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Last updated on July 5th, 2024 at 10:57 am
I had a very unexpected weekend. I had to say goodbye to one of our other cat friends.
His name was Slash. he was the brother of Mr. White and Stripes. He also has a little sister my neighbor named Boots.
He was the son of the late Boots and TJ.
He had the wandering gene like T.J. He liked to roam the neighborhood but he was fed and cared for by many neighbors.
When he had a fuller coat he had extra fur around his cheeks. He used to sit straight and look into the patio door. All you’d see were his big dilated pupils so he reminded me of an owl.
Slash was a protector
Slash took a liking to my dad. He would keep him company from time to time when my dad worked in the front yard or the garage.
He also was ready to protect my dad from any danger. He was ready to pounce on a dog the thought was a danger to my dad. I’d like to add it was a smaller breed of dog that was being walked by its owner.
He also loved his sister Boots. They were a bonded pair to a degree. They would follow their mom around the neighborhood and then back to my house.
He was also one of Dylan’s best friends. When push came to shove he was a scrapper too.
He loved to chase Squirrels
One of his all-time favorite pastimes was to chase squirrels and birds. He would chase the squirrels up into the tree. I hate to say this but he caught a few.
He was in good health as far as we had known until Saturday.
An unexpected knock at the door
I had a knock at my door a little after 7 pm. It was 3 of my neighbors who told me they had seen a hurt black and white cat run into our yard.
Since Linus is still missing I automatically thought maybe it was him.
We have what we call a kitty door in our fence. It’s the bottom portion of one of the wooden planks removed. This allows the cats to come in and out of the yard without having to jump the gate. It comes in handy for them. The local possums and raccoons use it too.
So I went out back and opened the gate and we started searching for the cat. We found him under a storage cart my dad has. I instantly knew it was Slash just by seeing him. I told my neighbors and we tried to help him.
My neighbor from down the street said he looked like he’d been hurt or possibly hit by a car.
I worried about this often because he loved to rest in the gutter. He would sit and wait to squirrels or birds.
Slash was semi-feral
Slash was semi-feral which made our trying to catch him a bit harder. He did let me pet him a few times but not often enough. He got along well with most people yet he was just cautious. So we tried our best not to scare him even more.
We offered him treats and even some catnip to see if he would come out of hiding.
If you’ve ever dealt with a wounded animal you know how they can be. They are defensive and can lash out.
After a few tries we managed to corner him and he made a mad dash.
It was clear he was injured
When he made the mad dash across my patio you could see he was injured he was bleeding from his tail area and he lost his footing and just flopped over. He managed to pull himself up before my neighbor was able to catch him.
He put up one hell of a fight though. I grabbed a carrier and we were able to get him secured.
On to the emergency vet
After we got my neighbor cleaned up I went with one of my other neighbors over to the emergency vet. That was about an hour of waiting only to be told what I already knew. The vet took one look at him and said “It’s best to euthanize him.” I had told my neighbor that exact thing as we sat in the waiting area. The vet did thank us for bringing him in and reassured us that we were doing the right thing.
So my neighbor and I cried and told him we loved him. I also reassured him that he would get to see all his loved ones and friends when he got to kitty heaven.
It’s hard to say goodbye
It’s hard to say goodbye to some of the community cats because he was born in my yard. He played with Sam, Teddy, and Dylan.
I found it sort of funny that not a week after I had to put Olive and Sam to sleep Slash joined them. It’s also hard to let him go. He was such a handsome cat. he was built like a Siamese but turned out black and white.
I know we did the right thing for him I just wish hadn’t been hurt.
Yet I know he had a good 3 years of life. He was loved, fed and cared for by others. He got to have his adventures and roam the neighborhood.
All I ask is if you’re driving through a neighborhood please watch your speed.
