R.I.P. Domino

Exactly three weeks to the day after I adopted TC, my beloved Domino passed away from acute kidney failure. He was 9 years old.

If you've been a follower of my blog, you know that Dommie had suffered from kidney disease about four years ago and had recovered after alternative therapy with apple cider vinegar. According to the vet, he would not have made it then, so the vinegar bought us a few more years with Dommie.

It is hard to find a photo of Domino without Peek-A-Boo. The two were inseparable. Peekie didn't have a chance to say goodbye to Dommie, as when David and I rushed him to the vet that morning, I had no idea he would not be coming home. Peekie spent two solid weeks hiding behind a pillow on the bed in the guest room and would not come out. Yes, animals do grieve. She has now returned to sleeping on top of me at night as she used to do, with Dommie under the covers in my arms. Peekie seems to want a lot more lovins than she used to, and that is understandable.

Domino was my Little Kittles, the baby abandoned at four weeks old who I bottle fed and who suckled on my arm all his life. It's funny that TC is also a suckler, also a mama's boy, and also a tuxedo kitty, and he came into my life three weeks before Dommie exited. You have to wonder.

Tomcat Cruise

I could not resist this little face when I went to PetsMart in Uniontown on August 1. I am a total sucker for tuxedo cats. The Animal Friends of Barbour County, WV, were there with about 30 kittens, and I fell in love with this little guy. He was about 12 weeks old at that time, and according to Dr. Duel, he's going to be huge (look at those feet!).

I call him Tomcat Cruise, or TC for short. Like Domino, he must have been taken from his mama too soon, because every time I give him some lovins or pet him, he immediately curls up in a ball and starts suckling on his own belly! He will sometimes do this for up t0 20 minutes, and it's loud enough to disturb my sleep, all the while purring like a locomotive and doing his pushy-paws.

TC loves little furry mousie toys, and he loves to pounce on his brothers and sisters with all four feet. They are generally not amused, but I must give Reese (the house thug) credit, he has not attacked the little one. I think he realizes he's just a baby. Maybe Reese has a heart after all.

Little TC is very attached to me and follows me everywhere. When I try to leave the house, he runs into the mudroom with me and I have to put down all my stuff, pick him up, and put him back in the house. Then he cries. If I pat my thighs, he will jump up on me (in hindsight, probably not a good idea for him to learn that since he will probably weigh over 15 pounds). He sleeps at my feet, all stretched out to his full length.

He is a very lovable addition to our family.

Domino and Peek-A-Boo

I have never seen two cats more in tune to one another than Domino and Peek-A-Boo. You can always find them together, snuggled up somewhere. At night, Domino sleeps under the covers with Mama, his head on her shoulder, and Peekie sleeps on top of Mama to be near her man.

Domino and Peek-A-Boo are both 9 years old, and they came to live with me within a few months of each other.

Aren't they the cutest couple?

Help with the Housework

Here is my "basement cat," Pyewacket, "helping" me change the sheets by grabbing and hanging on to them when I try to pull them off the bed. Notice his look of utter insolence.

He is no doubt channeling Sam-I-Am, my daughter's Siamese who died a few years ago of cancer. Sammy played this game with me every Saturday morning, refusing to let me take the covers and sheets off the bed. He would go crazy trying to hold everything on the bed - it was just hysterical. I miss Sammy so much. Thanks, Pye, for bringing his memory back to me every week.

Head butts

Some people just demand to be the center of attention at all times...

Happy Birthday to Crystal's Kittens!

These babies are Crystal's kittens, born 7 years ago today - China Cat Sunflower, Reese, Opal, and Hayley. China now lives with my daughter and son-in-law, but the rest of the gang are still with me.

The next picture is of Hayley, Opal, and Reese sleeping on my bed with mama Crystal in the background.

Happy 7th Birthday to my beautiful babies!

Timmy's New Chair

I recently acquired this awesome antique chair, which Timmy has already claimed for his own. But he's such a good boy, I don't mind.