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Welcome to the world of the Vincent D'Onofrio obsessed - and a bit of real life thrown in.


Tuesday, March 06, 2012

20 Years ago today - my first pet bereavement

When I was a child, we had pets that died. But Biggles was the first of my own pets to die.

He was not my first cat. That was Puddy, who was several years older than Biggles, but outlived him by 3 months.
Biggles was the kitten of a pregnant stray I took in for my mother. She was adopted by a neighbour, who called her Glenda, and had four sweeties under his bed. My then husband and I adopted Biggles, named after a fictional flying ace. He was born on 11th August 1976.

He was a little so-and-so from the start, constantly tormenting Puddy, who never became accustomed to him. He was also incredibly affectionate.

He developed kidney disease in his early teens, and was successfully treated with steroids. But these were not as effective as present-day treatments, and 18 months on, at the age of only 14-and-a-half, I had to have him put to sleep.

Biggles was wonderful, and losing him broke my heart. Shortly after losing him, and before Puddy died, I took on Shelley (who died in 2010 aged 19 years 5 months) and his brother Byron (who dies aged 5 after an unknown accident). Since Puddy's death I have always had at least 2 cats, and aside from the original 4, I still have them all, two aged 18, two nearly 16, one almost 15 and a nearly-14-year-old.

They really are like a family to me.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

We got my first dog when I was 12, he died when I was 26, something that as SO traumatic, I've never had another one.

JoJo said...

I wasn't allowed to have pets as a kid. My mom had her cat and I was indifferent to Benji...he was HER cat. After she had him put down when he was sick at the age of 13, she decreed 'no pets ever'. I have only lost hamsters and guinea pigs to date. I DREAD the day I lose the Bean or Sagan....

sixtwosue said...

I was just looking at my favorite cat today (I hope it's OK to admit that I have a favorite), and thinking how broken up I'll be when he's gone. I think it's so nice that you keep these pets so close to your heart, remembering the day they passed away. They are all so special with their distinct personalities, aren't they?

vikeau said...

Diane I agree, I haven't been able to have another pet since I was a kid. I've lost relatives who were near and dear but losing Spot(yes that was my dog's name) was something totally different and at times I still don't think I've gotten over it. But val and all others who have pets--keep going. I think its wonderful.

Anonymous said...

Glad I'm not the only one Vikeau! Everyone usually says 'How can you not have another one?' My problem was I didn't want 'another one' I wanted the one I had.

Ruby said...

They are all such precious family members. All are and have been like kids to me.

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