Brando

This week began on a sad note with Handsome's passing and it's ending on another sad note...today we lost Brando. He'd been declining for some time, and recently was diagnosed with renal failure, but had been hanging in there. As slender and frail as he was, though, his body just wasn't able to struggle against that for very long. He'd been at Central Texas Cat Hospital for the past few days and this afternoon reached the point where it was clearly his time to go. Sheila was right there with him, and he passed peacefully surrounded by loving hands.

 

One day five years ago, when Shadow Cats still had a separate adoption shelter, someone dumped a big carrier crammed with 7 or 8 cats on the doorstep. One of those cats was Brando. He was about six months old then, and even at that young age was on the frail and sickly side so he came to live at the sanctuary. And although he had his share of health problems over the next five years, he was most often in pretty good health and really liked living with us. He always came running for Fancy Feast or any kind of treats, and because he was so skinny everyone always gave him extra. He loved laps and couldn't wait for our volunteers to come around every afternoon. And Brando LOVED being brushed. He had very fine fur and didn't shed, but just loved the feeling of being brushed all over and if you scratched the brush and held it up he'd always come running. Mary and I visited him in the hospital this morning and gently brushed him - and even though he could barely lift his head, he curled his toes to show how much he enjoyed it.

That's how we'll remember Brando - curling his toes in delight at all the TLC he enjoyed so much from everyone who loved him.

 Rest in peace, sweet angel.
January 27, 2012