Apr 21, 2014
They say the camera does not lie. And yet, I look at this photo of Lady Jane taken just yesterday, and I am stunned by how good she looks. She was always a pretty kitty and even at 17 years old, Lady Jane was a beautiful old girl. But, what this image doesn’t show is the sadness that surrounds it. For, it was taken during the brief space of 5 minutes yesterday when she had stopped vomiting, we had already contacted the emergency vet to say we were coming and were about to place her in her carrier for her final car ride. I got her to relax on our bed (truly one of her favourite places) and took a few final pictures. Within 10 minutes of this image, we were on our way.
Lady Jane was a wonderful girl and such a trooper. Cats often are. She had been diagnosed in early October with Chronic Renal Failure and her vet had warned us not to expect more than a couple of months. We were understandably shocked and it took us some time to process the information. We knew she had been losing weight, but I don’t think either my husband, Dean, or I were prepared for the severity of the issue. But our vet kindly answered all of our questions, sent us home with lots of information and medication to stabilize her, and we determined to simply cherish the time we had left.
And you know, we got into a rhythm with giving her her medication and ensuring that she ate properly. It was at that point that we realized that Lady Jane had probably been feeling unwell for some time, because the medication helped her to rally. In the 6 months since her diagnosis, Lady Jane has done things and explored area she had never done before. She learned how to climb onto the desk in my husband’s office so that she could sit on the windowsill and watch the world go by. She no longer used the stool beside our bed which had been placed there to help her old bones get up more easily – she bounded from the floor and back off again. And then sometimes, she leaped from the bed onto the dresser. Her greatest success was when she propelled herself from the couch onto our dining table. Most of these things would certainly would have been unacceptable in our house (no getting up on the dining table!), but the fact that she had the desire and the ability to do it astounded us. For a cat who had lived most of her life on one level (she had been a little portly in her younger years), it was a joy to see her enjoy herself.
And then there was her personality. When we adopted her brother Baxter 18 months ago as a companion to Lady Jane, we could not have picked a better boy. Baxter has confidence, without a hint of aggressiveness. His patient encouragement combined with her feeling much better, and Lady Jane had come out of her shell. She travelled easily and adapted to new environments. She greeted visitors when they came into our home. She stepped outside onto the balcony and felt the sun on her face. It was like she had a bucket list of things to do and we had the joy of seeing her cross things off the list.
We almost convinced ourselves that she would be with us a long time. Our friends would ask how she was doing and we would answer that she was doing remarkably well. Deep down, we knew the disease would eventually get the better of her, but given her newfound love of life and adventure, it seemed a long way off. And, we were not prepared for how quickly it would happen. It seems like on Friday the medication stopped working which translated into Lady Jane being extremely picky over her food. We had been very fortunate that throughout everything she was a great drinker – bowls and bowls of water helped flush her ailing kidneys and kept her happy. But, by yesterday morning, she had stopped drinking, stopped eating and begun almost non-stop vomiting. She also found it very difficult to use the litter box. I gave her her medication to help with the vomiting and offered her her favourite ‘treats’ – chicken and lactose-free milk. She refused the chicken, but lapped up the milk. Only to bring it all up within 10 minutes. It was as if her digestive system was shutting down.
Seeing her suffer this way helped us making a heart-wrenching decision. Of course, not only was it a Sunday but it was a holiday and therefore her regular vet was closed. Which led us to the wonderful people at Vaughn-Richmond Hill VEC who helped her pass, surrounded by the people who loved her most. I got to hold her and I hope that she felt me stroking her and that the last thing she heard was me telling her how much I loved her.
Seventeen years is a long time. A small furry kitten originally from Brampton Animal Shelter left her mark on our lives and on our hearts. She made us smile. She made us laugh. There is now only a gaping hole that she used to inhabit.
Lady Jane, our little furry face. You were loved. Please know, we love you still.
“You’re the one that I love, and I’m saying good-bye…” ~A Great Big World (Say Something)
Jun 21, 2013
Well, here we are back at Project 52 again! This week’s theme was ‘body parts’ – all the fun little details that make up our furry friends.
I have chosen this photograph of Baxter’s awesome paws. I’ve always loved those little paws…even when he uses them to wake me up by pushing against my nose in the morning! The pads are black and his legs are oh-so-long, so Baxter can just about reach anything he wants to. He uses them constantly to explore and play and communicate. But, when they are at rest, they are just the cutest little paws!
What’s the favourite body part of your pet?
