Little Mouse

Mouse was the runt of the litter.  She fit in the pocket of my pajamas when she was a kitten, and I named her Mouse because that's exactly what she looked like - a little gray mouse. 

Every one of my cats had a unique personality, and Mouse was no exception.  I wondered many times if cats can get schizophrenia like people do, since she seemed to fit the profile.  For most of her 13 years she lived under my bed.  When I could get close enough to touch her, she cringed as if my very touch caused her pain.   

It was as if she had a sign on her back that said "kick me".  Some of the other cats recognized her weakness and would lay in wait when she came out for food, pouncing on her and chasing her back under the bed.

In March I noticed that she was wheezing.  Her appetite still seemed good, but she was losing weight, and she wasn't a big cat to begin with.  And her behavior changed - she started hanging out with me, jumping up on the couch, laying next to me, and letting me stroke her back.  I put some blankets in an old laundry basket near my bed and Mouse took up residence there.  Her breathing got so bad that I actually dug a grave in my backyard in preparation.  But the vet gave her an antibiotic and an antihistamine, and she rallied just before I came to Minnesota for the summer. 

Sadly, she continued to lose weight, and when my pet sitter took her to the vet he told me that he thought she was in renal failure.  Through my tears I gave him the go-ahead to put her to sleep, knowing that it was the right thing to do for her.  She was 13.

So now my house has 2 cats - Grace (Mouse's Mom) and Sam (Mouse's brother).  I won't have 5 cats sleeping on or near me at night, greeting me at the door, and following me everywhere. 

I've always said that when my cats are gone, so am I.  Not in the literal sense - I just don't want to live in Texas anymore.  The state was good to me job-wise, but I long for the 4 seasons I can enjoy in Minnesota, along with the proximity to my family. 

I didn't know you well Little Mouse, but I'll miss you all the same.  And I know that Sam will miss grabbing you by the scruff of the neck and holding you hostage.