Sebastian
1993-January 8, 1997
18 years ago today I lost my second childhood cat, Sebastian. He was a neighborhood rescue left behind by a neighbor when they moved away. He then ended up in the care of an elderly couple across the road from us. When the wife passed away, a gold digger moved in on the husband and we feared the cat was on his way out. Over a period of months we turned him into a wonderful housecat after spending the majority of his life outside.
One of my favorite memories of Sebastian comes from the early days of our time together. When we made the decision as a family to begin the process of turning him into a housecat, we tried to gradually increase the amount of time we kept him inside each day. For some inexplicable reason early on we didn't put out a litter pan because he would let us know when he had to go outside. One day my mother and I went out to run a few errands and he was asleep, so we quietly slipped out. Upon our return home the minute I entered the house there was an unmistakable odor. You guessed it...the poor little guy woke up from his nap and had to "go". With no one to let him out and no indoor plumbing, he left a rather neat pile of poop right in the middle of my parents' bed. It's like it was strategically placed so that it wouldn't be missed.
We don't know exactly how old he was once we officially adopted him, but he had to be in his teens looking back at how long we had seen him in the neighborhood. In September 1996 he was diagnosed with advanced kidney disease, and in spite of my father learning to administer subcutaneous fluids, Sebastian made his journey to the Rainbow Bridge on January 8, 1997.
Sebastian didn't have the easiest life. Many times through the years our hearts broke seeing him outside in all kinds of adverse weather conditions. But for the few years that he was a part of my family, he knew he was loved.
12 comments:
What a pretty kitty. I am glad he got to be loved by you and your family in his old age.
Loved it, even though I cried. I've taken in strays, that only lived a few more years, but they knew they were loved more than they ever had been in their life.
He sure was a handsome boy! How wonderful that he was loved by you and your family, even if it was only for a short time.
What a handsome mancat he was, sending you (((hugs))) and love
What wonderful memories of a beautiful boy. You gave him a good life once he entered your life and I'm sure he appreciated it. Hugs from M.
Such a handsome kitty...
Lots of Noodle hugs to you!
Noodle and crew
Thank you for loving him at the last part of his life! Hugs from us.
Cats of wildcat woods
He sounds like a real gem - thank you for being such a great cat mom to him! I know that he is waiting to see you again one day...thank you for sharing about Sebastian! Blessings! Jeanie
What a touching story. Thank you for sharing your memories of Sebastian. He was a lucky guy to have you in the neighborhood to look out for him. Sending hugs to you as you remember today.
Thank you for sharing this, Melissa. What a beautiful boy Sebastian was! I have a very big soft spot in my heart for tuxedo's.
OMC! He has the devil horns like me! What a handsome fellow. I’m glad he knew he was loved and finally belonged.
What a handsome boy. I believe the time he spent with you made up for his hardships.
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