this is the first time in 20 years...

that we are without a pet in our house. Earlier this week, we had to put our cat, Pigg, down. He was suffering from kidney failure. He lived a long time -- 15 years. Todd adopted him before he was weaned from his mother... a stray cat that was living under my mother's house.

He got his funny name not from the puffy nose he ended up developing (some sort of allergy he had did this to his nose and also made the pads on the bottoms of his feet puffy too). He got his name because when he was a tiny kitten, he wallowed in his food like a pig. Todd used to feed him baby food on a plate and milk in a little bowl. He would lay down on the plate and suckle his food and milk. He used to have the stuff crusted all over his belly and face. Todd used to have to bathe him... and - for awhile - he was a cat that actually liked water. He would even jump in the shower!

We had a funny name for our first cat together too. There is history behind his name as well.

My freshman year in college, my roommates and I smuggled a cat into our dorm room. I ended up with the cat, Haley, after school let out. Sophomore year, she lived in and out of the rowhouse I was renting in Savannah... and while out, got pregnant. She gave birth to several kittens: one solid gray - one black / white - one stillborn - and one gray / white. The gray and white one was tiny and had problems breathing and walking. The rowhouse had hardwood floors and this small "runt" would drag his back legs behind him while pulling himself forward with his front legs. When he would stop and sit, his back legs would flop out to the side of him -- like a frog.

Eventually, the condition improved and he grew (and grew and grew). He was a big lump.... a big loving and easy-going cat who passed when he was 14. I took it pretty hard when he passed.

Todd and I adopted another cat while in Savannah. We were going to name her Tadpole (like a little baby frog) but we thought that was silly. We were calling her Kitty while we tried to figure out a suitable name, but we never could. Kitty - a very original name - stuck. We wrote about Kitty a couple of years ago on the blog when she passed at the ripe ol' age of 14. Mercer was too young to remember her though.

Pigg - on the other hand - Mercer knew quite well. So far (two days later) he's doing ok. He pretty easily accepted that Pigg wasn't coming back. Every now & then Mercer asks about the cat - but we tell him that he's gone / he was really sick / he died and went to kitty heaven. Mercer says "ok" and moves onto something else.
We all had a nice weekend together. Sitting together a lot. Giving hugs. Giving treats. All of our animals will be missed.