Jeanniemlee’s Blog

About a week ago I lost my little baby girl kitty cat.  Punkin was 12 years old when she suddenly lost a ton of weight and eventually stopped eating and drinking altogether.  After about 3 days of watching her disintegrate, I took her to a vet who told me that she had renal failure.  Apparently, this was due to nothing I could justifiably blame myself for and there was no way I could have caught it any sooner than I did.  He said that by the time something like this even shows up on blood tests, it’s done so much kidney damage that can’t be un-done that any attempt to heal her would have just kept her semi-comfortable until the inevitable eventually happened.  So, we decided it was best to let her go rather than prolong her life and make her suffer.  It was incredibly sad.  Had I known when I left with her that I wouldn’t be returning with her I would have planned better.  I definitely wouldn’t have made the trip alone.  Thankfully, my best friend happened to be nearby and could shoot over and walk me through the process while I lost my mind.

Before Punkin got sick I know that I said quite a few times that if anything ever happened to her I would positively NOT be getting another pet any time soon.  Or ever.  It’s messy, stressful, expensive and annoying to have some loud hairy creature in your house.  And they all have a distinct set of rules, but who writes the rule books?  Your guess is as good as mine.  Little did I know that I had no idea what I was talking about.  I was immediately torn between the necessity of “honoring” the mourning period and the intense need for something small and fuzzy at my feet.  I agreed with Brian that we should take some time (a few days… lol!) to have a break, but it was impossible to walk into a pet-less house.  And unfathomable to spend any time in that house without something either in my lap or curled up beside me.  So, I starting jonesing for another animal way too soon, much to Brian’s chagrin.  So what?  My happiness is more important than his “break”, right?  I thought so.

So, at the 5-day post mortem mark it was suggested to me that I look at a little boy beagle puppy that was posted on the net.  Now, I have had a couple dogs, but in general I am obviously a cat girl.  But, the sight of this puppy converted me.  Well… maybe not completely, but it did make me have visions of puppy feet dancing in my head.  And of course, there was the promise of spending more time with my close friend who happens to have a little girl beagle puppy… and the prospect of puppies!!!!  So, I jumped on board.  Unfortunately this puppy’s (whose name was Riley) owner, Iris in Powder Springs, didn’t know that when you tell someone that you’re not available to introduce them to their new puppy until 3:00 on Wednesday then you’re supposed to CALL THEM if you become available any sooner.   So, he was taken away early.  I certainly hope his new owner is smarter and less irritating than the previous.

This began a frantic search for a boy beagle puppy who had not been neutered and wasn’t so expensive that I would have to take out a loan.  By early afternoon on the same day I found “Chip”.  He was a 10 month old blond boy beagle living in Roswell with two other dogs.  So, I went to meet him and within an hour I was bringing him home.

Now, I am a proud dog owner.  “Chip” has had his name changed to “Camryn” and has proven to be a really good boy other than a few casualties here and there such as a decapitated action figure or two.  That’s not such a bad thing, since it keeps my house free of kid toys for fear of them becoming puppy toys.

I miss Punkin.  I miss kitty paws and soft fur and I miss being the only one in the house that she would have anything to do with.  But in the end, I have learned to explore new territory, open my mind to new things and I can honestly say that  SO FAR I am glad that we have a new furry thing in my house.