goodbye agnes

This was Agnes in the prime of her life. She was such a big and gorgeous british shorthair girl.



Her father came from my breeding and I was so happy to buy her. She did well at cat-shows, she was meant to have kittens but she got two stillborn and couldn't care less about that. Later she got an uterus inflammation and was emergency neutered. She really didn't care about that either. After all, kittens are such a nuisance, they take up time and space and energy.



She was a solitaire. Herself enough. Eating, sleeping, cuddling - with humans only of course - was her main interests in life. Other cats were mainly a bother, who tended to come between her and her main interests in life.





She wasn't too fond of Malte either, he was tolerated, but mainly a bother also. But his food was nice. He never dared make a fuss about that, or chase her, keep her in Malte-order - like he tends to do with most of the others, when they don't comply to his set of rules - she always ignored or slapped him if he tried.



She hasn't been herself, really, since January last year. But it wasn't anything obviously noticable in a veterinary examination, the blood samples showed nothing, her weight was the same. Earlier this year she slowly began loosing weight, but she continued to be her-past-year-self. I promised myself once - after a heartbreaking ordeal with a beloved cat in 2002 - to never to let an older cat go through painful examinations, surgery and so forth since, through experience, the prognosis for recovery most always is mirthless. Let them enjoy the time left, keep a close eye on them and be brave when they day come to say goodbye.

Today was that day for Agnes. She was only nine years old, too soon for this, I was reluctant, even though I knew it was the right thing to do. Her condition had rapidly declined. By the looks of her the veterinarian assured me it was the right thing to do, quite likely it was a tumour that caused this. Another one to say the last goodbye to. She peacefully feel asleep in my arms.

Agnes, I'm sure the grass is even greener on the other side, the food glorious and the other cats no bother at all, it has been a pleasure to have you in the family, to know you. Solitaire.