She had not been well since Christmas.
Last August she had breast cancer- yes, female cats suffer too from that horrific disease- and she had to have her mammory glands removed. She recovered very quickly and we had another six glorious months with her. The past two have been trying. Pills, constantly changing food, encouraging her to eat and lots of nursing from her loving Dads.
She started letting me know that it was time for her to go on Wednesday evening, a few hours after Tom left for a flight to London. I asked her to please try to stay well until Tom returned Friday evening. She did that and I love her for it. I gave her a thousand kisses.
Tom was only home for a half hour when she began to have some pain. She cried out to us. She looked terrified.
Tom called the emergency vet clinic in Barrie to say we were coming. I wrapped her in the reddy-brown blanket she layed on in the front bedroom. It was a blanket I had on my bed as a youngster. Seemed fitting somehow. She calmed down. Kiki and Missy nuzzled her before we left the house.
Luma passed away peacefully- with her left paw covering her eyes. We had barely got onto the highway.
I said- "Tom, she's gone..."
We continued to the vets.
They were very nice. Sharon gave us a room where we spent a half hour petting and hugging her.
Luma will be cremated in Gueph and will be returned to us within a couple of weeks.
She was a wonderful member of our family....but then isn't every pet very special? I could tell you a thousand things about her. She was a real "sister" to Kiki- our yellow lab. Often they would lay stretched out back to back on our bed or in the sunshine. Missy- our mini-schnauzer, loved to play with her and they would run around the house until Luma got tired and she would turn and slap Missy on the face. That was the end of the games- for now.
Luma loved to lay on the wicker on our verandah in the summer. She was even the cover "Calendar Girl" of 2009's OSPCA Calendar. That's the picture you see above.
She loved getting "raspberries" on her belly. I gave her one more while she lay on her cozy blanket at the clinic.
We'll miss her every day.
A thousand kisses, Luma.
We'll be seeing you.
Love,
Your Dads.
