VOLUME 4, ISSUE 2

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In February, 1995, I lost my beloved cat, Nicholas, to jaw cancer at the age of 14.  Although I knew he could never be replaced, I immediately yearned for another lap cat to love.  My other cat, Calvin, missed Nicholas terribly too, but he was more independent and had never liked being held the way Nicholas did.

We lived in St. Louis, Missouri at the time, and I contacted a local rescue group similar to FFR called "The Cat Network."  The person I talked to convinced me that a kitten was not the appropriate companion for my remaining 7-year-old cat.  She searched their database and sent me to a home fostering a cat she felt met what I told her I wanted that would also be a good companion for Calvin.

Eight days after we had put Nicholas to sleep, my husband and two sons accompanied me to the foster home on a Sunday after church.  We wanted everyone to be involved in the selection of our new housemate.  Upon meeting the cat we had come to see, we all realized this cat was not right for us.  One by one, the foster mom brought up all 7 of her fosters, and we all agreed on the gray and white tabby named Iko that the foster mom told us was about 18 months old.  By the time we got home, he had been renamed Vincent.  The foster home had a dirt floor in the basement, and Vincent was not very clean.  It took all three of us to hold him in the utility tub to bathe off his dust.  Underneath, we discovered his beautiful white coat and the little brown patch alongside his nose that provided one of his many nicknames, Smudge.

Seven years later, we lost Calvin to feline renal disease within 3 months of his diagnosis.  When Vincent was diagnosed with the disease around the age of 8, we couldn't believe our bad fortune.  However, due to his youth, our vet suggested we set him up with IV injections on a regular basis and provide him with oral doses of the antacid Alternagel with every meal.  By this time, we had moved to Folsom and his vet even discussed the possibility of a kidney transplant through UC Davis due to Vincent's young age.  However, in addition to the prohibitive cost, Vincent is a horrible patient.  We didn't feel he would enjoy the quality of life he deserved if he became a transplant recipient and had to face monthly trips to Davis for tests, further medication to avoid rejection of the organ, etc.

Although we wanted to add another cat to our household, we didn't want to stress Vincent and cause further kidney degradation.  I told our son that we would get 2 littermate kittens once Vincent had to be put down.  I joined FFR that summer of 2002, and met Stripes at my first adoption event.  His age was estimated at 8 - almost as old as Vincent - and he got along well with everyone that came to Petco and wanted to play with him.  By the end of the day, I went home and convinced my husband that this was the perfect cat for us.  We wanted another cat (or cats) very badly, but we all felt guilty waiting for Vincent to die to get one (or two).  Stripes came to our home as a foster for about a month, and during that time our son renamed him Izual after a character in one of his video games that is rescued from evil.  We adopted him in October of 2002. 

Although our cats are not the best of friends, they happily share our home and each has affection for the human family members.  We have two cats to share, cuddle and sleep with, and we are happy to have saved them both from agencies like FFR that rescues homeless cats and keeps them from being euthanized.