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Related: Culture Forums, Support ForumsI said goodbye to my sweet Boudicca, this morning
I could tell she was ready to go, but it's still hard for me to LET her go. She was sweet, full purrs and personality, VERY feisty (typical tortie) loved scritches and really loved whipped cream. I gave her one last treat, just before we left the house.
I like to think she's now getting those scritches from my sister. Picturing Boud sitting on Chris' lap gives me great comfort. My sister though Boudicca was a stunning cat - and she was.
So, this afternoon I'll drink a toast to my friend.
redwitch
(14,944 posts)I am sorry she had to leave you.
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)We were worried she had gone feral, despite being 100% indoors. But she took to me and my house, immediately.
MuseRider
(34,111 posts)I am so sorry. It always hurts so much. One day you can remember all the wonderful times without tears. Until then you just have to wait it out. It is incredibly hard but you did the right thing and I hope you can draw comfort from that as well. Your sister will enjoy the company. Many hugs to you and RIP sweet, beautiful kitty.
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)Under other circumstances, I think she would have taken her in. She already had two very active Jack Russells, and nobody thought that would be a good mix.
Tikki
(14,557 posts)Boudicca knew she was loved and you knew she loved you.
What a great experience in our life to have fur babies there with us.
Tikki
She was a cat with a big personality and a bigger heart.
sinkingfeeling
(51,460 posts)Siwsan
(26,269 posts)Even when you know it's the right thing to do, the responsibility to make that decision is a heavy load.
Fla Dem
(23,691 posts)Siwsan
(26,269 posts)Thank you.
Scarsdale
(9,426 posts)So sorry for your loss. Torties are special, I had one and was so sad when I had to put her down. So very sick. That girl was 10 lbs. of feisty! Proved daily that "dynamite comes in small packages" Treasure the many happy memories.
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)I could pet and scritch her, all day, but she had a short tolerance for anyone else.
NewDayOranges
(692 posts)SMILE because it happened...
I hope you will soon be able to remember your sweet Boud without tears...
mjvpi
(1,388 posts)Siwsan
(26,269 posts)I'm day 2 into the tears, but my little tuxedo cat, Sophie Stinky Toes, is doing her best to distract me.
catbyte
(34,403 posts)I knew I could count on my DU friends for some comfort.
irisblue
(32,982 posts)I am so so sorry, it hurts so much.
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)I've had a whole lot of losses, over the past 4 years, and this came on the heels of losing my cousin and uncle.
COL Mustard
(5,906 posts)Because we love them so much.
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)kag
(4,079 posts)I'll hug my kitties a little longer today (even though they'll pull away and go about their business). Take care.
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)She's a good distraction from grief.
gademocrat7
(10,660 posts)Siwsan
(26,269 posts)pazzyanne
(6,556 posts)I have my first tortie, and she is also awesome. She looks a lot like your Boudicca, she is also feisty. Halle just turned 7 and have raised her since she was about a week old. My being her Mom never gets in the way of her asserting herself. I know I would desperately miss Halle so I have an idea how you feel about your tortie. Prayers in the wind for you and a peaceful crossing of the Rainbow Bridge for Boudicca.
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)She could go from fierce to sweet in the blink of an eye.
tblue37
(65,408 posts)(as well as other pets), so I know how much you are hurting right now.
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)I'm going to take my time in deciding on another pet. I might try fostering, but not any time soon.
tblue37
(65,408 posts)that I had not gone looking for. It's as though my lost cat has sent me a kitten or young cat to help me deal with the loss. When my 20-year-old Gabby died, I ended up choosing a kitten from a rescue group to keep my other cat company, but then a month later a friend called to ask if I would take a tiny feral kitten that had been found where she worked.
Some years later, as the oldest of my three days was hearing her end, a friend ended up with unplanned kittens from her cat that had gotten out a week before being spayed. I adopted one of them, so I still had three when my Lila died at 18+ years.
Then, 5 years ago a feral cat started following me on my walks, so I ended up adopting him, too.
My sister, too, always ends up unexpectedly encountering a new kitten whenever she loses a cat. Once,just a few days after her old cat had died, her son and his fiancee found a kitten sitting alone right outside the place where they worked. Naturally they gave the kitten to my sister.
If a homeless cat or kitten suddenly appears on your radar, you will probably adopt it, even if you hadn't planned on getting another cat so soon.
I hope the lonely place in your heart is filled with another precious friend soon.
ZeroSomeBrains
(638 posts)I too have had to say goodbye to a good many pets. It never is easy tho.
Response to Siwsan (Original post)
Rainbow Droid This message was self-deleted by its author.
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)I still expect to see her, sitting in the hallway, right in front of the doorway to the kitchen.
WinstonSmith4740
(3,056 posts)Siwsan
(26,269 posts)She had one last burst of energy, at the vet's, but both the technician and the doctor assured me I was making the right decision.
47of74
(18,470 posts)It's never easy when the furry family members leave us for the bridge.
We have to do what's best for them, not what we think is best for us. Definitely one of the more difficult decisions I've had to make.
area51
(11,911 posts)The support from my friends on DU has been like a balm to my spirit.
SammyWinstonJack
(44,130 posts)and VERY feisty.
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)Same with picking up a can of tuna. Don't know HOW she knew, but she did.
Bayard
(22,100 posts)I mourn my lost ones everyday, but I do that because each one was so special.
As was your Boud, so special.
