Our beautiful big girl Kaliban
I am so sad to report the passing of our beautiful girl Kaliban. She came into our lives in May of 1998 as a very spirited kitten. My husband (at the time we were just dating) and I brought her home from a mall pet store in Burnaby BC. I only was able to spend 2 days with her before I had to go home to PA but she stole my heart.
She became my hubby's heart cat. The two of them bonded deeply and for Kaliban the rest of us were just tolerated. It was only her daddy in her heart. While her daddy and I were doing the long distance thing she managed to wrap the apartment manager around her paw and get him to WAY overfeed her. Because next to daddy she loved food. Not people food..no..for her the best people food was iceburg lettuce and dried spaghetti noodles.
She flew here to PA in 2001 and joined with her sisters in our blended family. She quickly adapted from apartment city living to 11 acres in the mountains of central PA. She even found the Mighty Huntress inside and was able to catch a few mice. She absolutely perfected the art of placing herself in the right place with her mouth open just waiting for an unsuspecting mouse to venture in. Once the mouse was in there however she had no idea what to do with it so she usually gave them over to her sister Deirdre who would quickly dispatch them as cats do.
When Trouble joined our family in 2004 she finally found a kindred cat spirit that had no fear of her. At times Kali wasn't sure she was happy about that but she and Trouble certainly entertained one another.
Kaliban was a bratty, happy, playful, mischevious cat throughout her entire life. She would love to lie on her back and look so sweet and innocent at you until you were fooled into placing your hand into the trap of her belly. Her favorite place to lay was always on her daddy's tummy or between us on the bed.
A couple of weeks ago she had a bout of diarherria. We quickly got it under control with medication but we could tell she wasn't feeling as good as we would like. Her breathing was a bit heavier and she wasn't playing much or wanting to leave the bedroom. She would often just lie near the water bowl but we didn't really see her drinking more than usual. A week ago today she spent several hours lying on her daddy's tummy and fluffing him with her big paddle toes and purring. We didn't know that would be the last time. On Wednesday night we treated her to a couple of bites of chicken breast. She didn't often eat chicken but that night she seemed to want it. She ate her dinner as usual that night and fell asleep near the AC vent.
Thursday morning she refused to eat her breakfast. This is the first time Kali Ali has ever refused a meal. Her breathing was becoming more laboured and it sounded a little "wet". I made a vet appt for her that evening for 5:45. By the time I got her to the vet she was sounding so much worse. Dr. Metrey diagnosed pancreatitis. From what we don't know. From cancer I am suspecting. We took her home that night armed with fluids and injectable pain meds and antibiotics. We wanted a bit more time with her. It just didn't seem right that less than 24 hours ago she seemed fine and that Thursday night we should euthanize? No. We were hoping for a bit more time. Hubby is working 10 to 12 hour days every day for the rest of this month. Last Sunday was his last day off for the month and we were hoping we could make her feel better until after Labor Day and he could spend some more quality time with her.
But it wasn't meant to be. We gave her the fluids Thursday night and Friday morning along with her pain meds and antibiotic. I came home early Friday to give her more pain meds and get her to eat some food. I lifted her onto the bed and spent some time cleaning her up and stroking her. I tried to get her to eat some baby food mixed with nutri-cal but she cried out in pain. Her whole body started to convulse and I knew it was the end. I phoned the vet and arranged for her to come out to our home at 8 that evening. Brian had to be at work until at least 7 and he needed time to say good bye.
Our beautiful big girl went to the Bridge that night. She was lying in her daddy's arms and he let her know how much he loved her. Less than 48 hours after we knew she was ill she was out of pain forever.
Trouble misses her so much. He is staying very close to both my husband and myself and is sleeping in Kaliban's favorite spot on the bed...at my husbands feet.
Play hard Kaliban...our Kalibanowski...my beautiful Kali Ali Baby. We miss you.
(pictures to follow)
