Goodbye little cat...

I have just come in from digging a hole in the paddock and burying our cat. I wish I could remember the date we got her. I know it was on February 6th (Waitangi Day) and it must have been somewhere between 15 & 20 years ago. My wife went for a walk up the road near the local rubbish tip. Two little kittens came out of the long grass beside the road and followed her home... and of course, with all the animal loving kids at home then, we kept them both. We figured that they seemed used to human company, so someone must have just dumped them as unwanted kittens near the tip. This one, female, grey tabby one, was called Wai. The black male one was called Tangi. They grew up in our lounge. The black one never really learned to clean itself and for the early part of its life Wai would sit by the fire cleaning her brother, (we assume they were brother and sister) licking his fur tirelessly. As they grew they stopped being really close friends and sometimes would hiss at one another. But they were good. Our severely handicapped foster daughter Pania, delighted in the cats and would beam all over when Wai would jump up on her lap. They chased rats near the hen house and kept the mouse population on our acre under control. Wai never grew to be very big, but was a great wee mouse hunter. If we saw a mouse in the house we would drop Wai near where it was last seen and she would chase it down, and was so quick to pounce on it as it made it's escape across the floor. All we had to do was open the back door and stand aside as she raced her catch outside. We often had to clean Tangi's fur, it would get matted and cause problems. He, though he was "fixed", fought neighbouring cats and often got scars and infections from the battles. A few years ago he got a bad eye and had other infections and troubles, so we let the vet "put him to sleep". Wai became our only cat.

She could always find the warmest place in the house. If the heat pump was on she sat in the hall opposite it, enjoying the warmth. If the fire was on she sat, flat on her back in front of the fire. Sometimes she would look at the log burner, and look at me as if to say, "Come on you haven't lit the fire!" She had the loudest purr I have ever heard from a cat. Sometimes she would sleep on a dining chair under the table and you would hear this strange noise seemingly coming from the table. She loved sitting on your lap but unfortunately she had a couple of habits that discouraged this practice. She would get on your lap then begin to make a nest by pushing on your thighs, legs or "nether regions" with her paws,..... claws out. The other habit she had was when she was really happy, sitting on your lap purring, she would dribble copiously. You learned to get an old news paper, then invite her onto your lap, which was more comfortable for you, but not for her.

Lately she has been sleeping inside at night. My son and daughter in law were soft and had her sleeping on their bed on the lounge floor for a week after we got back from our big OE. After that she claimed her spot on the couch and we were too soft to put her out. (We have a cat door into the garage and an old chair out there for her) Last night we did put her outside. My wife was doing the deed, but Wai pushed at me with her paw, as if she blamed me for this indignity. We found her near the vegetable garden tonight and it looked as if she had met a violent end. A couple of neighbourhood dogs were in the backyard this morning? There are other younger cats around the area who may have chased her? She was slowing up considerably and a chase she once would have relished, may have been too much for her.

We enjoy animals and have had so many over the years. Cats, dogs, goats, guinea pigs, rabbits, a couple of lambs, once a possum, birds, a duck, fish and of course hens have all been a part of our family. While we enjoy them, we are not the type that treat them as "our children" like some do. But we do appreciate their different personalities and the contribution they make to our life. "Goodbye old friend" you have gone where all of us eventually go, but you will be missed. We will miss your presence in front of the fire and the comforting purring sound.