Yesterday was not a good day for me.  I had to have Penny euthanized.
She usually went out in the evening for an hour.  Sat. night I had to
call her back in and found her in the grass with the tip of her tongue
out.  She vomited a few times that night, my first thoughts were that
she had gotten into some poison.

Sun. I took her to the emergency clinic.  The xrays showed that someone
had shot her with a bb gun.  The bb had entered her left side.  The vet
opened her up to see if he could remove it but there was so much damage
to her intestines and bowels that he expected her to succumb to
infection even if she made it through the surgery.

I found Penny at a Superpetz store, about 3 or 4 years ago.  I already
had 2 barn cats and 2 dogs from the Humane Society that I had adopted
when I bought my house.  She captured my heart when she reached out a
paw and swatted at the buttons on my coat.  She was a calico and the
orange in her coat was more of a peach color, so the previous owner
named her Peaches.  He had left her when he moved out of the apt. he
was in and his roommate didn't want her.  That is how she came to be at
the H.S.

That weekend I helped at an offsite for the Humane Society at that
Superpetz.  A friend from the shelter suggested I take Penny home to
see how she does.  Well, I guess you know that there was no way she was
going to leave once she came into my home.  : )

My other 2 cats are ok, not terribly affectionate.  Penny was just the
opposite - she loved to sit on my lap while I was on the couch.  And
she would come out and visit when people came over.  She always used
the scratching post, and the only bad habit she had was getting on the
counter, that and wanting to go outside.  She never stayed outside
long, and never stayed out all night.
Penny would sleep with me, sometimes under the covers.  Her fur was so
silky, I loved feeling it against my skin.  In the mornings, she never
demanded to be fed.  She would give my arm little kitty kisses.

Penny was quite the food hound, or food feline I guess.  I tend to sit
on the couch while eating my dinner and she would perch on the back of
the couch, hoping for a taste.  I had to be careful about leaving
anything on the counter 'cause she would try to chew through the
package.  One time I left a bag of hamburger buns on the counter.  I
came home one day to find she had chewed a hole in the bag and had
taken a bite out of one of the buns.  In addition, she had laid on the
bag while doing this, so the rest of the buns were squished too!

I keep some kitty treats in a cupboard that doesn't close very well.
Penny would get on the counter, open the cupboard, and knock the treats
to the floor.  I would often find the bag on the kitchen floor with
teeth marks all over it.  One time I caught her in the act.  And my
male cat, Jake, was sitting on the floor, waiting for her to drop the
goodies.

I know the coming days will be difficult.  I already have called my
other female, Annie, by Penny's name.  I know I'm going to walk in the
house and expect her to be there.  Or to come running into the bathroom
for a drink from the faucet when I'm getting ready for bed.

Penny, I know that you are once again whole and hope you're having the
time of your life running through the grass.  I love you and will miss
you very much.  

Theresa