William - RIP

My cat William has died.

He was one of three cats I inherited from my ex Jenny in 1998 just before we broke up. I took the entire litter of three cats which I named: Willy, Nilly, and Emma. Emma was the runt of the litter and is now the sole survivor. Nilly ran away after a few years. She was a wild one.

I loved Willy, referred to him as "my only son." He was my favorite. I never expected to lose him so soon. He lived just 13 yrs and 5 months. His exact cause of death is not determined, we think it was a chest infection, probably lung cancer. His organs tested fine but... he stopped eating and went down hill very fast. He had fluid drained from his chest and I gave him subcutaneous fluid, and antibiotics. I force fed him some broth and baby food.

The second photo shows William and Iska on the couch in my kitchen on Saturday. Our last weekend together - the 3 of us.

But just a few days after his vet visit, by Sunday night, it looked bad. I almost never sleep with my cats but that Sunday night, I slept with William. It was his last night.

I had a busy Monday 10/3 with a Nashville doctor's appt. and an errand planned. I felt that morning he needed to be euthanized. I couldn't bring myself to do it before going to the doctor and I left him from noon until 3 pm. I knew that I had to take him in to end his life when I returned home. He was laying on a pad in the kitchen and his breathing was labored and he couldn't sleep. He was not purring anymore when I pet him like he did on Sunday. I left the inside door open so he could see the light from the front door from where he was laying in the kitchen. I turned on the vent so there would be good air circulation. When I returned home, I found him dead by the front door. The last thing he did was walk toward the light of the door. Dying on his own was his last gift to me. I did not want to take him in.

I got him when I was 37 and had just moved into my house. I am 51 now. He is the first animal I ever raised from birth to death. He was a very friendly guy, always coming up to greet visitors. It will be an adjustment ... everytime I see something dark on the floor, I think it's him. William was close with his sister Emma, they were together from birth. They always slept close together when it was cold. She will miss him as well. He had a good life.

William

(4/98 - 10/3/11)

The three litter mates cooling off on the concrete - July 30, 1999. They were just over a year old in this photo.