[Leica] Remembering Smokey

[bdcolen at earthlink.net (B. D. Colen)]

Sorry to hear about Smokey, Adam. Pets are indeed family members, and
while we all have differing views about what we would or wouldn't spend
on the medical care of this particular group of family members, we all
do love them, and know what a blow the loss of one can be.

B. D.

-----Original Message-----
From: lug-bounces+bdcolen=earthlink.net@leica-users.org
[mailto:lug-bounces+bdcolen=earthlink.net@leica-users.org] On Behalf Of
Adam Bridge
Sent: Tuesday, September 07, 2004 1:06 AM
To: Leica Users Group
Subject: [Leica] Remembering Smokey


Last Friday our 17 year-old kitty had to be put down. In the last month
she had stopped eating and was losing weight fast. The vet found a mass
behind her eye which was making it very painful for her to open her
mouth or to swallow.

Death by waisting is awful but since we live next to one of the world's
great schools of vet medicine we took her to UCD. On Friday they did a
CT scan which found another tumor on her spine and one in her lungs.
They were all metastacizing carcinomas which do not respond well at all
to chemo. So we decided to have her not awaken from the anestheia.

<http://www.splitsecondfilms.com/2004-Sept/Smokey.jpg>

Smokey was our daughter's kitty, since 3rd grade, and an ideal little
girl's cat who would suffer the greatest indignities in silence (but
only if Margaret did them.)  Outside the house she was an avid mouser
who often delivered half-eaten prey to the back door for praise. Her
greatest victory was a scrub jay who had been tormenting our dog.

Smokey was a jumper and a climber. Our family room has an 18 foot
ceiling and when be brought in a Christmas tree that almost touched the
ceiling Smokey felt obliged to climb - and almost toppled that tree -
and several other smaller ones in future years - more than once. She
would even climb the step ladders.

Smokey lived in a home ruled by a black tyrant named Sunday who
absolutely forbade her to sleep upstairs. Our dog, Wags, was the
enforcer. Both passed on but after Wags died it took nearly six months
before Smokey would venture upstairs where she quickly found a home in
my studio, on a cushioned chair, reaching out a paw to remind me to pet
her from time to time.

I was bothered by the expense of taking her to the vet school - so much
to spend when so many are dying with less medical care than one of our
pets could receive. And yet. And yet...she was FAMILY and it is only
right she be treated with the same respect and compassion as any other
member.

The image I have posted was taken at the beginning of the year on a
rainy January day. She didn't like the rain. I had been shooting cat
pictures - I think Kyle (or someone) suggested that we do.  For some
reason we didn't take a lot of pictures of her. A pair of green eyes
deep in the Christmas tree for sure. I need to take more photos of the
ones I care about.

She was a wonderful cat.

I will miss her terribly.

Adam
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