| Losing a Pet to Wild Animals
Losing a pet is a sad time for families. Most pets are a major part of the family. Their lose is felt as strongly as any lose can be felt, and the grieving period is different for every pet owner. Like people, not all pets leave us the same way. A pet can pass due to an illness and the vet can put the pet down to avoid further pain. Sometimes a cat or dog can pass by being struck by a car. Discovering this is a painful reality. But for us, this is usually not the case when we lose a pet.
We have lost two sweet cats to wild animals. A fox, coyote or bobcat has taken two of our cats in the past 8 months. Our first loss was on November 4, 2007. It was the daylight savings time day, we changed our clocks, then went into town to buy supplies. When we returned home our old ferrell cat Big Daddy was gone. He was a limping, thin old cat who ran things around here for years. He mated with our cat Dotnet just after we got her and so he was the father to Johnny Cat, an amazing cat that grew to be much larger than both his mom or dad. Big Daddy and I became friends after he showed up one summer, half malled by a wild animal. His head was cut up and I applied neosporan whenever he would let me. He got better and decided to come in through the pet door. He scared the dogs and the cats kept their distance too. But in the winter he would sit on my lap and enjoy the fire while I watched TV. I needed a towel before he hopped up, because he would purr and claw without reguard to scratching me. We pasted summer evenings the same way on the patio. One day my dog Dotcom was pestering Dotnet and Big Daddy got between them. With his body he sheltered Dotnet. She thought he was wonderful after that. She had the same look of disbelief on her face when she watched our dog Dotcom walk through the pet door for the first time. So, they were friends and of course we got her fixed soon after the litter arrived.
Dotnet had four sweet little kittens. The first to use the kitty litter and climb out of the tub, their nursery, was Johnny Cat. He and Dotcom, our dog, would play the strangest game. Our dog would play by getting Johnny's head in her mouth and they would go like wild fire at each other. I was so afraid that Dotcom would hurt the kitten. But he was always fine and thoroughly enjoyed the play. Johnny Cat grew to be a large cat. He would come in through the pet door and cry for me, I would throw him over my should for a pet and put him on the counter for breakfast. Sometimes his mom would attempt to clean him, but Johnny Cat was a big job, so she would lick around his head and ears and he enjoyed the mom attention.
Well, it is summer now and we have had a momma fox and her 3 kits living in a den not too far away from our home. We worried about this large family turning into an even larger fox population, so we trapped a kit with a cage with some fresh chicken. We nabbed a kit each morning, and took them to a good field with lots of wild life to eat. We hoped to catch the mom, maybe we still have a chance. This was just a couple weeks ago. Anyway, we thought we were safe. But it has been two days and Johnny Cat is I am sorry to say, gone. What a sweet big cat he was. His baby cry and want of a little attention was a joy for me. I believe he was lost on June 27, 2008.
I have Dotnet and a little guy named Sequoia. He's a red cat who loved to play with Johnny Cat. Sequoia is an attack cat. I can stop him most of the time if I see him move into action on Dotnet or Johnny. He and Johnny would roll around and play, but Dotnet is always so shocked by the assault. Sequoia is small but always stays close to home, which is a good thing for him. And Dotnet too, as she tends not to wonder too far. So now our Johnny Cat is gone and we will miss him dearly. He was three years and 3 months. I can picture our son Ryan who passed at 14 years of age, holding Johnny Cat and finding a place for him in their spirit lives. Good-buy for now boys.
Johnny Cat
March 9, 2003 - June 27, 2008
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