Ginny

This picture was taken a while ago - when Ginny, the old ginger cat was still alive and well. Bailey, the dog, is about the same age as Bonnie, our own dog - they are fast friends. Ginny was an old, wise cat. She had been with my neighbour for more years and years and died at the ripe old age of 21 about a fortnight ago.

Barbara was discussing about Ginny one afternoon while we were having coffee - that she would ask the vet to let the old cat go in peace as she started leaking inside the house and lost interest in her food. The next day, however, Ginny was found dead in the driveway of the neighbour's across the road. We thought that she was trying to go away to die on her own but too weak and could not go far enough to find a properly hidden and peaceful place.

This "cats going away to die" is what a lot of people believe or prefer to believe (including me in the latter category) and that gives our beloved pets some dignity. However, in more scientific way - cruel as it might sound, sick animals usually try to find a place to hide because they feel vulnerable and in the wild they can fall prey to other predators. Similar to when they give birth - they often try to find somewhere safe for themselves and their newborns.

Domestic cats and dogs do not always do that - a lot of times they just don't want to move or just cannot move. It's us, the owners, who will have to decide when to let them go. We have done that enough times with our own pets - it's very sad but at least we could see that they went to sleep peacefully - no more pain, no more suffering.

Ginny was buried in Barbara's beautiful garden. She was home and safe at last - RIP, Ginny.