In Loving Memory of Scooter

In Memory of Scooter – 4/27/1994 – 2/8/2009

It is with great sadness I write this… our wonderful, dear kitty Scooter passed away on Sunday, February 8, 2009. As referenced in prior entries, he had been diagnosed with FIV in October (which I’m guessing had been present since before 1998 when I adopted him) and had recently battled lymphoma, undergoing chemotherapy for the last 10 weeks or so. He had lost quite a bit of weight due to the treatment, but was a sweet and happy little guy, doing his best to interact with us. During the last couple weeks we rolled him up like a burrito in a towel and took him into whatever room we were occupying at the time so he was still part of the family’s activities. He LOVED this, and spent endless hours on our laps. Friday was scheduled as the day the oncologist would evaluate the success of treatment, but poor Scoo took a dramatic turn for the worse on Thursday. We took him in on Friday and the doctor kept him for the day to run some tests and ultrasound to see how he had fared with chemo. The determination was that Scooter was in complete remission!! But the other question at hand was “Why, then, is he sooooo sick now? He hasn’t had chemo for two weeks!”

We took him home that evening and I was vigilant (as usual) during the night, listening while half-asleep for any cries from him that indicated he was in any pain or discomfort. By Sunday morning he was unable to walk or move without extreme difficulty, and had the blank stare of one who was ready to leave this world.

Lola told me she was prepared to say goodbye to Scooter but she chose not to go to the vet for the final goodbye because she was so sad when Boo Boo had to be euthanized. I respected her decision, so Kimmi volunteered to come with me for moral support and because she loved Scoo as much as we did. Chris was unable to be there due to his work schedule, but he was definitely with us all in spirit.

Later that afternoon, Lola and I were coming home from the supermarket and she looked up in the sky and said, “Look, Mom, there’s Scooter going to heaven.” In the midst of many clouds there was a break between them and a strong beam of sunlight shone down for several minutes. It was really a beautiful thing to see, and Lola’s summation of why it existed was both eloquent and touching.

We will miss Scooter with all our hearts. He was a wonderful personality and quite a comedian. I’m certain he and Boo Boo are now chasing each other, grooming each other and sleeping in each other’s arms (paws) just as they did here on earth.