So Long, Old Friend

I know that many of you, mostly family and those friends on Facebook, have already heard of the passing of the family cat, May. But I felt it fitting so at least give her a little space on the blog, her fifteen minutes of fame, for she'd been in my life since she was 6 weeks old, and has been my faithful, constant companion for the past 4 years.

Two weeks ago Brian was getting ready for work when he heard dogs barking and yelping outside in the driveway. He ran outside, fearing they were chasing May. Indeed, they were, and (to save the gory details) were trying to kill her. Brian immediately ran the dogs off, then ran inside to wake me up.

We found May hiding under the car, in shock, and wounded. I called our local vet to check the recorded message to see if there was an emergency number. There was one, but there was no guarantee anybody would answer. Lo and behold, someone did pick up, and told me that Dr. Wagner happened to be at the vet's office early that morning, and that I should take May to the back door.

I drove about 65 mph down a 35 mph street...don't worry, it was deserted at 6:45 a.m! She took May right in and told me to call in a few hours. May had several wounds, the most severe being her back leg. The doctor informed us that we had two options: one, to amputate her leg, or two, have her go to sleep eternally. I knew that it would be expensive to do the surgery, but I also knew that I could not make the decision to have her put down.

So, after many tears and discussion, Brian and I decided that since May had come so far, had fought so hard to stay alive, that she deserved a chance. We told the vet to go ahead with the procedure, and that we'd work out the bill later.

Andrew and I went up the vet the afternoon before the procedure to visit with May. I felt she could use some cheering up and would love to hear my voice. She talked to me the whole time, but was so sedated she couldn't even open her eyes.

The following morning I called the vet to check on her, and received the news that May had died early that morning. She had gone through the surgery well, but had lost so much blood, and had been through so much trauma. I felt terrible. I felt that I had put her through the pain of surgery just to have her die in the end, anyway. But I was comforted by the fact that one, I gave her a chance, two, I had a chance to see her one last time, and three, she was not in any more pain.

May hanging out in Andrew's bassinet.

We brought her home and buried her in the yard, under a big shade tree that is filled with bird feeders. She's close to the house, and in a nice spot where she can hear the birds.

We're so thankful for the kindness of the entire staff at the vet's office. Everyone was so disappointed to hear that she lost the fight in the end. Today, I had to take Duke, the dog, in for his annual checkup. Dr Wagner made many comments about how sorry she was about May, and that she had a bill ready for us at the front desk.

When I got home, I opened the bill, dreading the amount. Two days of intensive care, medications, surgery, and blood transfusions...what would it cost? The grand total was a few dollars over $1,000. Then, at the bottom, it said "Amount Due: $256.00." Dr Wagner had discounted over $700 from the bill, stating that she hated to even charge us anything, but had to cover the cost of the medication.

May lounging in Andrew's Elmo chair.

Y'all, we love our vet. There's something to say about living in a small town, we all look out for each other and help one another out. That's the way it should be. Even the neighbors now are polishing up their guns in case the wild dogs come back...Who's to say the dogs wouldn't attack a small child? I shudder at the thought.

So, here's a last farewell to my May, the first 'official' member of the family, even before Brian. Love you, girl. See you in the great garden in the Sky!