Good Bye Old Friend 8-(

[Ji in Hawaii]

On a early June morning in 1996 my son awoke to tell me he heard strange sounds coming from the garage downstairs. My family had just moved from Oahu to Maui to join me after my transfer 6 months earlier. Empty packing boxes were still in the garage, and a strange sound was emanating from one of them. It sounded like some strange creature. When I looked into one of the boxes what I found was this feral kitten abandoned by it's mother placed in the box. She sounded so weird because she was a Siamese kitten and Siamese are known for having a strange voice and also being a much more vocal breed than the average cat. She must have been 2 weeks old at most. I brought her up to the house to the delight of my two boys. I named her Misha. Misha was an unusual cat from the very beginning behaving more like a dog than a cat. She liked lying in water puddles, she also loved to retrieve little balls of wadded up paper for us to throw again repeatedly like a dog. She was always very vocal speaking to us in her strange raspy voice every chance she got. She would also sleep with me every night, and on cold Maui nights (low 30s) she would snuggle up so close that she would push me off the bed. She was always an excellent mouser as well as roach catcher which she would also crunch away on. She loved playing chase with the boys. She would also always be waiting for us just inside the front door whenever we returned from an evening outing. She was also unusual in that she had an interest in firearms and reloading always making sure to check me out when I was either reloading or cleaning a gun sitting there as watching me keeping good company. She was pretty amazing and unique.
This evening at 11:00 pm we had to put her to rest. She developed a large tumor in her jaw which was inoperable. She was also over 16 years old. I really miss that silly cat my friend Misha. Good bye my faithful old friend, I really miss you already. 8-(

[Borregos]

Sorry to hear that, but 16 years is a good age.

[jhrosier]

Sorry for your loss. I had to make the same decision three days ago so I know how it feels.
I'm spending a lot of time remembering the good times and hope that you can do the same.

Jack

[gamekeeper]

Sorry to here that Ji, I hope you find another mouser and reloading companion.

[Tycer]

Thanks for sharing that Ji. Great cat. I'm sorry for your loss. May the Great Architect see fit to send you a new surprise to fill the void left by Misha.

[Pitchy]

Sorry for your lose.

[Streetstar]

Too much of this affecting board members lately (loss of our little furry babies) -

Is it too much to ask that they at least last as long as we do? (i realize the reality of that scenario is the world would be overrun with pets then )

My condolences to your family

[J Miller]

Ji,

I'm so sorry for your loss. You have my condolences. I do know how you're feeling, I've been there myself. Remember the good times.

Joe

[iceman]

Sorry for your loss. Sometimes our furry friends are better than our human friends.

[Malamute]

So sorry to hear it Ji.

I hope you can find another friend soon. I do when I lose a dog. It doesn't take anything away from the old one, and helps heal the sense of loss. There's so many good dogs and cats needing good homes and good people.

[spaceman spiff]

So sorry Ji, what a drag

Such a beautiful cat. I dread losing either of mine.



spaceman

[Griff]

Sorry to hear that Ji, I hope you find another mouser and reloading companion.

I'm afraid our cat simply puts up with my presence...

[Blaine]

A good cat is priceless!

[madman4570]

Sorry for your loss!
Absolutely stunning looking cat!
God Bless

[Hobie]

Any friend is hard to lose as good ones are so hard to find.

[Cherokee]

Been there several times, always a real loss.

[El Chivo]

Too much of this affecting board members lately (loss of our little furry babies) -

Is it too much to ask that they at least last as long as we do? (i realize the reality of that scenario is the world would be overrun with pets then )

or that our life expectancy will drop to 18

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Cats are great, sorry to hear of her passing

[hfcable]

sorry to hear this Ji. our furry friends are among our truest friends. it really hurts to lose them.

[Dave B]

Sorry for the loss of your friend.

Dave B

[Ysabel Kid]

Dang Ji, I'm really sorry to hear that. I still miss the tom I had as a boy, and the one I got shortly after beginning my career.

[samb]

Sorry for your loss, our family lost its cat to old age about 18 months ago, still really miss him.

