Goodbye my darling friend.

Last photo - 6th March 2007

Yesterday was a sad day for us all. Having seemed to perk up from his troubles in the summer, our lovely Jasper rapidly went down hill over the last week. He's always been a rather sensitive puss when it came to changes and, what with the house move meaning different people traipsing through our home, lots of sorting out etc., and the nasty noise and digger (which even scares young Allie) doing its dirty deed so close to us, we've noticed a big change in him over the last month. He'd been extra loving, sitting on our laps, following us and being closer than normal, we knew he wasn't happy, we knew he sensed something was "going on".

This last week though he's turned into an old man, getting painfully thin due to not eating, dehydrated due to not drinking enough, and generally down and not taking care of himself. I had to bath him a couple of days ago as we just couldn't stand the pong any longer (now, strangely the pong (which is a nightmare to get rid of) is actually quite a nice reminder of him - weird, I know), and he didn't even fight me, he just sat in the bath and let me clean him. He spent his final days just resting, lounging outside the bathroom door. I found the final photos I took of him revealed his sad eyes more than in real life - this was our deciding factor.

It has to be one of the hardest decisions to make, letting a much loved pet leave you, even though you know he'll go on to a happier life elsewhere. We've had our tears, but we also feel relief now as we know it certainly was for the best. Jasper has been with P and I since we moved into our first home in 1990 - a mischievous bundle of a rescue kitten from Blue Cross in Victoria. We miss you Jas, but we know you've had a happy life and will continue to live happily wherever you've moved on to.

Rest in peace my little treas.

First photo taken during his first week with us - June 1990