Once again I find myself writing a memorial for a beloved pet this year. I lost my cat Abigail very unexpectedly. I had her since she was a kitten and she was just a little over ten years old. She was the first animal that my husband and me got together. She is greatly missed by us both.
It was hard to lose her so suddenly because I had no chance to say good bye. The last time I saw her she was laying next to me in the living room. She was sweet and lovable. She did not act like anything was wrong at all. I went to bed and then early in the morning my husband woke me up and said Abigail had died in her sleep. I got up and he showed me that she was in the same spot where I left her when I went to bed. She just looked like she was sleeping.
My husband was used to her hanging out in the bathroom in the morning and then demanding her food as he was getting ready for work. He was looking all around the house, before he noticed her on the sofa. We buried her, but it sure didn’t seem real. The house is so quiet now.
Back in 2011, my cat Francesca died. It was rough on me because she had been with me most of my adult life and been there through all my ups and downs. When she passed, I wasn’t looking for a new cat right away, but my husband was determined to get one and claimed it was for my sake.
He was the one who did the research and was looking on petfinder.com. He was drawn to Abigail who was a Tonkinese mix. My husband is a dog person, but when he did research, found that this type of cat had a lot of dog like qualities. He also liked that she had markings on her nose that made her look like she had a pig nose. He thought that gave her character.
When we did go to meet her, I did not immediately bond with her. She was standoffish and I always like the idea of a social cat and a lap cat, but my husband was convinced that we should bring her home. The rest is history as they say.
I named her Abigail after one of my favorite Bible characters. She was certainly the most vocal cat that I have ever had. She was beautiful. It didn’t take too long for her to win my heart. She eventually even became a lap cat until we brought attention hog dogs into the family. I don’t think she was ever a fan of the dogs. They liked to harass her and she loved to lash out at them. She never was one for playing with the dogs.
I feel like we were soul sisters. We both loved those naps and food. She could be quite adamant about making sure she was fed. Us hangry girls had to stick together. I remember one time I came home and she had dragged out a big bag of cat food and it was laying by the kitchen door with a big hole in it. I was not happy, but my husband thought it was cute. She was a good cat and I sure do miss her. I miss how when I came home she would greet me at her cat bowl with that demanding tone of hers.
She didn’t always have the same night time routine. Sometimes she was in my bed when I went to bed. That was her time to give my her soothing, loud purrs. That was usually the time she wanted me to pet her and she was aggressive about it. I loved it.
I’m glad we had ten good years together, I just wish I could have at least ten more. I am thankful that she went out the way most of us would want to go. By all accounts, she just went peacefully in her sleep. We never would have known, we had so few moments left with her. Rest in peace sweet Abigail. You were most loved and I hope to see you again.
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