In memory of Scribbles September 2001 – September 6th 2015
I never knew I was a cat person. I was brought up with dogs, my mom was actually scared of cats. When I moved into my first home with my new husband we had a cat. I’m not even sure where he came from, and he wasn’t a kitten, but I called him Sylvester and he was the perfect companion. Then I became pregnant and I was told that it was dangerous for me and my baby to have a cat in the house. I was young and naive and I didn’t have the internet to look things up on so in fright I asked my neighbour to take Sylvester for me and she did.
I had two babies and we moved to a new home. When my daughter was around six she became obsessed with cats so we had another one as a pet. The film Casper was out at the time so we called our cat Casper. He lived with us for many years until he met his fate by a car. My daughter was devastated and it took a while before we had another cat.
When she was ready we adopted two kittens, Midnight and Sunshine. Unfortunately Midnight was very poorly and died the day after we took her home. The cat’s home said we could pick another kitten and we went to look. That’s when we argued. I fell in love with a grey cat and she fell for a tabby and white one. In the end we took them both and they became Scribbles (tabby) and Suzie(gray). So now we had three cats altogether.
On the kittens very first outing in the garden I thought they were safely trapped in the bottom end but they managed to escape. I was searching everywhere for them and a neighbour from a couple of doors down helped me look. He found them in his neighbour’s tree and rescued them for me. I invited him for a coffee to say thank you and fourteen years and three kids later those pesky kittens have a lot to answer for because he’s still here!
When I fell pregnant almost four years later I was worried about the risks but proper research told me that it’s still possible to have cats while pregnant, you just need to be careful and clean. When Star came along I bought a cat net for her moses basket but the cats never went near her, so I never bothered using it again. It’s all about how careful you are, don’t leave the baby unattended with the cats around and all will be well.
Then in the winter of 2007 Sunshine grew very sick very quickly. We took him to the animal hospital and they said his lungs were full of water. We are not sure what had happened but basically he had drowned. He’d managed to get back home and crawl behind our tv. The Vet had to put him to sleep as there was no way for him to recover.
In the Summer of 2008 an old lady asked us if we could take in another kitten and we went to look. That’s when we ended up with Salem and Sabrina, two black and white cats.
In 2013 All four cats moved house with us. That was quite daunting. We had them in the spare bedroom for over a week but we gave them lots of attention while they were in there. Then we let them around the house. Then finally they were allowed to go outside. Suzie and Scribbles, the two older cats never went further than the garden.
Scribbles favourite place overnight became the landing. She had her bed there but would often sleep, as if on guard, outside the Little Man’s bedroom. There is still a fur patch there, I can’t bear to clean it up just yet. In the day she would sit on the kitchen windowsill and I would leave the window open for her as it was her preferred way of exit and entry. She loved the front garden. If we went out she would be sitting and waiting for our return.
She had the cutest meow, it really sounded like she was trying to talk.
On 1 September we had a freak hailstorm and Scribbles was outside. She came in quickly but was already soaked. The little ones fetched a towel to dry her off and then gave her a blanket to lie on.
The next day she seemed ok. The following day she was sick a few times. Then the next day she could not even stand up, drink or eat. We took her to the animal hospital and for two days they tried to make her better. Then we got the call saying they could do no more and did we want to be with her. So I took Eldest Daughter and we went and gave her a last fuss. She couldn’t move but we could see she recognised us. We gave her lots of cuddles and she went to sleep forever knowing that we loved her.
Goodnight Scribbles xx
Aww bless Scribbles. Sorry to hear about your loss – she's a lovely looking cat. x
I was sorry to hear about Scribbles. Heartbreaking to lose a furry friend. Our two are 13 and I am dreading the day. x
Oh my, this had me in tears. I still miss my fur babies. I love that your cats brought you love
Oh my I am so sorry. RIP Scribbles x
Oh gosh, this is why I find it hard to have pets, I find the loss too much to bear. Poor scribbles….I hope you're all ok.
Ahh sorry, losing a loved pet is never easy. Mich x
What amazing cat stories and memories you have there. So sorry to hear about Scribbles – sounds like she was a very special cat. x
so sorry to hear about Scribbles, its so awful losing a pet. I love cats and was also told you shouldn't have them when pregnant but luckily this was only 4 years ago so was able to research into why that could be dangerous and since then the only things we've had to change is Tom is in charge of cleaning the litter tray! It's funny the things people say isn't it! x
Oh no good bye Scribbles play well at Rainbow Bridge <3 x
So sorry for your loss
Ah, sorry to hear your sad news. RIP Scribbles.
I am so sorry to hear your sad news. RIP Scribbles
I am so sorry to hear about Scribbles.
So sad, sorry to hear this. Hope time will be a good healer x
Oh I am sorry for your loss. They are a member of the family arent they. xx
Sorry for your loss x
Your love for the cats is infectious and the fact that mostly you have adopted them makes it even more special. Sorry to know about scribbles but she breathed her last in a comfortable abode surrounded by loving pet parents.