Thirteen years ago, I took Norma to State College, PA to find a cat. It was a birthday gift for her. We went to the Nittany Mall to look at their pet store. They had some great Siamese cats. We looked at a bunch of them and held a few. They were very strong, mean and rough to hold. They were basically scratching the hell out of me... and I thought, "This is a bad idea."
We went to walk out of the store and as we passed by the display window, there she was. Sitting on top of a cat house made of carpeting, our little girl was just staring back at me all cross-eyed. This little tiny Siamese was so timid looking, but kind. We immediately went back into the store and said, "Can we see that one?" After holding her I knew, I was in love.
We brought her home and the rest is history. A wonderful pet that has been my "little girl" ever since. She was purchased for Norma, but Harley (
we named her after a soap opera character from Guiding Light) has always been my special little girl. Siamese really bond with one person in particular. And I was the lucky one.
This week I noticed that Harley has seemed to lose a lot of weight. Remember she has always been the runt of the litter and always very small and frail. Petite. But, this week the weight loss is really evident. Last night I could feel how light she was as she sat on my stomach and I was lying in bed on my laptop. I looked down and noticed her fur just didn't look right. It just didn't have the same shine to it. I immediately got worried.
I know she is old - 13 years is a good long life. But, it still shocked me to see her looking bad. Tonight I was petting her and holding her and it has been my plan this weekend to give her a bunch of love and then get her to the vet on Monday. But, tonight I noticed her licking an open sore on her behind. At first I just figured she was cleaning herself. She is a very picky and very clean little girl. But, when I looked closer I realized that this was something different - a big huge and painful looking sore.
Immediately I burst into tears and started to think the worst and worry. It was a bad night all around because Aidan was really fussy and throwing a bit of a tantrum for a number of reasons... he is two and they do those things. As the night has worn on and Aidan has now fallen asleep, Norma had a chance to look at Harley. She came upstairs in tears and said, "It really looks bad."
We are both pretty worried and I am going to try to take her in tomorrow (Sunday) to an emergency clinic. It is my hope that if she just has developed a sore that they can give her some medicine to make her feel better and maybe she will eat a little more? But, I know this is probably very, very serious. And I am upset that these could be my last days with her.
Life is a wonderful terrible thing... isn't it? We have had so much death in our family and friends in the last couple of years. It is no wonder that I have been so sick. It just messes with your mind and your soul. Death is inevitable. No one understands that better than a World History teacher. I kid around with my students all the time, "Everyone that is in our book is now dead." It's true. We all go at some point. That's why I teach - I want to leave a mark on this world that will last much longer than I am in this world. But, while we are all here, we have to feel this pain of losing those that we love.
A friend of mine that I work with at school lost their dog this week. He was only 8, but had a form of cancer and they had to put him down. She was devastated and cried most of the day. I said at the time, "If I ever lose my girl... there is no way I could be at school." Losing a pet is just like losing a member of the family and I understood her pain.
I didn't think that by the end of this week I would be feeling a similar pain. I have my fingers crossed, but I know she is old and her time will come. It is a really hard time in our family right now.
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