farewell to a sweet cat..Sapogi (Pogi)

 he lost weight really fast this summer and this morning after work i took him for an Ultrasound...we'd done labs which showed kidney failure. the picture below shows the extend of the kidney failure.  probable lymphoma they said, the kidney was grossly enlarged and the other kidney was not faring well either.  the most reasonable thing to do was to let him go...so this morning i sent Pogi off to join all the other furs who have shared my life and moved on to the Rainbow Bridge as many refer to pet heaven.

 Pogi had extra toes on each foot, 2 extra on each actually.  he wasn't born in Alaska but was transported here by my dear friend Natalie.  she worked at the Emergency Animal Hospital with me years ago and knew that i was fond of orange extra toed cats.  a litter of young kittens had been dropped at a clinic and  her friend Jasmine had hand raised them.

 he was always the snuggly cat.  each night climbing in my arms and loudly purring.  just a really great cat...

 so a stressful week at my end.  lots of days of work and some stressful days.  appreciate that i have a supportive management team and that i have many supportive co-worker as well.  thanks to all for helping get me and the patients through it all on so many days.

 have been busily packing to get out to Denali for our mushroom course this week.  should be fun and a lovely escape after the stress.

 sometime after the puppies arrived i noticed that Pogi had lost a little weight.  at the time it did not seem excessive and i attributed it to the fact that schedules change, feeding situation changed, the cats were chased a bit and probably ate less due to the wild puppies.  he'd always been overweight so i wasn't overly concerned about it.  figured i'd just make feeding a bit more easy for the cats...safe from the puppies and watch him closer .

 when i got back from bear viewing at Hallo Bay, it was like i was seeing a totally different cat.  he was so so thin.  i think i knew then that whatever was in him was going to take him away from me.  i so didn't want it to be true.  it was though.

 Cornerstone did a lovely job taking care of Pogi and I through this, the one vet i saw for the ultrasound is actually moving away, but was super nice.  never want my pets to suffer and really appreciate that we have options to protect them from suffering...this is not something granted to many of those patients i take care of in the ICU. i often see ICU's as a bit of a torture chamber...not the best way to spend the last days of your life if that is how it goes. i mean we try our best in the conditions we are given but there are better more peaceful deaths.

 i just found a few random pics of Pogi taken over the years. i don't take that many indoor photos so that means not loads of pics of the cats...but they are there and i probably have taken more lately due to the iphone.

 chewing and counter surfing have been the stuff of the week for the puppies.  opened up more areas for the dogs to go to...time to bond with Miss Breezy Chatterbug who acts irritated but then turns around and acts like she wants to be buddies with these crazy puppies.

 walks in the rain all week.  i better get to bed.  still have a note to write for Val, who will stay with the critters.

 such a handsome kitten...love oranges and loved that he was an extra toe...big mitten cat. he had the fluffiest tail too and long whiskers.  look how chubby he is below and this is late spring/early summer.

 was able to take a few minutes to enjoy olympics this week.  not in PICU..those nights we watched the same kids movie over and over and over...OMG!!

 chilling with the furs

 these are also more recent than not.  i was happy i got the US.  added cost but worth it for peace of mind.  no options but to let him go...even though i wish he would live 10 more years.  it wasn't meant to be.  poor pogi.

 these are all from time investigating Ivy Rose.

 sleepy, but i did want to give a mini tribute to one wonderful cat.  so sad that they are with us such a short time but they do bring us a lifetime of love and joy while they share our world with us.

grateful for:  A. Pogi and the companionship, laughter and comfort he brought me over the years B.  kindness, those who help you make these decisions and gently lead you through death peacefully and with dignity.c.  kitty and puppy heaven...it's gotta be real and its where i'd want to spend my eternity