door we simply found him like this, I swear!) Below there is a bathroom sink and we presume he jumped from the sink.
As you can see, he's kind of into sinks.
They have their sibling fights and then curl up together in the sunlight and sleep. They love to play in the back yard under our close supervision.
We moved a thousand miles north to Oregon in 2005 and they have enjoyed watching the snowflakes through the window and have made friends with a raccoon, several squirrels and a few deer from the safety of the sliding door. They will be twelve years old in July of 2008.
Look mean and evil
Cats by nature, throw up a lot for no apparent reason, they cause allergies in some people and there can be a problem with shedding. However, they are people animals and adopt you rather than the other way around. They can be a lovable addition to any family and if brought up around children, can be very childproof. They lovingly endure being carried upside-down by toddlers and will gladly share their meal with your child, if you're not careful.
Clarence spots and intruder
I highly recommend a cat as a household pet. Just remember, if you don't want to be awakened by your cat plinking across your piano keys at 3:00 A.M. keep the key cover closed at night.
You can spend a fortune on books about cats and some are quite useful but if you really want to enjoy your cat, just experience him or her for yourself.
xoxo
JVB