Goodbye, sweet Rosie!

You had such a bad start in life, dear Rosie. You were severely abused by children, and you still have the scars of your many operations. But you healed, and you found a good home with Murray in England.

You traveled with him to Canada, you witnessed our courtship, you accepted me as your new Mommy. You were such a sweet natured and trusting cat, nothing could ever upset you. You were always in the mood for cuddles, day and night. Nobody has ever seen you nasty to any human or your feline siblings, in fact at times we wished you were a little more assertive with them.

But you were a rascal too... no food was ever safe from you and your nickname was "Nine Bums", as you well know. We chased you off the counter more times than we can remember, but we always found you up there again. We had to watch you when we fed the other cats, because it would end up in your tummy and not theirs.There is not one piece of furniture that was left unscratched until we discovered Soft Paws, because official scratching posts were far beneath you.

We knew you were getting old, after all you were born long before the turn of the millennium. It wasn't until about a month ago that we realized something was seriously wrong. First your eyesight left you... then you started to forget things. You couldn't jump on the bed any longer, and you did nothing but sleep... or pace around in circles, confused. You were not able to remember in which corner you could find your food. You even forgot where the cat boxes were, and how to use them. You had lived your life to the full, you well traveled and spoiled cat, you. You made your last journey today.

Your four younger brothers will miss you, and so will we. Goodbye, sweet Rosie!