Remembering...

This blog site is supposed to be all about family--so I couldn't go to sleep tonight until I acknowledged the loss of a family member. He may have had four legs and fur--but he was part of the Schuldt family household for the last eighteen years.

I remember the year we got Mickey--I was in sixth grade and my friend Emily Kirkland's cat had a litter of kittens. Her mother was eagar to get rid of them and I begged my mom to let me have one. She resisted at first--Dad hated cats and we already had dogs to take care of. But I insisted and she caved. I picked the white calico male--he had black spots all over. We tried to name him Oreo--but he was a Mickey and nothing fit until we hit upon that name.

In the beginning he was a typical kitten--fiesty and lovable. He shredded the curtains in the den and loved biting things--including books. I still have a cute picture of him nawing on the book "Animals Do the Strangest Things." How ironic! He was a terror--but when he wanted to be sweet he really laid it on thick and wormed his way into our hearts. He loved to snuggle under the covers with you and purr.

He started out as an outdoor cat until an unfortunate cat-napping episode took place while we were on vacation one summer. The neighbors decided to shanghai Mickey since he was such an amicable fellow. So mom had a few choice words with them and we got Mickey back. After that (and Mick giving mom poison ivy for the tenth time) he became an indoor kitty. I think the only thing he ever missed was chasing the birds. For years one of his favorite activities was sitting in the dining room window and watching the birds in the yard.

Like all cats he loved sleeping and as soon as I left for college he began snuggling up with mom and dad everynight. Dad insisted he didn't like cats--but every night he left the door open for Mickey and somehow they ended up all cuddled up. Mom loved doing "kitty excersices" with Mick and frequently spent her mornings chatting to him as she got ready for work. She even washed his face when she was washing her own. If you shook a can of pounce, Mickey would always come running--and on Christmas morning he always enjoyed coming downstairs to inspect his stocking and see what treats Santa left for him.

Last week mom called to tell me the vet had discovered fluid on Mickey's lungs and the prognosis wasn't good. So she took him home and she and dad made his last few days comfortable. Mom said today she got home from work and he climbed into her lap and fell asleep--he just seemed to know it was his time to go. He died this evening and mom and dad buried him in the yard. He was a faithful companion for over eighteen years and he will be missed. I know that he is up in pet heaven now with the other Schuldt pets--Winston, Alex, Halley and Shyra--all frolicking together.