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)She loved to greet guests, but tolerated them for just so long. She might hiss at an adult, but if a child got on her nerves, she just ran away. For which I was always grateful.
lillypaddle
(9,581 posts)RIP Boudicca & for Siwsan
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)When I'm ready, I'm going to print out a few photos and frame them.
LiberalFighter
(50,950 posts)Siwsan
(26,269 posts)We rescued her from an awful situation - the house of a drug addicted hoarder. When anyone came into that house, she would burrow into the debris so they worried she had gone feral.
But, once they got her out of that house, and into mine, she immediately adjusted and became a very social kitty.
LiberalFighter
(50,950 posts)The right environment and people can bring the good out of them.
JudyM
(29,251 posts)So sorry for your loss, she looks like a real sweetheart, Siwsan. Hoping your heavy heart will soon feel mostly gratitude and peace rather than this wrenching pain.
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)Thank you!
Ohiogal
(32,007 posts)I know how it feels to lose a pet. May her memories warm your heart forever.
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)There's definitely a void in the house's energy, today.
emmaverybo
(8,144 posts)Siwsan
(26,269 posts)And a fierce guardian of the property, via her observations through the window. She had NO tolerance for any stray cats wandering past her line of sight.
emmaverybo
(8,144 posts)spooky3
(34,460 posts)Sweet kitty.
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)I already miss her head 'boops'.
MLAA
(17,298 posts)Siwsan
(26,269 posts)And cat treats. She did love her cat treats.
Maraya1969
(22,484 posts)Siwsan
(26,269 posts)I feel like I've done nothing but grieve losses, over the past 4 years. My mom, sister, aunt, cousin, uncle, and now Boudicca.
nocoincidences
(2,220 posts)Very sorry she had to leave you, but it's good to know she will have your sister to greet her.
Wonderful fierce name for her, too.
I had a large yellow and black garden spider named Boudicca back in the Seventies.
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)Since Torties were sacred to the ancient people of Britain, what better name to give her than that of a Warrior Queen.
Jack-o-Lantern
(967 posts)Siwsan
(26,269 posts)Thank you!
The Velveteen Ocelot
(115,735 posts)She'll be greeted by my tortie Alice at the Rainbow Bridge. She had a great kitty life with you.
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)They would tolerate no nonsense, other than that caused by themselves.
The Velveteen Ocelot
(115,735 posts)Grieve not,
nor speak of me with tears,
but laugh and talk of me
as if I were beside you -
I loved you so -
'twas Heaven here with you
~Isla Paschal Richardson
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)I'm going to copy them down for future use. Thank you!
femmedem
(8,203 posts)I'm sure you gave her as much love and comfort as she gave you.
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)Would another day or two have been too much, or too little. I just had to go with my gut feeling, and the vet and the technician both told me I had made the right decision. She was failing, she wouldn't get better, but was not yet in pain.
So she went with my hand petting her off on to her next adventure.
Phentex
(16,334 posts)she was beautiful.
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)I still catch myself looking for her.
ChazInAz
(2,569 posts)There's a prayer in Egypt's Book of the Dead. When the time comes, I send my little partners off with it.
"I stand at the Gates of Dawn. Behold, I am young again forever, and at play on the Isle of Reeds."
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)One of the hardest things was watching her coat lose its luster, and her energy fading away. Thinking of her being full of energy, again, somewhat eases the pain.
wendyb-NC
(3,328 posts)She knows you loved her and will shine down on you from her heart.
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)She had a comfortable, content life.
drmeow
(5,020 posts)I'm so sorry for your loss.
Torties are special. And, of course, she knew it!
Gothmog
(145,321 posts)I am sorry for your loss
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)The first five were humans, but this loss is no less painful
redstateblues
(10,565 posts)I lost both of my furry friends this year. Mr. B and Daisy. I still miss them terribly
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)Probably more than we give to them.
redstateblues
(10,565 posts)InAbLuEsTaTe
(24,122 posts)Siwsan
(26,269 posts)I want to start working on a nice little memorial stone, for her.
RedParrot
(112 posts)Siwsan
(26,269 posts)But I've had so much support, for which I am so grateful.
Blue_Tires
(55,445 posts)all the fun times we had together... I loop them over in my mind like a highlight reel...
I'm so so sorry for your loss..
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)She had a look of. pure bliss.
MontanaMama
(23,322 posts)Im very sorry for your loss.
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)Absolutely stunning.
demmiblue
(36,865 posts)The connection with our beloved furry friends is just so deep.
Letting her go, in the physical sense, was the best gift you could give her (a lesson I learned the hard way).
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)Yesterday morning, for the first time ever, she was hunkered down, beneath a chair. And, for most of Sunday she was either sleeping, or engaged in what I describe as the 'thousand mile stare'. So, I knew she was starting to suffer.
And, I know if it wasn't the time, my vet would have told me. The vet clinic I use has been so helpful and supportive. The clinic is an independent, local business that has been in the same location for 62 years. It's a no frill structure with a staff of human angels.
Laffy Kat
(16,383 posts)You gave her a wonderful life. And, yes, torties are the best.
Siwsan
(26,269 posts)I was allowed liberties, such as touching her tail or scratching her head for more than a few seconds. Others got the 'hiss' when they crossed that mysterious line.
She gave my brother a LITTLE leeway and would always come running when he came to visit because he always fussed over her. Another way I knew it was close to her time was that she didn't come running to greet him, on Friday.
Niagara
(7,627 posts)We will never forget your sweet smile.
I'm sorry to hear this, Hugs to you, Siwsan.