Thursday, May 04, 2006

Remembering Iggy

I was so touched yesterday and in tears of the Meezer's loss of Norton. I knew he had good life and who oculdn't be touched by the loving tribute, yet I was dissolved and more upset than I could imagine. I didn't know this cat, yet I felt as if I had lost one of my own. I realized then, that yes, indeed I had. This coming Sunday is the one year anniversary of the loss of my own old ginger cat, Iggy.

Iggy was only 16 but we had 16 long years together. He was a cat that had such personality, though I have worked at veterinarians and animal rescue, I couldn't pass him by at the pet store. I had to have him. His tail was so long that it curled when you expected it to end.

We watched many losses together. We took in two cats of a friend who was moving for 6 months and watched them go off to their homes. We fostered a tailess tuxedo (like Abby!) and sent her to a wonderful home with an elderly family. He lost his playmate, Cougar, a wonderful Abbysinian ticked cat who died at two of renal failure, probably the result of poor breeding as it's a common problem in abbys to have malformed kidneys.

Iggy and I said good bye to my frist husband, our dogs, particularly the boxer/dalmation mix that Iggy loved. He and I and his best buddy Oscar Grey moved into a smaller place. A year or so later, we said a tearful farewell to Oscar who developed lymphoma at age 5.

Iggy had always been a large cat--over 17 pounds at his biggest, but until that loss he had kept his little kitten head, never developing the jowls of a tom. I thought perhaps I had neutered him too yoiung. Yet within a month of loosing Oscar, he became a true male cat, his thin cat face taking on the look of a tom. He had so respected Oscar that even his hormones kept his face in check so he wasn't a threat to his mentor.

He saw me through the loss of my mom and my dad. After my father died, he was diagnosed with cardiomyapathy, giving him about three years to live. I was in acupuncture school so I tried a naturopath. We pulled him off his meds, the Hill's products and put him on Solid Gold Katz N Flocken and a homeopathic. He acted like he hadn't acted in years. It was another 6 years before he started to look like an old cat in kidney failure and it was only in that year that the vet could once again hear his hear murmur.

He failed for some time. I knew he wanted to die at home, though my other cats had always been euthanized when they stopped eating. As if to make his point, Ig never stopped eating. He had his favorite Taco Bell bean burrito up the Friday before he died. Saturday morning he seemed to weak to be much interested. When he crossed the bridge, I was there. Georgia was there. Only Simone stayed away. Perhaps as she was so close to her own crossing, she was afraid she'd be tempted to go to?

I often visited the Animal Rescue Site, but I had forgotten for about 6 months. Monday after the Saturday he died, I went there. On the site was a phoot of a big orange cat with a disgusted look on his face. Behind him was a circle like for a water bottle but it looked like a halo. I laughed and told everyone to vist there because Iggy was sending me a post card from Heaven. No one else got the photo. I downloaded it so others could see it was real. I saw it for three days.

Though I knew he crossed, I know he still keeps an eye on me and my cats. I have no doubt that as Gemini showed up only 11 days later (the day after my beloved Siamese, Simone crossed the bridge herself) found me because of him.

I still feel the loss of this cat who saw me through so many transitions. We had a long history. The memories are sweet though. His death was hard, but it was a good death (though the process seemd to hard at the time) and the memories are good. His spirit has moved to other places and things but I know that he appreciates the things that I did for him. Some cats are just special and Iggy was one of them.

I think of him often, wondering what he would have thought of Gemini and how he would have treated her as a kitten. She would have liked him I think. Though Georgia was closer to Iggy than Simone, it was Simone she searched for for several days after she passed. I think, having been there, she knew he was gone.

He loved to sit next to the computer as I surfed and typed. He wouild give me this look as if he was quite pleased and surprised by my cleverness. When I cried to him before he died, that I would miss him, he often just gave me a disgusted look and walked away. Female weakness no doubt.

They don't leave us but live on in our memories and though we may still cry to remember them as closely as we do, the memories are more often happy than sad. Cats like Silas and Norton and Ralphie and Iggy will be with us as long as we are around and given the larnest of the personalities, no doubt far beyond!

9 comments:

The Meezers or Billy said...

Bonnie, what a lovely rememberance of Iggy. He looks like my Norton (only slightly darker). We have our memories to help us through. It's been almost 2 1/2 years since I lost Ralph, and I still miss him daily. It never really goes away.

Bonnie said...

I know. Norton reminded me of him from the photos, though Norton appeared to have longer fur and was a slightly lighter color. I have no doubt that I will miss my Ingold always. I have had many cats through the years but he is the one that seems to cling to me in spirit and everything makes me think of him.. perhaps that's why Gemini someitmes gets messages from him from the spirit world...?

Big Piney Woods Cats said...

This was truly a wonderful story. Thank you so much for sharing it with us.

Toni (the Mom)

The Meezers or Billy said...

Bonnie, I really belive that the cats can see and sense things that we cannot. I know that Ralphie is in the shadows at times- Sammy goes to Ralphies favorite places in the house and yowls and yowls. In our lives of having cats, there is always that special "one" that you bond with in a special way, even though you love them all the same. Norton and Trixie were always their daddy's babies - even though I love them so much. Iggy was your baby. He will always be there watching out for you.

Ivan from WMD said...

What a wonderful tribute to a very handsome and special boy. We can tell he's still with you and will be forever.

Petey said...

What is it about us gingers that makes such an impression on our humans. The mom is always saying that even though she has owned many cats of all different colors, the gingers have the most incredible purrsonalities.

Kukka-Maria said...

Such a touching story! Thank you for sharing Iggy with us.

Zeus said...

What a touching history of your relationship with Iggy, Ms. Bonnie. Our human pet believes that each creature is sent to you for a reason, a "mission" if you will, and once they have fulfilled their duties, they are called home. Iggy fulfilled his purpose for you in being by your side through all of those rough times, and he did his job with grace.

ANGEL ABBYGRACE said...

Thank you for such a moving remembrance of Iggy. I sat here and cried ... thank heavens for all the wonderful memories.

ABBY's Mom