In September 2001 my grandma's cat had kittens. When they were around five weeks old, the mama cat vanished, so my Mom started looking to find them homes. She gave them all away except one. "She's the best one out the litter," my mom said. "She's so sweet." She couldn't understand why no one had chosen her. My Mom told my grandma she should just keep it because it would be good for her to have a pet.
Not long after, my Mom made her daily visit to check on my grandma and found that she had tossed the kitten outside in the cold. It was always in the way, slapping at her feet. "That - that's a sassy little thing. Not good for nuthin." My Mom took the kitten home and we named her SassyCat to spite my mean old grandma. Clint and I had gotten engaged and it was understood that SassyCat would be MY cat once we were married and settled into a home of our own.

In December 2003 our house was built and SassyCat came to live with us. She was very skittish of her new surroundings and hid under the bed for four days. It wasn't long before she adjusted and would come cuddle with us at night. Only at night. During the day, she was almost invisible. Any slight noise - the doorbell, the phone, loud kids, strangers, etc.. Sassy would vanish. At night she'd jump in bed and demand her pets and scratches as she happily purrrred. If we stopped too soon, she'd reach out with her paw and demand more pets. Sassy had the softest fur. She'd like to bury her face in the crook of my arm and suckle, as many kittens who are taken from the mother cat too soon often do. If we were late going to bed, she'd come find us and tell us to go to bed; it was petting time!!


The years marched on and Sassy was with us through all the major milestones: marriage, a house, birth of the kids, death of my parents, the passing of other fur babies, and so on. When she hit 14, I began to wonder how much longer she had left. 15...16....17...18.... now 19 is upon us.
Dear SassyCat has been completely deaf for a few years now. Yowling very loudly at times, which we wondered if she was trying to hear herself. She's had a very crooked stance for some time, which we figured was old age related arthritis. Still, she was rather lively and set in her routine. Eat. Go outside to look around. Wander around the yard. Bask in the sun. She loved laying in her sun patch beaming in from the windows. Time to eat again. Naps. More food. (she was a hearty eater for an old girl.) If she needed something, she'd come find us and yowl. She'd scurry off leading the way, stopping every few steps to glance behind her, to make sure we were obeying her call. She didn't like day old water. It had to be fresh water in her bowl. The Sassy alarm went off every morning between 5-6am reminding us it was breakfast time. Oh she had us trained! For Christmas, I bought her some wooden stairs so she could easily get on and off our new bed. She learned to use them rather quickly and seemed to love her newfound independence. Nighttime was always petting time. Always.
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Bella and Sassy holding hands |
Sadly, we are just a few weeks shy of SassyCat's 19th birthday, and we had to say goodbye. Suddenly she became almost unable to walk and seemed to really be struggling to get around. She'd take a few crooked steps, then fall over. She'd try to sit up, but ended up laying down. Still, she tried so hard to stick to her routine. She tried her best to come find me when she was hungry, but ended up crying for me in the hallway instead. She couldn't get up to eat, so she was fed and watered in her bed, as all good kitties should be. No doubt she was in distress, and as much as I dreaded it, I knew it was time to say goodbye. My heart hurts so much. I just keep seeing her sweet little kitty face looking at me for the last time and I feel so guilty.
The house seems so empty with out her. We will bury her ashes next to our other fur babies - Kita the dog, and cats Skooter, Perriwinkle, and Pepper.
May we meet again someday my dear, sweetest SassyCat.
September 2001 - August 3, 2020.