[papabear]

Ji I am so sorry to hear about your loss
in time your pain will go away but your feelings for her will still be there
Papabear

[CowboyTutt]

I'm very sorry to hear that Ji. I've lost a few cats over the years and I still think of the ones that left even though I have two cats now. They are all different and special. Very sorry my friend. -Tutt

[Ji in Hawaii]

Aloha Friends, Thanks for all the kind words. Misha was extremely special. We buried her in our south yard right in her special spot she always napped in amongst some Aloe plants. We still have my other Maui wildcat "Baby Bird" who was raised with Lucille my wild piggy (still miss that dumb pig). She's also a very unique and special girl. She is acting very insecure with her big sister now gone but she will adjust. I asked the family their thoughts on getting another cat but my boys are hesitant not wanting to go thru heartache again in the future. Maybe too soon to think about it.
My other pet is my Sulcata Tortoise "Hamburger". Two things good about her is that one she will outlive me with her lifespan pushing 200 years (and outweigh me at 200+ pounds full grown), and two you can't get too attached to dumb tortoise (can you?). Hamburger follows me all around the backyard like a puppy.
Thanks again.

"Baby Bird" & Lucille"



"Hamburger" my Sulcata Tortoise

[20cows]

Misha looked so much like an old friend of mine.

The family acquired a siamise kitten when I was five years old and by the time I was six, everyone knew Penelope was mine. I was nineteen when she died of liver failure.

The last time I held her, even though she could no longer see, she knew it was me and purred.

Godspeed, Misha.

[Molasses]

Sorry to hear about your loss, Ji.

Thought I'd be making a similar post a few weeks back. Not looking forward to when I actually do have it to do.

[Birdman]

The two hardest decisions I have ever had to make was also my easiest ones. My Boxer named Mac-A-Doo and my Bullmastiff named Paycheck. Great companions and life long devotion to the grave. I figure a fine animal friend deserves a peaceful and dignified ending. I feel for you and your families loss Ji. A good critter friend is truely priceless.

[piller]

Sorry to hear about your loss. I agree with the other comments above mine, good friends are hard to find.

[madman4570]

I truly believe God made the dog and cat (special)for man.

[2ndovc]

So sorry Ji !

I had a lot of cats as a kid. Had a bunch of good ones.
Old man wouldn't let me have a dog.
Have two favorites, Winston and Ivan the Terrible. Great cats that lived a long time.
If i wasn't so allergic I'd still have one or two.

jason

[Ji in Hawaii]

Thanks again for all the kind comments.
When I was 11 I got a black kitten, my dad named him Russel (always a catch when getting pet approval- dad got to name them). I grew up with the Kaelepulu stream in my backyard, and Russel was there at my side on our little dock keeping me company every time I fished which was practically every day after school. Russel was an extraordinary fisher-cat, he would go down to the bank and actually scoop up minnows with his paws. He also had no fear of water and would raid my bucket of fish I caught by hooking them with his claws and submerging his head underwater when necessary to grab a live Tilapia. Russel lived to a ripe old age of 22 years and got to meet my wife to be, he was at my wedding reception, and he got to meet both my sons. He passed away when I was 33. Before he passed away he got the mange real bag and I remember rubbing him down with aloe sap to give him relief and he would just purr his heart out at all the attention.
I was the 4th owner of Waffles another cat that lived to 22 years. His first owner was my niece, when she moved to Florida my kid sis took in Waffles, and when my sis also moved to Florida a couple years later Waffles became my dad's cat. Waffles outlived both my niece and my dad. He like Russel before him had no fear of water and when I used to go for rows on my dad's dory in the stream he would sometimes jump aboard and join me for a ride.
I've been blessed with several unforgettable animal friends over the years. Wally my boxer mix dog was the best dog I ever had. During my late teens he would join me on pig hunts into Maunawili Valley, and he would also swim with me for hours as I dove to spear fish out on the reef sometimes a half mile swim out, LOVED the water like no other dog. He would also sneak off at night to attack the sprinklers at the nearby country club, and he even returned once with a large cast brass sprinkler head as a trophy. He was poisoned by some swines who stole my weight-lifting gear. I haven't found another dog who even comes close to Wally's intelligence, character, and loyalty, he was an impossible act to follow.
Lucille my pig is a whole 'nother story, the unofficial mascot of the old Leverguns forum. She was amazing.

Sorry for the ramble down memory lane.