Oliver Queen: Saying good-bye to our furry friend

For the sake of full disclosure, before I started dating my husband, I was NOT a cat person. Growing up, we had dogs and birds as pets. I suppose like many opinions growing up, you start out by sharing those of your parents :) My parents weren't cat people, therefore, I wasn't a cat person.

But when I moved into an apartment in college with no roommate, my husband (boyfriend back then) highly encouraged me to get a cat. He really felt I needed a companion... another living creature to keep me company when he couldn't be there. HE was a cat person :)

After a little push-back I agreed to go to the shelter to meet some furry friends. That's when we met Ali and immediately fell in love with her. Almost 15 years later, she's still with us and we consider her part of our family.

 

Fast forward to May of this year when we brought Oliver Queen AKA The Green Arrow, into our home. Another rescue kitty, Justin saw a fb post, went to meet him and it became not a question of IF he would be coming home to our family, it was WHEN would he be.  Justin and Oliver met and the two immediately bonded ❤️

This was NOT the case with Oliver and Ali. 

A kitten still at just 12 weeks old, the two fur balls struggled to get along - the older, established, territorial female and the sweet and innocent, adorable and energetic male.

Really it was Ali who didn't seem to be a fan of Oliver,  but nonetheless Oliver loved both playing and tormenting Ali 😁

He was playful, cuddly, great with the kids and loved long naps both on Justin's chest and his favorite spots on top of the couch and SOMETIMES he and Ali would "accidentally" takes naps next to each other on the couch ❤️.

With Ali sleeping by my head, Oliver assumed a position near the foot of our bed at night and cemented himself as part of our little family - no longer just a pet.

And just like that of a human friendship/ relationship, when you've invested your time and heart into someone and you're emotionally invested, when they hurt, you hurt. 

And that's exactly where we find ourselves today. Hurting. 

Last night we came home after being out of town to our sweet Oliver in his litter box unable to move. Our amazing friend and neighbor didn't hesitate to agree to staying with the kids so Justin and I could take him to the emergency vet clinic. It was there they would tell us his prognosis upon initial exam was poor, only to be confirmed by blood work.

Oliver was in bad shape.

We asked the vet,"If he was your cat, what would you do?" His answer, though honest, was not what we wanted to hear. But we, both Justin and I, knew it was what we had to do. 

We each spent time holding him and were by his side when he passed.

Quite honestly, it's one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. I fully understand how blessed we are that it wasn't one of our children, one of us or another family member, but it was real, raw pain that we experienced. The kind that makes you sob until your stomach hurts. The kind that's mind-numbing and blurs time.

Making the drive home with the box on your lap that contains the lifeless, but still warm body of your beloved furry family member is something I wouldn't wish on anyone. It sucks. It's heartbreaking.

 It's also one of the hardest things our children have had to experience. They've never experienced death before - human or otherwise - so close to them. Trying to explain it all had been though to say the least.

There are varying opinions about animals and Heaven - honestly some good arguments for both sides. Regardless whether you'll see your pet in Heaven or not, these animals that become pets that become like family are all creatures of God and God loves all of them. I believe in my heart that He takes care of them when they leave this Earth - wherever that may be.

Like many hard situations, the passing of time helps to heal. I have no doubt this will be the same, but Oliver is already greatly missed and it's not going to be easy.

Alicia