Next in the blog circle is Pet Photographer, Stacey Gammon, serving Bergen County, New Jersey. Please go see her and all of the other pet photographers images for this week!
Mar 15, 2013
This week’s challenge was to show off some texture.
One thing that I love about Baxter (among other things) is his amazing fur! It is so unbelievably soft, and along with his wonderful personality he is one gorgeous snuggle bum. For a challenge involving texture, what better subject than my beautiful boy!
And so, here is Baxter showing off his silvery, shimmery self – just look at the texture in that coat!
Next in the blog circle is Denver Pet Photographer, Deanna Hurt at StinkDog Photos. Please take a look at her texture theme for this week.
Mar 1, 2013
When we were asked to incorporate shoes in our image this week, I knew exactly what shoes I would use! These are my fanciest, blinged-out, look-at-me-I’m-wearing-sexy-red-shoes pair that I own. They are beautiful and they make your leg look awesome!
Only one problem. I’ve never worn them.
See, I bought them on a whim. They were beautiful and, as I recall, they were part of an amazing sale. Unfortunately, they were, and are, the most uncomfortable shoes I have ever bought. My foot cramped up in the store just trying to get them on. For some reason though, I convinced myself that all of that would change if I brought them home and walked around in them. But, that didn’t happen. So, they sit in my closet, in a box on the shelf, looking sexy.
However, not all is lost. As you can see they photograph beautifully. And as an added bonus, when I brought them out to photograph them, my husband naturally asked, “When did you get the new shoes?“. At which point, I could truthfully reply that I have had them for years. 🙂
Baxter, being a boy, thought they were pretty sexy too. So, here he is checking them out…
Next in the blog circle is Tracy Sutherland Photography in Squamish, BC, Canada. Let’s go and see what happened to her shoes this week!
Jan 25, 2013
This week’s challenge was chosen by Posh Pets Photography (me!). I love black and white imagery – there is something so classic about it – and I love to see how a photo changes just by removing the colour. So, this week everyone was to produce a black and white image or an image that featured the colour black and/or white. I cannot wait to see what everyone came up with.
So…if you live in Toronto, you know how cold it has been this past week. I did not want to be outside and when I looked at Baxter, he gave me no indication of him wanting to step foot outside either (Baxter has gotten quite accustomed to the cushy life of an indoor cat in the 10 weeks he has been with us). So, I thought it would be a good week to practice my studio photography skills as well as introduce little Baxter to real studio lights. Which is exactly what we did…hope you enjoy the result!
We have a lot of participants this week’s Project 52, so please follow the blog circle around to see them all. To begin with, take this link to Eastern Iowa Pet Photographer, Mary Beth Arnold and see what beautiful image she came up with this week!
Jul 18, 2012
It was a hot morning on Monday when I went in to photograph this week’s adoptables. Dog tongues were hanging out as we found some relief in the shade of a tree. Even the indoor kitties with their fur coats were evidently feeling the heat – I watched as one guy had all four paws in the large water bowl and was happily creating a wave pool with his paw, while simultaneously drinking. His feline friends looked on with curiosity mingled with disdain as he played with their water source.
So, with that, here is this week’s line-up…they are all available and eagerly waiting to meet their forever families at Toronto Animal Services! There is more information about each and everyone of them on the TAS site as well as the Posh Pets’ Facebook page. Please share their furry faces far and wide and let us know if one comes into your home – we love to hear the happy endings!
Jul 10, 2012
Yesterday was a beautiful morning as I headed off to meet the furry faces at Toronto Animal Services – lots of kitties and a quite a few dogs make up this week’s group! Please check them out and share their images so that they can find their forever homes soon! If you are interested in finding out additional information, please contact TAS directly. The Posh Pets’ Facebook page will have their ID numbers, which will help identify them.
See you all next week!
May 28, 2012
What a lovely morning to head down to the Toronto Animal Services (North Region) and meet a fresh group of furry faces! We headed outside before it got too hot to photograph the doggies and then back inside to see the kitties. I loved meeting (and cuddling) all of you!
Here are the doggies!
And here are the kitties!
Thanks so much for checking these guys out. Please feel free to share their images with anyone who would enjoy them and especially for those who are looking for a special pet in their life. As always, they will be featured on the Posh Pets Facebook page throughout the week where you can read a little more about them. If you would like to see them in “person”, please contact Toronto Animal Services (North Region) directly at (416) 338-8723.
See you next week!
