R.I.P. Thumper

Today was a sad day for me. I had to have my cat, Thumper, put down. He's been battling Hyperthyroidism for over a year now and lately he's become very listless and lethargic. He's really too old for surgery, I think it would have been too dangerous for him and may have killed him anyway. I'd decided that it's been long enough for him to go through this and I just didn't want to see him suffer. He'd lost weight and for a while the medicine helped him but he continued throwing up on a daily basis and the weight loss started back up again. He's just been wasting away.

I've had Thumper for almost 5 years. I started fostering him in August of 2001 through the Montgomery County SPCA. After my other cat, Bandit, died (I also had to have her put down because her kidneys were failing) I decided to go ahead and adopt Thumper. I started fostering him with the knowledge that I was a long-term foster mom. He'd already been in the SPCAs system for 8 years when I met him. He acted almost feral, hiding and hissing and wouldn't let me near him for a time. We ended up great friends and he's been my boy ever since. I called him Snaggletooth and Fang on occasion because his canine teeth were VERY long and hung out of his mouth almost to his chin. You had to be careful when he rubbed himself on your hand because they would scrape along and it could be a little painful.

Thumper and my other cat Bandit were good friends too. Of course there was a little conflict at first; cats are super territorial and don't take too well to one another right off the bat. I think my cat Sophie will miss him a lot, they rubbed their faces together all the time. I'm glad Sophie isn't human because I'd hate to have to explain to her why he didn't come back home today and that it was because I made the decision to have him put to sleep.

I wanted to post a couple of pictures of my old man. Rest in peace my little Thumperdoodle, I miss you and I love you very much. Find Bandit and tell her I miss and love her too. It's cool you two get to be together again and play like you used to. I'll never forget either one of you!