God bless Diane, the cat-mother

Two weeks had gone by since Diane came to tell me about Mr. Kibble's blindness, and I just never saw a time when she was home, I was free and it seemed good to go over there. So I finally just called her this past Monday.

She told me he'd declined since then; she's keeping him in the bathroom, she has to help him eat and drink, he is sometimes incontinent. She said he doesn't walk and she tries to move his legs so he doesn't lose the use of them.Every evening after supper she gets a latex-backed rug and lays it on the couch beside her and she keeps him on there for the evening. He gets lots of loving. We arranged that I should come over the following evening around seven - she would call me.

Well, Tuesday I was having my dinner and she called at 6:35. I didn't tell her I was eating - I just stopped and went over there.

He really wasn't as bad as I expected. I saw him in the bathroom in a little plush cat bed - she said he must have gone into it himself, so he does move around some on his own. She got the rug on the couch and we settled down. For a full half hour I petted him and talked to him like I'd always wanted to. He purred and seemed to listen to me. As for his condition, he tried to get up and move around a couple of times, and his movements were very jerky. It was clear that he'd had a similar spell to the one he had two years ago, only worse - or maybe because he's older, weaker. He was very happy for the affection! He's got a sore looking place on one corner of his mouth; Diane says he turns his head sideways to eat and I think that area gets irritated. She puts salve on it.

He is the dearest little fellow! As I always knew he was.

in better days