R.I.P

Puddy

December 4 1998 - April 17 1999

Sometimes in life, people come and they stay for only a shortwhile. But in the short time that we know them, we grow to love them. Such was the case with Puddy, our grey tabby kitten. Born on December 4 1998, Puddy was one of a litter of four that my father's sister in law's cat had given birth to.

We happened to adopt Puddy purely by chance. We went to visit Yia Yia Katerina, and while we were there, we couldn't help but play with the three remaining kittens. I had held Puddy in my hands and I saw mum looking at me with that look which pretty much meant that her heart was set on her. Of all the kittens, Puddy was definately the prettiest and the most feminine. Her grey fur enhanced her blue eyes as I cradled her in the palm of my hand. We rang up our aunt to ask whether we could keep her, and when she gave us her reply, I think we practically deafened her with our over zealousness.

Deciding Puddy's name was our household topic for a week. We threw various names around and we even drew a lottery (however we realised it was kinda rigged when Dad pulled out his own choice of Nikki (think about it - Rikki and Nikki?). But I think Mum may have had the upper hand when she stuck to calling "Puddy" whenever she was about to feed our family's newest addition. When we tried to call Puddy by any other name, she simply ignored us. So Puddy it was.

To say that Puddy was a character is a complete understatement. Puddy would be sitting on the verandah, and without warning, she'd start running sideways. Together with Rikki, our German Shepherd, she'd taunt Bunny, our pet rabbit. While Rikki chased Bunny around the car clockwise, Puddy would be chasing Bunny anti-clockwise, so Bunny would have no place to hide.

Bunny and Puddy shared a special sort of relationship - one that our family found extremely unique. In fact, their relationship was that unique that Puddy was responsible for Bunny's phantom pregnancy a few weeks ago!

Within the 5 months that we had her, Puddy had virtually doubled in size. Her little adventures had already started - she started climbing trees and beginning to scale the fence to go for her little strolls. She was so alive and contained seemingly boundless energy.

Who would have guessed that this morning we would find her body still and lifeless? Who would have thought that her adventurous spirit would have left her body? No one. Why a six month old kitten had to die young is beyond comprehension. Yet we are grateful for the fact that we got to know Puddy and experience her quirky character, even if it was for but a short time.

Rest In Peace Puddy.

We love you.