On January 13, 2023, our beloved Greta went peacefully to the Rainbow Bridge.
This girl showed up on our deck in Wisconsin during a December ice storm. Someone had cared for her. She'd already been spayed. She was an adult. We weren't sure exactly how old, but we guessed she was about a year old then.
Greta was a quiet girl most of the time, but she had her moments. Shortly after we brought her into the house, she was sleeping on my chest and I woke up to a bite on the nose. A love bite, yes it was. I thought, "We have a character here."
Greta loved to drink out of the faucet. I got her a water fountain so she'd have filtered water instead of tap water. The other cats loved it, but not Greta. It had to be the faucet or nothing.
Greta loved her people. She did not love the other cats. She'd tap my face with her paw and give me head butts. Milk rings were her favorite toys.
As she grew older, a few gray hairs started to appear. Her kidneys began to fail. With care, cats can live with kidney failure for a long time. And, she did. Her appetite was strong, and when she started to lose weight, I fed her more often. She held her own for some time.
Until she couldn't. The chronic respiratory infection she had took over. Her weight, which was once a healthy 13 pounds, was now 4. She started wandering through the house, unaware of where she was. She stopped eating. We knew it was time to say goodbye. Knowing that didn't make it any easier, though. I held her at the end, making sure she knew I was with her.
When a little presence has been in your life for 17 years, there's a huge hole in your heart when that presence is gone. Greta was quiet, funny and loving. She's the last of the Wisconsin cats. She's the last of her kind.
We'll always love you, sweet girl.
