The End of an Era....
Today I lost my Samantha Sweetie after 20 years, 18 of which she spent with me.
Samantha was a stray that I took in May of 1993. My neighbor John had found her at an apartment complex, along with a kitten and brought both home. He said he was going keep the kitten, spay Samantha and make her an outside neighborhood cat. During the next month or so, I fed her and cared for her, but allowed her to roam outside, because she never went very far. I also let her in my house whenever she pleased, and she often rewarded me with “presents.” I was thrilled to see that Samantha was finally filling out, until my mother-in-law pointed out that she was pregnant. So much John having her spayed! I decided then and there that she was now MY cat, and that we were going to keep her kittens as well, because of course, no home would be suitable enough.
Samantha gave birth to 4 beautiful kittens on July 18th 1993 at 6 am (2 of them are still living). She requested my presence that morning by furiously scratching at the door and meowing. I felt honored to be there. She gave birth to Boots and one of his sisters; I thought she was done and went back to bed. Imagine my surprise a couple hours later when I came out to see 2 more kittens nursing! Samantha was a good little mother. She was very attentive to her brood and disciplined them when they misbehaved. When it was time to wean the kittens, she was not happy and would watch them eat solid food disapprovingly, as if she thought they were growing up a little too fast.
Samantha ruled the roost in her own quiet way. She was a petite cat, but a force to be reckoned with if she was crossed. She welcomed each new cat that came into our lives with dignity and grace, as long as they learned their place in the household. She also maintained a special bond with all 4 of her kittens over the years, but it was Dusty to whom she was closest. When Dusty died last year, Samantha was so grief-stricken that I though I was going to lose her then as well.
Samantha took all of life's changes in stride; her kittens maturing, the addition of new cats, moving cross country-all of it was fine with her as long as she and I had each other. In her later years, she developed a charming sort of crankiness that affectionately earned her the title of “Cranky Old Lady.” She also had a loud, sharp meow, partially due to her deafness, that was also part of that charm. Over the last few years, Samantha “adopted” a pillow toy, that she would carry around, meowing as she did so. This would occur at all hours of the night, usually waking me up out of a sound sleep :-) I often wondered if she was reminiscing the days when her kittens were young.
Samantha was lucky to have been blessed with good health (and good genes!) for most of her years. About 3 years ago, she was diagnosed with renal disease which remained stable, and hypertension, which was controlled with medication. This past year, we started treating her for hyperthyroidism. She had grown thinner over the years, but over the past couple months, I noticed a more pronounced weight loss and poor appetite. Samantha also seemed a little senile and forgetful at times, but still wanted to be in the center of activity. Lately, I sensed that something was wrong and when she started circling to the right Monday evening, my intuition was confirmed. By Tuesday morning, Samantha was still circling and seemed disoriented, so I brought her into work with me. She had a seizure while there, so we gave her valium and phenobarbital. Samantha never really regained consciousness, and by this morning, she was comatose. I tried giving her mannitol, in case there was any swelling in her brain, but there was no response. It was like she had already gone to her own place, and there was no choice but to release her from her earthly bonds.
Samantha will forever be my little matriarch. She was one of my very first cats in a long line, and she taught me a lot about living with grace, love, dignity, perseverance and an iron paw.
