Welcome to Sylvia's
"Photo Friends"
This is the special place at Sylvia's Kitty Condo where we are pleased to be able to share with you some of the very special furry friends who we have met along the course of our dear girls journey. As our "extended family" of friends grows, so too grows the love which fills our family's hearts.
This Regal Angel boy is Zar, a very special friend of our family who after bravely facing the sarcoma monster crossed over the Rainbow Bridge to join some very special furry friends in the land of Love and Comfort. While we'll forever regret the fact that dear Zar's family had to say "until" to their beloved fur child as a result of VAS, we truly admire their heartfelt efforts towards helping to carry forth the "effort of education" in the battle against this terrible disease.
Dear Zar's family not only composed the following furry bio in loving memory of their beloved Angel boy, but also summarized their dear baby's path(s) of treatment during his valiant battle with VAS. If you are facing the difficult battle against VAS and would like to share in the life lessons of a brave fur boy and his family, simple e-mail us and we'll share Zar's story with you."Zar was one of those cats that could win over the hearts of "non-cat people". He did not have a mean bone in his body, would never bite or scratch and would often act as "referee" in neighborhood catfights. He never complained at the vet's office, even while enduring the stresses and pain of VAS surgery and checkups. He taught me many lessons about patience, trust, companionship and unconditional love. I miss him every day, even though I know he is still near."
This lap cuddling Angel boy is Brutus, a dear friend of our family who after a valiant battle with VAS has made that heartfelt journey to the land of love and comfort. Dear Brutus was truly blessed to have a loving family that welcomed this "gentle soul" into their hearts and home so many years ago. Please include Brutus' family in your daily thoughts and prayers in the hope that their hearts soon heal from the heartache of having had to say "until" to their beloved fur Angel.
Brutus' family composed the following furry bio in loving tribute to their beloved Angel child so that we could share with you how their hearts and lives came to be united."Brutus literally came to us on a cold night in March of 1990. My wife Jana and I were helping to move her sister into their new house. When the day had turned to night we were relaxing in the dining area when a cat came up to the sliding doors. We fed him what human food we had, and he loved it. It was also apparent that he needed medical attention, because he had a sore on his hind quarters, probably as a result of being attached by another animal. We already had two cats at home, but knew we had to care for this fellow. We took him home that night, nursed him back to health, and he never left. We named him Brutus, because he looked so tough when he meowed. It was such an oxymoron, because Brutus "was a lover, not a fighter". We affectionately called Brutus “a gentle soul”, and often joked that he must have been raised by canines. He would greet us at the door, lick our faces, loved to be touched, and was incredibly loyal. The cat that was everybody’s friend gave us more than we gave him in the thirteen years we were privileged to be with him. Brutus was diagnosed with Vaccine Induced Fibrosarcoma in October 2001. We ended his suffering on 4/25/03. Brutus tolerated prednisone very well, and we believe that gave him more quality time."
It is with heavy heart that we share dear Angel Bridget's picture with you. Like so many brave and precious fur babies before her, dear Bridget has made that heartfelt journey across the Rainbow Bridge after a valiant battle with the Sarcoma Monster. While blessed with their beloved fur child's loving presence for only a short part of their life's journey, Bridget and her family were blessed in being able to share a lifetime of loving memories together. Please say a special prayer for Bridget's family in the hope that with each and every passing day, they find comfort in looking forward to that glorious day in the future when they will all cuddle together once again in the land of love and comfort.
Dear Angel Bridget's heartfelt bio:"In March of 2002, my family and I decided to go to our local shelter which we are very active in to adopt a feline friend both for us and for our Krincha who is a large orange male and has been in our family for over six years. I found myself spending most of my day away from the house and my Krincha appeared to be lonely. Anyway, since we have been to the shelter so many times, we decided to provide an adult female cat with a home since the odds are against the adults, as most people prefer to adopt kittens. I am writing all of this because its seems that our Miss Bridget was meant to be with us. I spent over two hours at the shelter trying to make a very difficult decision as to which feline would seem most likely to fit into our family and environment. I wish I could have brought all of them home but I couldn't. Anyway, finally I narrowed down my choice between two tabby females. However, as I was going to get the director of the shelter and inform her of my choice, I passed Bridget's cage. She was sound asleep. I am very partial to orange kitties so my choice with her was an odd one being she is gray. I opened her cage and right away I knew in my heart I needed to have her. She was two years old and very sweet.
