Sam Cooper
My cat.
We first met when I was 13. My friend had a few cats and the female had gotten knocked up entirely too young. So young in fact they hadn't had a chance to have her spade. She had a litter and was able to nurse them but wasn't a very good mother. She was too much a kitten and had to be seperated from her brood because she thought they were toys and my friend's parents feared for the kittens. Once they were old enough to be weaned I asked and was allowed to take one. I chose the runt of the litter. Sam we called him.
He grew, and grew some more, and grew a little more. Ending up being a 14 pound highly masculine cat despite being the teeniest kitten in the crew. We had him fixed and he never sprayed but he was territorial and acted more like a guard dog of our house than a typical cat. This was in Missouri and cats aren't always treated nicely down there so we kept him as an inside cat. He would run with his claws fully extended and because of this if he went across your legs he could shred clothing and skin. So we declawed him in the front. This sent him into a terrible depression and we didn't know what to do. He hid for two days and wouldn't eat. Finally someone (the vet maybe, I don't recall) had the idea to pretend he had claws in the front still. We tried it, we scolded him for clawing at things and played with his paws and it brought him out of his funk. However there was a humorous side effect. From then on he always believed he had front claws. He would sharpen them carefully every day and after a period of time his pads built up quite a callous on the tips so it even felt like he had nubby claws when he swatted at a person playfully.
Sam was one of the more loving cats I have known. Initially he hated being touched and held but I worked with him for quite some time as only a lonely kid in a shattered home would devote to an animal. Eventually he became a "lap cat" who preffered to hang out with which ever human was around. He was my friend and companion on many horrible days.
Later when my sister got a kitten we called Buttons we ran into a typical pet store problem. Buttons was taken too young from his mother. He still needed to nurse. Here is the very strange part. Sam took him under his wing as it were. He let Buttons nurse on him, something the vet told us was highly unusual in males especially of the feline sort. He played with him, slept with him and cleaned him. He did all the things a momma cat should do and I found it ironic that his momma never taught him this stuff. They were best friends and always snoozed together.
Fast foward nearly 17 years. Sam is old, senile and sick. He has been throwing up daily for a week now. His hair is coming out in clumps. The thing that is hardest is he is still as friendly as ever. He doesn't seem to be in pain except when he throws up. But he is dying rapidly and there is nothing I can do about it. Last night he began to meow constantly. I got up to feed him, he threw it right back up. Then he meowed very loudly regardless of the attention I gave him. He passed out afterwards. This morning he couldn't keep his food down again and when I pet him his fur was just falling out in my hand in clumps. I decided it was time.
I will miss you Sam. Your the first animal I have had from the start to the finish. Your a best friend that I will not ever forget.
We first met when I was 13. My friend had a few cats and the female had gotten knocked up entirely too young. So young in fact they hadn't had a chance to have her spade. She had a litter and was able to nurse them but wasn't a very good mother. She was too much a kitten and had to be seperated from her brood because she thought they were toys and my friend's parents feared for the kittens. Once they were old enough to be weaned I asked and was allowed to take one. I chose the runt of the litter. Sam we called him.
He grew, and grew some more, and grew a little more. Ending up being a 14 pound highly masculine cat despite being the teeniest kitten in the crew. We had him fixed and he never sprayed but he was territorial and acted more like a guard dog of our house than a typical cat. This was in Missouri and cats aren't always treated nicely down there so we kept him as an inside cat. He would run with his claws fully extended and because of this if he went across your legs he could shred clothing and skin. So we declawed him in the front. This sent him into a terrible depression and we didn't know what to do. He hid for two days and wouldn't eat. Finally someone (the vet maybe, I don't recall) had the idea to pretend he had claws in the front still. We tried it, we scolded him for clawing at things and played with his paws and it brought him out of his funk. However there was a humorous side effect. From then on he always believed he had front claws. He would sharpen them carefully every day and after a period of time his pads built up quite a callous on the tips so it even felt like he had nubby claws when he swatted at a person playfully.
Sam was one of the more loving cats I have known. Initially he hated being touched and held but I worked with him for quite some time as only a lonely kid in a shattered home would devote to an animal. Eventually he became a "lap cat" who preffered to hang out with which ever human was around. He was my friend and companion on many horrible days.
Later when my sister got a kitten we called Buttons we ran into a typical pet store problem. Buttons was taken too young from his mother. He still needed to nurse. Here is the very strange part. Sam took him under his wing as it were. He let Buttons nurse on him, something the vet told us was highly unusual in males especially of the feline sort. He played with him, slept with him and cleaned him. He did all the things a momma cat should do and I found it ironic that his momma never taught him this stuff. They were best friends and always snoozed together.
Fast foward nearly 17 years. Sam is old, senile and sick. He has been throwing up daily for a week now. His hair is coming out in clumps. The thing that is hardest is he is still as friendly as ever. He doesn't seem to be in pain except when he throws up. But he is dying rapidly and there is nothing I can do about it. Last night he began to meow constantly. I got up to feed him, he threw it right back up. Then he meowed very loudly regardless of the attention I gave him. He passed out afterwards. This morning he couldn't keep his food down again and when I pet him his fur was just falling out in my hand in clumps. I decided it was time.
I will miss you Sam. Your the first animal I have had from the start to the finish. Your a best friend that I will not ever forget.