Odd Man Out

Buddy was my brothers dog originally. He would play with his dog & cat, but was too much of a handfull for his adopted father. So my brother, Mike, drove him from New Jersey to Texarkana to give to me. We brought him back to Hot Springs Arkansas immediatetly where he decided he belonged to my roommate Clark. Though he is loved by both of us, he is most definately Clark's 4-legged son.

Buddy was welcomed with opened arms ---by Clark & I that is. Tinkerbell refused to except him. Our other children tolerate him & may sometimes even play with him --but his true playmate is his father. Buddy adores his father as much as his father adores him.

My Shiny Hiny

Though the fur is slowly growing back & the stitches are due to come out Monday morning, Paco's Hiny is still Shiny. In two weeks the soft cast will come off, but he'll still be confined to the bedroom for another month. This will be hard on him without Tinkerbell by his side day & night.

As for the culprit responsible for his broken hind leg, she was chased off by our dog Buddy a few days ago. I was sad to see the kitty-cat go knowing she was scared & lost. I pray that she has found a new home where she'll feel safe & hunger free.

Missing You

Tinkerbell's cancer had spread to her liver causing fluid build up. The fluid was enabling her diaphragm to extend out like normal when breathing. For almost a month, the steroids & diuretics were helping her with this problem. Then she took a turn for the worst & her high-dose medication wasn't enough anymore. I had to put my poor baby to sleep Thursday afternoon because she was suffering horribly from not being able to breath. When she got up and barely moved around anywhere, she would collapse & fight for air. Going to the bathroom was the most difficult for her. Letting her go was the hardest thing I have ever done.

Tinkerbell would be 12 years old in March. My Mom brought her home to me when she was 4 weeks old in April 1997. Mom got her from 'Frye Fest' in Denton Texas. Tink-Tink's foster parents had to bottle feed her & her sibling at 2 weeks old. A stray cat had her kittens in their garage & was later hit by a car and passed on. Though I wasn't sure of having a 2nd cat in my home, I immediately fell in love with Tinkerbell. It took a little bit for her to warm the heart of my furry son, BooBoo. Tink-Tink-Tink would put her front paws & entire face in her plate of canned food. She would come to me afterwards all a mess. I would try to clean her as best as I could with a wash cloth, but the food would stick to her fur like glue. Finally, BooBoo got fed up with her dirty face & with one paw held her down & starting bathing her. From then on they were Father and Daughter. They adored each other and Tinkerbell would follow BooBoo everywhere. In March 2001, BooBoo disappeared off the front porch around noon. (I later realized coyotes had taken him along with all the stray cats in that general area.) BooBoo was 13 of age, and enjoyed an occasional cat nap on the porch. We would never see him again, causing both Tinkerbell & me to both go into a deep depression. Meanwhile, my kitten Paco, who came into our home in 2000, loved both BooBoo and Tinkerbell. At 1st he was not excepted by either cats, but finally won over their hearts. Tinkerbell saw Paco as her child and Paco saw her as his mother. They had 9 wonderful years together. Paco even got to be by Tinkerbell's side as she passed on. She looked at Paco the entire time. That night of her death, Paco woke me up looking under the covers for her. He hasn't been purring as much since he realized that she was gone. Paco & I both miss & love Tink-Tink incredibly. She will never fade from our hearts. Tinkerbell loved Q-Tips & Catnip. She didn't except all the pets in our home, but she never hurt any of them either... not even my teddy bear hamster, Godiva, that would escape from her cage & ball on occasion. When she would defend herself from her pesty brother, Angel, she would stand up throwing her front arms above her like a grizzly bear. When Tinkerbell looked at you, she would be wide-eyed and move her neck side to side like an Owl. We often laughed at how she looked like an owl. She loved to play with a string dangled in front of her. She'd open her mouth & throw out her front paws trying to catch it. She loved the sunlight & fresh air. She would lounge in front of a window for hours. Her favorite thing to eat was pureed canned food and tuna fish (mainly the juice). Since she was diagnosed with cancer, I fed her ALL the canned food she wanted... There was no such thing as too much for my little Lady-bug. She would stand up & tap me with her paw and repeat this to get my attention when she wanted to be petted her held. When she was petted, her motar would run loud.... Puuuuurrrrrr. She loved to drink the water from the bathtub. This was her spa time with me. ;) She had extra toes on her front paws that were like thumbs and she could turn my chain lamp on & off --which she loved to do. She loved her cat beds & cat trees. Even though she was declawed (due to her claws between her toes hooking around back into her feet) they came back slightly which she felt needed to be sharpened on the carpet & furniture... though there wasn't enough nail there to do any damage. Tinkerbell was a Lady and an Angel. She was also the Queen of the house. She felt the closet was her own personal bedroom... a place to escape from her brothers whenever they were getting on her nerves. Tinkerbell is in Heaven now with her father, BooBoo, and her other child, Miss Pandy. Some day Paco & I will meet up with her, until then God will keep her safe, happy and free from all pain. I miss you Tinky-Binky. I love you so much. You're my little Lady-bug.