Welcome to Duke's Rainbow Residency
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Memories of Duke
| Duke came to me as a 3-1/2 year old indoor/outdoor cat whose former residence had been on a farm. He was adopted from the local SPCA as a kitten, but at this point in his life he was going to be on his way to a shelter if his owner didn't find a new home for him. I learned of Duke's plight less than a month after the passing of my first cat, Delilah, who had occupied my life for the previous 17 years. As demoralized as I was about Delilah's passing, I knew I had to have another cat in my life before long, so I decided to give Duke a go. The first several months weren't easy. Duke longed to go outside, but this was something I had not allowed Delilah to do, and was not going to let him do, either. He got out twice; the first time he was gone for a few hours, and the second time for a few days before a neighbor found him. In addition, his fur was not very soft, and irritated my skin. (Although I am very allergic to cats, I know I will never live without them!). I had serious doubts about whether Duke and I were going to make it together, but every time I thought about him being placed in a shelter if I didn't keep him, I just couldn't let him go. After that rocky beginning, we settled in quite nicely, and spent 9-1/2 blissful years together. Both his yearning to go outside and the texture of his fur changed over time. (He was 15 pounds of the softest black fur anywhere.) I had him put down last fall, the week before Thanksgiving, after a brief illness. The 1999 holiday season was the first I had spent without a cat since 1972. Although I always truly believed that Duke would never replace Delilah in the deepest place in my heart, I realized during his last moments how indelibly he had carved out his own special place there. I had always felt tremendous guilt that I had not been with Delilah when she passed in her sleep at the vet's. I'm not sure I felt all that much better being with Duke at the very end, but it was certainly what he deserved from me. There are two new kids with me now, adopted from the SPCA after having been abandoned in an apartment when their owner moved. They are Lucy, a 4-1/2 year old tuxedo cat, and Emily, 2-1/2 and orange striped. While both are sweet and have added much to my life during the last few months, they've yet to fill the tremendous void left by Duke. But I have no doubt that they eventually will. |
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This site was inspired by and is dedicated to FiFi
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