Eulogy to Our Cat Spanky

Spanky Wilson came into our lives when I was only 5 years old. I had wanted a cat very badly, and we were planning to get one from a pet store when my Dad brought one from the farm. He found Spanky in the brush, as a little, skinny newborn kitten. He was meowing, and Dad took him home to us. My mom was giving my sister a bath while I was in the tub, and when Dad came in with the cat I yelled "I love 'im, I hate 'im, I love 'im, I hate 'im!" (I'm not really sure why, I was five..) I was so excited, and we decided to keep him. He's lived with us since.

He went through a lot when he was little, dealing with me as a kid I vaguely remember putting him in clothes and swinging him around in pillow cases. It was all in love though. He grew from a kitten into being a very fat cat, and he was always known as being "HUGE" when people would come over and see him. I used to call him the "King of the neighborhood cat".

When I was in the second grade, we adopted Tabitha and Orangy and Spanky suddenly had to deal with other cats in the house. Spanky and Tabitha grew very close over the years and Spanky would always lick Tabitha's head. Spanky would always monitor what order the cats could eat. He would always wait his turn like a gentlemen, letting Tabitha eat first and then letting scared Orangy eat, and then he would take his turn.

When we moved to California in the 4th grade, Spanky came up with my dad in a semi truck with our luggage. He meowed and meowed in the crate that my dad had him in next to his seat, and after a few hours of driving my Dad decided to let him out of the crate, nervously. Spanky came up to my dad and slept next to him in the front seat of the semi for the rest of the ride--so cute. We were nervous about him adjusting to the new environment. When we moved into the new house he hid in my parent's new closet with some of the boxes, and we couldn't find him for a day. It was really nerve wrecking, but we were relieved when we heard him meowing in the closet. My Dad and Spanky both felt out of place living in California.

Miranda was introduced when I was in the 8th grade, shortly after Orangy passed away. Spanky had outlived Orangy, and was beginning to be a slightly elderly cat. He was still very large, and would spend most of his time sleeping on the couch and would sit at his special spot by the stairs. He never really slept on beds, but if he was invited he would happily stay and warm your feet. He enjoyed the summertime, and would leisurely walk around the yard while the other cats would run around. He never really interacted much with Miranda, but let her eat after Tabitha. He had this system, and when he left the female cats were completely running into eachother confused during food  times.

Spanky was always my Dad's cat, and would always get really excited when my Dad would come in the room and would meow really loud at him. He always got really happy and friendly when me or Avery's dates would come over and sit on the couch. Spanky would always walk over and sit behind their heads. He was then labeled the "gay tuxedo cat".
Michiko was then introduced a couple years ago when the "Blessing" pregnant cat came to our house and left her kittens under the deck. Spanky never really interacted with Michiko either, probably because of the age difference. He would sometimes turn and hit her if Michiko tried to play with his tail when he'd walk by. But he always got alone with the female cats, and never got into fights.
Spanky went blind a couple months ago, and quickly adjusted and happily lived the last couple months of his life. He meowed a lot, and developed the nickname Steavie Wonder because he's blind, black, and sings everywhere.
We love Spanky very, very much, and he's been around since I was very young. It's very hard to see him go, and I'm going to miss him a lot. He passed away very peacefully, close to the house. When he disappeared a few days ago (I was in the hospital), we feared he might of been on the streets and something terrible happened to him. Luckily, he seemed to lay down, comfortable near the house, and passed away. He was a member of our family, and always will be. 

 Tabitha is sitting next to me right now, snuggling up to my leg. I think she knows that we know about Spanky somehow. We are all very sad about Spanky, especially my dad.. With what's been going on with his family, and then his cat dies, he probably feels very alone. I hope things turn around for him soon.

yours,

Emily