In your honor Magellan

On June 28th, 2000 my family was greeted with 4 warm, wiggly kittens. One of them I had to help mama cat remove the sack from. That very same kitten was the first to leave the cozy box under the sink and go exploring.

Exploring he did! He climbed up the drawer pulls and onto the sink counter at just a few weeks old!! He was instantly named Magellan.

He struggled with health issues at the start and we got him on the right track. He has been my constant companion and snuggle buddy for over 11 years.  Even after suffering a stroke and learning in January of this year that he had major heart birth defects, he kept right on purring along.

It was touch and go for those first weeks and I was a wreck. He was unable to use his back legs and I thought for sure I was going to have put him down. But Magellan had more heart and more spirit than most humans. He walked again and seemed stronger and happier than he had been in a very long time.

Last month he started getting weak again. The medications were making him sick all the time and he was weak and losing weight. I begged him to hang on a little while longer. “Please stay until mommy gets back from Colorado.”  He did.

This weekend he has been really struggling, weak and not himself. He has not purred in 5 days. Until we walked into the vets office this afternoon. Then that old familiar motor boat started up and perked up. It was if to say “thank you mommy for helping me let go.”

The vet spent several minutes with him and with a tear told me he always goes for the heroic measures and not once has he told someone the best thing they can do is to help them die….until today.

So with a broken heart I agreed. I already knew he would tell me this before I walked in the doors. Magellan knew as well. He hugged me and purred and seemed happier than he has been in a few weeks. He was ready and too weak to keep going but too strong spirited to give up either.

The vet was amazed and confused that he was sitting there purring in spite of all the catastrophic organ failures going on. He left this world impressing everyone in the vets office.

I held him and whispered words of love to him as they gave him some gas to put him to sleep before actually stopping his heart. I held him afterwards and told him how grateful I was for his years of love. I let him know that me and baby girl are finally in a good place and that it was ok to cross the Rainbow Bridge.

I lost it in the parking lot as I sat with my sweet baby boy on my lap. I cried all the way home and made it through the door to sink to the floor in gut racking sobs.

We buried him tonight and planted a beautiful plant above him. You fought hard and you were so precious to me. I love you little man and I thank you for the years of love you brought to me. I will miss you something awful. You were an amazing cat and I am proud that I got to be your mama. Thank you for choosing us to share your life.

Sleep sweet my angel cat. Sleep sweet Magellan.

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