Mrs. Cowboy came into the neighborhood some 17 years ago and has quite the tale to tell. A small, beautiful white feral kitten with gray markings, she chose Anne's house to hang out. Anne was an older woman living alone who had a couple of dogs and cats already, so perhaps the kitten felt safe there. It was a good choice. Anne immediately named her Mrs. Cowboy, started feeding her, eventually had her spayed, and kept encouraging her to trust a human. As the years passed, Mrs. C grew more confident and warmed up to Anne -- not enough to go inside and become one of the gang, but enough to allow Anne to tend to her and even pet her once in a while.
Alas, Anne had a serious medical event which required a long hospitalization and later nursing home care. While she was away from her house, neighbors rallied to take care of her remaining dogs, and didn't forget Mrs. C. What's even more amazing is that they realized her house had fallen into such disrepair it would be almost impossible for her to return home. Two neighbors who had construction experience swung into action and started to upgrade the house. They did an amazing job that Anne never saw. She died while still in the nursing home.
Fortunately for the neighborhood (and Mrs. Cowboy), the new family (J and J) that bought Anne's house, had a cat and understood their needs. After neighbors pointed out Mrs. C and explained the situation, they jumped right in to the caregiving. Over time, as they made overtures and showed their love, Mrs. C grew to like them back. She even allowed them to pet her from time to time and took advantage of the snug space they made for her in the garage to keep her safe from roaming coyotes and other predators in the area. In other words, they gave her a loving home.
The years went by and Mrs. Cowboy was one of my favorites. Nellie and I looked out for her on our walks and made sure to say hello at every opportunity. Over the last year, we noticed she was looking very thin and scraggly, her ear was torn and her nose wasn't right. J and J gave us the sad news that she had cancer and wasn't doing well. They had a mobile vet come out to take care of her but the prognosis wasn't good. Today, her suffering ended.
The pictures below were taken two days before she passed away, helped by an amazing vet who does in-home euthanasia so animals are not unduly stressed.
Mrs. Cowboy - it was truly wonderful to have you in our lives for so long and you will be sorely missed.
Mrs Cowboy was loved and had a long beautiful life.
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