Good-bye Joey - Nov. 1999 - Dec. 2012

From last Christmas

Joey passed away this morning snuggled in his spot on a chair in the bedroom.  My husband and I were with him and surrounded him with loving Reiki light, telling him how much he was loved. It seems he had many things going on with him besides the skin cancer - possibly lymphoma but there were no symptoms until too late.

Taken a few years back.

We put his body on the bed and brought the other cats in to say good-bye.  Ivy in particular took up a position on the bed next to Joey.  Yoko has been sitting with him these last few days snuggled close at all times.  He is buried in the woods on our land beside the cat house with a marker that says  "Your heart is pure, Your soul is free."

Today, I say good-bye, God-speed.
I thank you for your love.
I thank you for choosing me.
I thank you for the joy I have experienced through you.
I thank you for the depth of your old soul as I looked in your eyes.
I thank you for your funny belly that swayed from side to side when you walked.
I thank you for the pleasure of watching you hop sideways when you were happy.
I thank you for your rumbley, growl like purr which you shared with me even your last night on earth.
I thank you for your compassion -  welcoming without pause, any new cat I took in.
I thank you for all your sweet quirky traits that I have come to love.
I thank you for your loyalty - for always forgiving any squabbles and loving the other cats anyway.
I thank you for your companionship.
I thank you for your endlessly generous spirit.
I thank you for sharing your life with me.
I thank you for trusting me.
I thank you for the lessons learned by virtue of our having been in each other's lives.
I thank you for the knowing that even though I am now saying good-bye and letting you go, in this paradox of life, that having let you go, you will  nevertheless be with me always.
I love you.  Go in peace Joey, my love.

Adapted from Saying Good-bye by Elizabeth Severino

Thank you all for your emotional support, donations and kind words during his brief illness.  You have helped more than you will ever know.  I will take a break for blogging for a bit but will be back when my heart is lighter.

Finally Friday with Joey (and Goodbye Judi)

It's me Joey. I have had a really rough week.  I stopped eating much of anything on Sunday last and Mom could not figure out why.  I also vomited bile and foam so she thought it was my CRF and tried giving me more fluids, slippery elm and aloe juice to help my tummy.  We got to the vet  after the weekend and it seems I had some poop in my intestine - constipated is the word, right?

Mom tried all kinds of things, pumpkin, butter, Laxatone but nothing worked and I was still not eating unless she force fed me a watery gruel of baby food or cat food.  Finally she gave me an enema. That was not fun but the poo came out and I did feel better and ate.

But by supper I was not eating again!  The holistic vet has sent Mom some new homeopathic remedies to give me to help me feel better.  I hope they work cuz no one seems to know what is going on.

I am such a good boy and let Mom feed me - if you ever have to force feed a cat - this site is a good one for showing how to do it.  Please keep purring for me cuz I want to stay here for a bit longer with Mom and Pop and the cats.  I know Mom won't give up on me!



We want to say goodbye to our wonderful blogger friend Judibug (of SASS blog) who left this world on Nov. 28, 2012 after a long battle with cancer.  We will miss you and will think of you whenever we see a ladybug! Sending lots of purrs to your family, friends and beloved cats you left behind. A new world awaits you.

"While we are mourning the loss of our friend, others are rejoicing to meet him behind the veil". -                                                                                                     -John Taylor

Wordless Wednesday - Mom Makes the Best Pillow

Wordless Wednesday

Thanksgiving and Joey's Gotcha Day

Welcome one and all to our annual Thanksgiving/Joey's 11th Gotcha Day celebration!!!  CB has him down for the 25th but we do it on Thanksgiving each year.

This year is a very special one since our beloved Joey has been diagnosed with skin cancer and chronic renal failure.  We hope that with treatment he will be around for a long time to come.  We are enjoying each day that we have with him and giving him lots of extra love, special foods and anything he wants, really!

Joey when he was still living outdoors.

In honor of  his 13th year (since he is a feral, we really don't know what day or month he was born other than in fall 1999) we are going to list 13 things that we are so very grateful for about Joey.

