Posted: December-24-2009 at 7:38am | IP Logged	Tweet

Although he had only not come home on a cold evening just once before, I wasn't too awfully worried when our little cat Pepper didn't show Tuesday evening. When he didn't show yesterday morning, I started to worry.

Yesterday afternoon, I mustered enough energy (I've been ill for the past 8 days) to get in the car and drive about a 3-4 block perimeter. As I was about to finish (and just 3 doors from home) I glanced up W. Main one last time, thinking he had found a mate, when my worst fear of his fate became reality. There he layed at the curb on the corner of one of the busier neighborhood intersections.

I've never been much of a cat man, but when Pepper showed just after Halloween last year, he never left. He was undersized, but had the biggest heart. Even Pug tolerated him, and would even lay beside him when he watched TV from Tina's lap.

My you RIP my feline friend.

Posted: December-24-2009 at 7:42am | IP Logged	Tweet

That last image was taken a few months back in our basement...that was his "empire" so to speak.

Here's another one I took a few months back as well. He used to love to go to the glass storm door and lay down with Pug watching from inside. They'd just look at each other and sniff the glass, then lay down. I'm really gonna miss that little guy:

Posted: December-24-2009 at 11:41am | IP Logged	Tweet

Bugman, you have no idea how much I understand what you're experiencing. I've never owned a cat before in my life and when I moved into my house 10 years ago this little stray showed up and never left. Thankfully, she's still around, but losing her would bust my chops in a big way. Isn't it funny how all those rough and tumble racers that we all think we are can be brought to our knees by our pets?

My advice, get another one.....not to replace the one you've lost but to give another one a good home and a chance at survival, just like you did for the one you've lost.

Posted: December-25-2009 at 8:50pm | IP Logged	Tweet

Haha, I'm relieved to know I'm not the only cat guy on this board. And I've learned that we don't own them......eventually they own us!

Posted: December-26-2009 at 7:23am | IP Logged	Tweet

WOOWOO, I agree with you completely, I have absolutely no patience for someone that's mean to animals. Here in Knoxville a few months ago we had an incidence where a punk of a man dragged a small dog behind his truck. Luckily, some caring citizens stopped him and called the police who in turn took the dog away from him and took it to the UT vet school/hospital. Being a non profit teaching hospital the school asked for donations, said it would take about $7,000 for all the surgery's, skin grafts, etc. that the little dog would need. Well, at last count over $13,000 had been donated with the extra money to go to the care of some of the other animals as well. And yes, charges were pressed against the punk, he's not had his trial yet though so I'm not sure of what kind of punishment he's going to get. One things for sure, if the locals would have gotten their way he would've been dragged behind a truck for a few miles too.

Posted: December-26-2009 at 7:53am | IP Logged	Tweet

I've been following that story Robbie. That punk should be drug behind his truck, then euthanized.

Thanks for the kind words. SR2, there are many familiar parallels between your story and mine. Didn't want a cat, wasn't all that fond of cats, would rather have a dog...I even did the Wal-Mart thing when he first showed up, haha...

...it's amazing how the right pet, regardless of the type, can get ahold of your heart strings and never let go.

Posted: December-28-2009 at 7:58am | IP Logged	Tweet

Back in high school, my friend Mike and I wanted a dog really bad. My family had "Fuzzy" a little poodle mix, but Mike and I wanted a big dog. He had a fenced yard so it was decided whatever we got would stay at Mike's.

My friend Andy had a female Doberman named "Sabbath". He bred her with Mike's Aunt's Doberman, a giant of a Dobie named "Sampson". For our referral, Mike and I got the pick of her litter. Not too long after that, we got "Rocky". We took him everywhere.

One morning during the summer while working out in one of our football buddy's garage. Somebody opened the door. Rocky, then 3 months old saw something moving behind our friend which turned out to be a cat. Rocky chased it straight into 3rd Avenue, a 4-lane one-way major vein into downtown Huntington. We watched in horror as Rocky got hit hard. The car never stopped...didn't even slow down. Rocky was in bad shape. The vet suggested we put him down. Mike didn't want any part of that, so for the rest of the summer, we did "doggie rehab" on his injured hip, the worst of his injuries.

Rocky made it all the way back and lived for 10 years afterwards. The pain in his hip became unbearable, a problem suffered by Dobermans' that actually haven't sustained injury. By that time, I was living away from Huntington, but Mike was still there. He called me and told me Rocky was real bad and told me of his intentions to have him put to sleep. I agreed. I drove home from the beach and we did it together...a very sad day, but a celebration of a dog's life that might've ended many years earlier had two high school buddies decided a different fate for Rocky.

Posted: December-28-2009 at 12:07pm | IP Logged	Tweet

Wow, cool stories Bug and Woo! It's amazing what effect our pets have on us.....but what amazes me even more are the gene pool leftovers that are cruel to their pets.