She was put in a box and we brought her home. When we arrived home, I opened her box and out she jumped. My husband was confused and thought they gave us the wrong cat since he had not been in the room at the shelter when I held her for the first time. I told him and my children she indeed was the feline I wanted. From there on out, Miss Bridget was definitely a "Mommy's Girl".
Bridget always sat at my feet every morning when I did the laundry and liked to stand on her hind legs to see what "goodies" I was preparing in the kitchen. She was very tolerant of our Krincha who tends to be very dominating and played rough with her. Even though she was half his size, she held her own and liked to trip him by grabbing his back legs as he wondered past her.
Bridget enjoyed sleeping on her back and loved her catnip and always ran to greet me when I came home. I would find her boxes, as she loved to sleep in them even if they were too small.
In May of 2003 I noticed a lump on the back of her neck and immediately took her to the vet. My vet was concerned about the growth and advised me that it may be Fibrosarcoma induced by vaccination. I never heard of such a thing. My immediate reaction was to remove the lump and she would be ok. My vet informed me that even though it was not very common he has seen enough to know the progression the disease will take. To be sure, I had surgery done to remove the lump. Unfortunately, the lump was malignant and he told me it will grow back. Unfortunately, it only took three months for the lump to appear again and to cause Bridget discomfort.
I had to make the agonizing decision to euthanize my dear baby. It was the hardest thing I have ever done.
I can't even explain how in just 1-1/2 years she touched my heart so deeply. I wonder why such a young animal had to find herself at a shelter to then finally find a loving home but to succumb to such a terrible disease. I can only guess that she was here on this earth to provide me with the knowledge of this disease and somehow, I need to make other pet owners aware of the risks of vaccinations. I am a supporter of vaccinations, however, to what extent I have yet to figure out. The odd thing is, Bridget was an indoor cat but my other one goes out so I thought she needed to be vaccinated to be "safe"."
These two very special furry friends of our family are Angel Emily (pictured on left) and Sam. While not having battled the sarcoma monster, dear Angel Emily and her family united in great strength and love as they so bravely faced the difficult battle against another form of feline cancer. While our family will forever regret the fact that we have come to be united with so many feline loving friends whose lives have been touched by heartache, so too do we find great strength and comfort in knowing that we are not "alone" with respect to the unconditional love that we hold within our hearts for our beloved fur children. Please include Angel Emily's family in your daily thoughts and prayers in the hope that their hearts and lives will be forever brightened by this very special child that they have had to say "until" to.
Emily's heartfelt bio:"Emily my beautiful calico came into our life January 1992. We were blessed with her for only 11 1/2 years. She is pictured with Sam who loved to play with her and chase her around the house. We discovered them snuggling on the chair underneath the kitchen table one day. Emily also has a "sister" named Lucy. Emily accepted her brother and sister right away. She was a very sweet natured cat. She was very shy around other people except for my husband and myself. She absolutely adored my husband Steve. She would gaze into his eyes and come running whenever he would call her name. I kidded him and said I'm lucky Emily isn't another woman or I would be in trouble. We love her so much and miss her terribly. Our girl lost 5 pounds and that's how we knew something was wrong. The first trip to the vet showed that her blood work was fine. The 2nd trip to the vet was not good news. After doing an x-ray and palpating her tummy the vet thought she had a tumor. He was 75% sure. He recommended exploratory surgery or when her quality of life is not there we could put her to sleep. At first we chose to enjoy the time we had with her and not do surgery. Well we decided to do the surgery because we thought maybe she could be saved. Its hard to make decisions when you aren't positive what you are dealing with. We found out from the surgery that our sweet girl had a tumor in her liver and intestine. I was in shock. We had her put down during the surgery. We couldn't bear to have her suffer anymore. We chose to bring her home and bury her In front of " Emily's Garden" . The vet was very compassionate and wrapped her in a baby blanket. I told him earlier that these are our children. I am unable to have children of my own. This was especially hard for that reason. We took her home and held her and said our final goodbyes and shed many tears. Our last day together was August 12th 2003. I can't believe she is really gone. In her honor I have named a collection of my art work after her. It is called "Emily's Garden"
It can be seen at my website http://www.maryyoung.net/Soon I will have her picture there too as a memorial. I know our baby is happy up in Rainbow Bridge and find comfort that we will meet again. With love from Emily's Mommy and Daddy and of course Lucy and Sammy too."
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