1.)  We are grateful for his sweet loving nature.  He gets along with all the other cats and will not fight even when provoked.  He will just walk away.

2.) We are very thankful for his cancer - if it hadn't been for his skin lump, we might not have done blood tests that told us he had chronic renal failure!  We might have lost him to that without even knowing what was wrong since he showed no symptoms of any kidney issues.

3.) We are appreciative of his homeopathic cancer vet - Dr Loops.  So far Joey's lump is shrinking and he is acting more like himself and being more social. Other than his CRF, he has no other symptoms.  So far, so good.

4.) We love his loud numbly purr.  You can't help but hear him.  If he even thinks you are gonna pet him , the motor revs up ad the purr gets going.  It wakes Pop up when he sneaks on the bed with Mom!  She has to keep telling Joey to be quiet and not purr - like that will happen!

5.) We are thankful for his funny sideways hop when he gets excited or happy about something - just like kittens do when they are happy!

Joey with his bandage/bandana

6.) We love his tiny face and huge big golden eyes - he looks so intense when he looks right at you.  He makes eye contact whenever you speak to him.

7.) We love how he loves to help Mom make the bed - hiding under the covers and making her work so hard!!! heehee

8.) We are grateful for how easy going he is - he never makes a problem when he has to go the the vet.  Not even when they have to take blood or give him fluids.  He just lets everyone do the procedures and is happy to help.

9.)We love his big droopy belly that swings from side to side when he walks. He is small but all his weight goes in his belly - always has.  When he was still outside, people thought he was a pregnant girl cat - NOT! 

10.) We love the tiny ear tufts at the end of his ears and the way his left ear has a nick in it - probably from a fight long ago.

11.)We adore how he likes to make a Joey sandwich - snuggled between two ladycats.

Minnie and Joey wrestling years ago.

12.)We are grateful that Joey's litter mate Minnie is still with us and can be with her brother.  Only two other cats from that feral group are still alive now - Sweetpea and Ivy.  Ivy and Joey have grown very close and snuggle often together.

13.) Most importantly, we are very thankful that we took Joey in on impulse that Thanksgiving Day 11 years ago.  He had been in yet another fight and  had an abscess. He came into the enclosed porch willingly but then freaked out and hid behind the freezer all day. It took most of the morning to get him out and into a safe place. Not what Mom had planned during all the dinner preparations!

Enough about Joey - let's get this party going.  Since you all must be chock full of turkey, we are going simple with cake and ice cream to celebrate today! Help yourself, put your feet up and kick back in one of many snuggle spots throughout the house!  Just chill and enjoy the mellowness like our  Joey!

Thank you for stopping by to help us celebrate our Joey.  We do appreciate each and every one of you and hope to be friends for many years to come!  This party will be running for a few days so those of you that are busy on Thursday can still visit!  Happy Thanksgiving from all of us Cats of Wildcat Woods!

This and That Monday with Darby

 Hey ya'll!  It's me Darby today to fill you in on the happenings here at Wildcat Woods.  I have the most important job in the house - snoopervising the computer activities.  My spot is on the chair in front of the computer.  Whoever sits in it, gets me next to them.  If I think they have spent way too much time on the 'puter, I put my paw on their arm and tell them it is time for me!  I have to check out everything that goes on the blog and all 'puter activities.  Wish I could figure out how to do it myself and then I could have even more fun!

We have a special day coming up later this week - Joey's Gotcha Day!  He was gotted on Thanksgiving and we celebrate it on that day every year.  He was diagnosed with skin cancer and chronic renal failure a couple of months ago so he is getting lots of extra attention these days and he loves it.   I will let him say more on Thursday so do come back  - we are throwing a BIG  party!

Since Joey's treatment is ongoing plus other issues with Chica and Yoko, Mom has decided to set up her own holiday auction to raise more green papers.  See our sale blog on the sidebar or in the pages.  Lots of fun stuff.

On a very sad note our friend Huffle from Huffle Mawson, Explorer Cat ran off to the Bridge suddenly today of liver failure while his folks were away.  They have not posted to the blog yet but you can stop by to leave  comforting words.  Sweet dreams Huffle and we will see you again one day soon.