And I'm so sorry to hear about your little friend. I know how much you cared for him both emotionally and medically. Let us hope that he is romping around with his feline friends in that other place. You must have really searched your soul to know what was the best thing to do. And I know you chose well, because it must not have been pleasant to see him suffer, especially towards the end.

Wow, what a great tribute to a great cat. You captured so much of his short life in your words. Judging by the time you posted the eulogy, you had it written while Maxx was lying on the examining table with my arm tight around him and we were struggling with making a decision that would be the right one for him. He was so peaceful throughout the whole thing that I have to believe he knew we were doing it to stop his pain and set him free.

At one point, I knelt on the floor to look up at him on the table and spoke his name. He turned his head toward me and looked into my eyes with his big beautiful ones and blinked three times. Was he saying "I love you"? I believe he was. He has been my constant companion since a week after I retired on March 31st,1998. I shall miss him dearly especially as I work in my garden this year. He really loved to go into the garden with me and follow me around, jumping from behind plants to startle me or joining me on the bench for a rest. We shared hours of quality time.

Mom

I'm really sorry to hear that. He was a good cat. He was cute when he sat in his cat condo. I remember swimming at your parent's pool and he came to the edge to look at me, and maybe lick my wet nose. Your parents must be especially sad, I imagine their house feels a lot bigger without him. Sorry you didn't get to say goodbye.

Karen B.

Goodbye, orange wonder. You only lived a short time but you made the most of it. You were fearless and full of confidence. The world was yours to explore. You leave an emptiness behind you in the hearts of those that loved you, claws and teeth and all. You were the neighbourhood ambassador with every stranger a friend you had yet to meet. You were found at a truckstop and given a home.

I remember the first night I met you, mewling in the middle of the night and keeping me from sleep the night before an exam. I came down to find the most orangest of cats, tiny but brave and ready to assert his dominance over his new home. I put you outside so that I could get some sleep, and you waited in the window to be let back in, as you would repeat over and over again through the years.

It really should be no wonder that you made sure to have other houses in the neighbourhood where you could stay with a welcome like that. But stayed you did, and despite your aggressive exterior you worked your way into the hearts of everyone who knew you. Sometimes you were kinder to strangers then those who were closest to you, but a scratch or a bite from you was worth ten kisses from any other cat.

It was amazing how much you grew from the tiny little foundling that awaited me that night. Big and strong, the hunter and bane of all that flies and all that scurries. I remember that your strength amazed me, and the world was yours to conquer. There was nothing quite like sitting in the backyard by the pool on a hot summer day and watching you stalk in. You embodied the strength and beauty of a warm summer day, and that is how I will always remember you.

There was nothing quite like waking up to your cold kisses or finding you sleeping on my chest. Or waiting to see how you would react to a new girlfriend. You always seemed to know who was good for me and who was trouble. I don't know what I'll do without your wise guidance.

It has been almost six years to the day when I first met you, but it will be much longer until your memory fades away.

When I'm outside on a summer day, and I feel the wind start to pick up ever so slightly, I'll raise my head and look for you. Because I know that's where you'll be.