23 March 2009 - Nero goes home

Nero passed away the wee hours this morning - and well, there is not much sadness, since he's lived a very full, long life. Nero was my first cat and it was because of him that I got myself involved with animal welfare on a voluntary basis. He was my 'kid' even before my son came along. That would make him at least 17 years old.

In his life, especially the past few years, I've had occasions where I believed he wasn't going to make it - but he always survived.

This time around, I knew he was going to go for sure - any 'body' could only take so much of illness. He became blind a few years back, then slowly he was hard of hearing, teeth wasn't doing much good for him, so I converted him to soft foods only....finally, the suffering was over.

I told him he had been a good boy and he softly mewed - I also told him that he should just let go and stop the suffering - I'm sure he was - because Nero was never a cat that spent time sleeping - he was always busy chasing the other cats. Staying still must have been hard for him. He hated being caged, I used to have to do that, because he wouldn't allow any other cats to rest or eat.

It's the end of a chapter - rightly so.

No, I don't miss him that way - although I was the only person who could handle him, in his mad frenzy - he would never bite or scratch me - I gave him shelter, when he was a frightenend kitten, just fished out from some drain in Kim Keat - he was abused, had burns on his legs and was anything but a lovely, adorable kitten. He was spitting and clawing everything.

He's the last of the lot in my 'cat history'.

TO me, his passing is the beginning, because everything started with him and now that I have closed many chapters, he's taken my burden with him.

This is the last decent shot of him that I got and I'm posting it again - it's the last -

Goodbye Nero - thank god you didn't suffer much - mummy loves you and I wouldn't have it any other way for you....you waited for every one to pass on, before you left yourself....it's like cleaning things up - you didn't want to die and leave one of them behind...it's so corny....but so you....you were the first and wanted to be the last - you did it...you made it...now go rest