DEATH OF A HOUSECAT

Yesterday I stood by as an old friend was euthanized.

“Buzz” the old, black cat turned 21 years old this month. That’s a long time for a cat to live but it is also a long time to know someone let alone to have them live your house alongside your family. Two decades.
When my daughter was a toddler and first learning to speak, she thought that Buzz was her “little brother” and she told people so. Together we had fun creating his “full” name, something like “Button Barrett Browning Bartholomew Burton-Ernie Bodine Piez.” (The family name came from one of his uncles, a huge, hunting yellow-stripped tabby named Apple Piez.)

Despite all those names, he generally just went by “Buzz” or “Buggie”.

There has been a lot of “water under the bridge” since 1984 when we adopted the tiny ball of black fuzz. World leaders came and went, an empire collapsed, borders changed, wars had began and ended and began again. My parents died as did many an aunt and uncle and friend. Still, every evening when we came home Buzz was there to meet us, a comforting, undemanding constant in our lives.

I have always been of the mind that certain animals, particularly cats and horses and, to a lesser degree dogs, transcend their species. If one were to go to an animal shelter and look at a hundred cats, most would be simply that, a cat. But a few, far fewer than 5% I think, are something more. I’ve met such creatures who could single-handedly make me almost believe in reincarnation. I judge that they can be a boon to our lives, become our companions and even our teachers, given the opportunity. They seem to possess human sensibilities and temperament, and such as these are gifts for those of us who can recognize them as such.

I’ve been blessed with knowing a short succession of such intuitive animals. (more…)