Tribute to Koji

[Elladorine]

My beautiful little tuxedo cat Koji became very ill on Christmas night. He was lethargic, had gotten sick all over the floor, and left blood in his kitty box. We took him into the vet yesterday morning to have some tests run. Turned out he had renal failure so severe that there was no hope for him. We had to put him to sleep that afternoon.

One of my friends was right when she said that Koji was a great "kitty angel" as he made me smile when no one else could. He was only six years old so losing him like that was such a heartbreaking, unexpected shock. I drew something simple for him early this morning.



It isn't quite real yet. He was always great company and got me through a lot of difficult and scary moments when I was living alone with a very uncertain future. He was often curled up in my lap or batting at my tablet as I worked on many of the pieces that ended up as my avatars here, and as I walk around in the darkness of the house I still carefully watch for him so I won't trip. It about kills me when I realize he isn't here to beg for treats, sleep at the foot of my bed, or share quiet moments with.

I can't tell you how much I already miss him.

[PixarFan2006]

I am very sorry to hear about your cat. I also know how it feels. It's never easy to lose a beloved pet. When I was younger, we had a dog who was hit and killed by a garbage truck. Also, my grandmother (who has since died) had to put her Shih Tzu down at a young age due to a disease.

[Elladorine]

Thank you. Aside from the family dog I grew up with many years ago, this was the longest I'd ever had a pet. I had many cats when I was a kid, but they were outside cats that either got hit by cars, got into bad fights, or mysteriously disappeared while they were still young. When I lived on my own, I decided any cat I adopted would be strictly a house cat in order to avoid all those problems.

Koji was such a good cat. He solved the mouse issue I had in my drafty old house when I first adopted him, and was always at the door to greet me. Not that any animal could replace him, but it will be a while before I can adopt another pet. In the meantime I'll do my best to take good care of Cinder, my puppy.

[Disney's Divinity]

I'm so sorry. I've had a lot of cat troubles over the years, so I feel for you. At least he's not in pain anymore.

[Disney Duster]

Sounds like poor Koji was feelin' super bad. Now he's on the moon feelin' super good. I'm sorry for your loss, but I'm glad you had this wonderful cat to live with and now lives in your heart and in heaven. You'll see him later. And you can be hankful you've got Cinder! How'd she get that name? I thought she was supposed to be a Lady and the Tramp type dog?

[Elladorine]

Thanks guys. While I gave him the best life I could, I'm sure he's in a better place now. The hard part is saying goodbye.

Here's a couple of pictures of Koji and Cinder together:





These are from a couple months ago so she's grown a bit since then. We came up with "Cinder" partly because of her color and partly because we thought it sounded cute and seemed to suit her. Rey says her middle name could be "Elly" and I've thought about designing a blue name tag that has a glass slipper on it for her. Right now she has a girly jolly roger I came up with. I didn't realize she was a Lady and the Tramp fan until after we'd named her, and I already had a dog named Lady when I was growing up thanks to my dad.

And honestly, I don't remember how I came up with Koji's name. I just know I was really into anime at the time so it might have had something to do with Fushigi Yuugi. Regardless, it suited him.

[Rose Dome]

I'm sorry to hear about your cat

I know the same sadness. Our nine year old dog had to be put to rest in August due to lymphoma

It takes a while to come to terms with the fact that a pet is gone, but don't lose track of the happy memories

[Elladorine]

Thanks Disney Geek. The happy memories always outshine the sad ones when given time.

[Mayhem]

Awww... and he'd only lived half his life. Sorry to hear that EW