My Cat's Story - Ziggy aka Ziggy Piggy aka Papas

by Mindy
(rancho cucamonga,ca)

This is my story of my beloved best friend Ziggy, a grey male tabby cat.

Ziggy was brought into my house with his 3 other stray sisters or brothers I'm thinking at about 6 weeks of age by my daughter who begged to take care of them. I did not agree and said they needed to go but did let her have a few days with the kittens. I really did not want a stinky cat in the house and I am allergic to cats to top it off.

She did end up giving 3 of the kitties back to the stray mom and told me she found a home for the grey tabby kitten who she named Ziggy and begged me to let her keep it a few days, which turned into weeks. So then my daughter being 18 at the time decided she was moving out and left little Ziggy behind and forgot all about him.

In the meantime I took over feeding, playing, and grooming him while thinking I was still going to find him a home. At the time I had really bad asthma problems and being sick that lasted about 5 weeks. Ziggy kept me company and even caused me 2 asthma attacks, itchy skin, raised welts with just a playful scratch, and awful itchy red eyes. I got better and Ziggy was still faithfully by my side.

He got bigger so I took him to the vet and got all his shots and then finally neutered. Ziggy would go outside through the doggy door and hang out playing all day and I would call him in at night to feed and make him come sleep with mama(me) in the room in his bed by my window.

I don't remember when or even how it happened but I outgrew my allergy towards my Ziggy. I didn't know that was even possible and I was still allergic to all the other cats I came into contact with. I could hug him and kiss him, fur touching my face and nope, nothing. My Ziggy piggy as I would call him,got very special treatment. I would get the best cat food feeding him morning and night. I bought him many cat toys every week, followed up on all his shots and got him the optional ones recommended and the best flee, tick, heart worm, etc that the vets office could offer. Everyone said I was crazy it's just a cat. I thought I must be crazy it is just a cat, but this cat was now my special baby.

Ziggy loved to play and he was so sleek and fast.He didn't even bother with my parrot but would playfully swat at his red tail which resembled his red feather toy. I would always tell him he was my little bobcat as he resembled one. He would chase his feather toy that I would taunt him with and never tiring like me. We moved to an apartment so I decided with no doggie door I could keep him inside as is recommended for a long life.

I bought him new cat toys, a cat tree, scratching post, and even a second cat cubie thing with toys. He was definitely depressed to be indoors and voiced his opinions with his meows all the time. One day as got home early afternoon I opened the patio door with the screen door shut so he could lounge next to it while I took a nap, Ziggy somehow managed to open the screen door and escape.

I was so worried but he did come back. From that day on I couldn't keep him indoors or he would meow and cry constantly so I gave in and let him out daily to go explore. He made new kitty friends, hunted and even ate his prizes to my disliking from bunnies, birds, lizards, and other rodents I couldn't identify. Ziggy loved the outdoors and would just lounge in the patio for sun if it meant he could stay outside but I always called him in for curfew by 8:30pm if not home.

He wouldn't even use his cat box as long as he was able to go outside and he never sprayed anything in or outside the house which I was worried about at first. My neighbor started complaining about the cat being outside so I decided to keep him in but he would cry so then I would let him get his way and return to the adventurous outdoors to explore.

One day on April 17th I came home and he came in from playing outside and noticed he wasn't breathing normal. I sat with him for hours by his side worrying and comforting him. Next morning he was the same so I decided I needed to take him to a vet and called off from work. I called everywhere to see if any vet had a payment plan with no luck and tried to increases my maxed out credit card with no luck and also being turned down with new credit. I decided in order to save his life I would surrender to the local animal shelter to get him medical care.

I'm not a person who even cries in front of other people, but that day was different. I couldn't help it as I signed the papers to surrender him. I tried so hard and felt really embarrassed but the tears wouldn't falling from these dang eyes of mine. stop. They told me I can call and check on him and they took him to an a!animal hospital and did x-rays . I went to visit after work a few days later and they said he was in the back where they kept the injured so I didn't get to see him but they said he was stable and even ate that day.

I secretly viewed the website daily and he was showing available for adoption, so I had hope he was OK and decided I would have a friend adopt him if no one wanted him so he wouldn't be put down. It was only a day or so I noticed his picture did not come up so I had my boyfriend call while I was at work the next day to check Ziggy's medical status. He said he couldn't get a hold of anyone there so I called when I got home. the woman on the other end of the phone seemed to pause and took a deep breath before she explained Ziggy had passed away the night before.

I found out a little bit later that day my boyfriend did talk to someone earlier but didn't have the heart to tell me. I realized when I saw Ziggy's bed in the back patio. I brought him in wed and sat night was his last day. Ziggy was a year and a half. I cried my heart out. He was a child to me and my best friend. I felt embarrassed to cry in front of my boyfriend because I don't think anyone would understand how this animal, this plain ole cat, stole my heart and faithfully kept me company the year and a half we spent together.

Love comes in expected ways for a person who was never a cat person. Ziggy, my kitty, my friend will truly be missed and life will never be the same but I will still have all our good memories forever in my heart.

---