Sunday, February 24, 2013

Pets are like family members!


I hope you don’t mind but today I've got something a little sad to share before I can get to the happier parts of my week.

We've experience a bit of heartache in our house this week. We've been looking after a stray ginger cat for about 6 years. He’s always been a very outdoorsy cat and because we have a very territorial male Tabby cat (he was also a stray) we were unable to take him in (not that we would've been able to seeing as he didn't like coming in). When you find yourself in this type of situation you also find out that there is no room at any cat charities/sanctuaries for strays and that the RSPCA will only take the cat if it is ill. Luckily he was always looked after by a few of us living in the area. He was fed lots of yummy treats & meals, given warm places to sleep and given attention whenever we had the chance. He was a fighter and despite his age, he survived all those cold winters! Sadly, on Tuesday he came to our house looking worse than he's ever looked as you can see from the photos above. It was heart breaking to see and there was no way we could let him leave looking like that. I just couldn't bear the thought of this poor old cat dying out there somewhere. So we made the decision to call the RSPCA and ask them to come get him. We got him inside, tried to get him to eat and kept him warm. Everyone else had work or college to go to so I was on my own waiting. I enjoyed our last hour together, stroking him and talking to him. A lady from the RSPCA arrived about an hour later with a cage. She checked him and told me that she was taking him to the vets but that he'd probably be put down because of the condition he was in. Hearing those words broke my heart even though I knew it was for the best. I found the lady to be very cold about the whole situation. She was here for about 2 minutes! I guess they have to be like that with everything they have to face but it didn't make me feel any better. I cried like a baby for at least 2 hours! I hated myself for not being there for him, not getting to say goodbye to him, for doing that to him. I needed reassurance from my fiancé and father to confirm that I'd done the right thing (which I now know I did). The doubt was the worst part, it eats you up…but I'm ok now. Still sad but I know it was the right thing to do. I'm angry because I hate that people do this to their pets! Why have a pet if you aren't going to look after it? How can anyone treat an innocent animal like that? They deserve better! I know most people find it silly but I am an animal lover and can't bear to see one hurt in anyway. How do you think we ended up with 7 cats (4 of which were strays)? I'm sorry to mention this on my blog, a blog that is meant to be happy and bright but I just felt like I needed to put it out there, to get it out in writing so that I can feel better and also to remember him because he deserves to be remembered! He was so loving and affectionate and I hope that wherever he is now he is happier.


So, onto slightly happier things. Do you like my bright socks? I mostly wear very dark clothing (partly due to my gothic personality) but socks have always been the exception! All my socks (long ones, ankle ones & toe ones) are stripey and colourful and often worn in mismatched pairs! People are always surprised at my socks & how bright my crochet projects tend to be considering my dark clothing but we all need colour in our lives somewhere!
Our week was a busy one which means I've not got lots of crochet & things to show although I have been working on & struggling to make the Daffodil found in 100 Flowers to Knit and Crochet. I enjoyed some juicy fruit on Sunday evening! I love pomegranates! The sofa is still in the same state it has been in all winter! Blankets spread all over creating a fort for burrowing or a warm place to sleep! I did manage to sneakily wash them and thank goodness acrylic dries quickly because the cats knew they were missing! My fiancé started his physio which surprisingly takes up a lot of time! Any free time we had was spent relaxing, reading & procrastinating! Procrastination is never a good thing when mixed with the internet! I found this cute shelf unit with drawers that I thought would be perfect to sort out our kitchen clutter but sadly it was too small! The photo with a big pile of mess is one of our kitchen counters that I like to refer to as the "hot spot" because EVERYTHING gets dumped there! So this week I'm going to find a solution! I'm thinking bright & colourful or maybe shabby chic!


I tried something knew this week! My father always uses these roasting bags when he does a Chicken Roast and the chicken comes out so great, it's practically falling off the bone! When we came home after a busy day of volunteering (this was definitely the busiest day so far this year) we were starving so I decided to just throw some drumsticks in a bag with loads of spices and throw it in the oven for an hour! It was delicious & there was hardly any washing up! Perfect for those days when you are too tired to really bother with food! Tonight my father is cooking and we are having stew and dumplings done in the slow cooker! I'm really looking forward to it. Perfect cold weather food!


I did attempt to make peanut butter bars but they didn't quite go according to plan and so there are no photos but I'll probably try them again one day! They came out more like cake and were enjoyed by the men anyway! Yesterday we made some mini Pecan Pies! They are my lovely man's favourites but we've never made mini ones before. He asked me in the week if I could make some for him.The best part about baking together is that he does all the washing up for me! I was pretty happy with the result and they are so easy to make! Delicious with a bit of cream on top! We still have some left for tonight! Yum!


And of course I can't go & not show you photos of some of our cats taken throughout the week! I managed to get a few nice ones of them. They've mainly been playing and sleeping...pretty much all they do every week!

Once again, thank you for reading my blog and apologies for the not so happy beginning of this weeks post! Specifically, I'd like to thank Jennifer & Laurel for their support and lovely comments. They mean so much to me!
Hope you all have a lovely week! See you in 7 days time! x

4 comments:

  1. Hi darkrose! You're welcome; I love your blog! I'm so sorry to hear about your cat. Poor little guy. We had to have our dog put to sleep back in August. He was nine years old and had tumors in his lungs. He was very sick and it was so hard to watch him decline. We'd had him since he was five weeks old. He was like another child to us. Sorry again. I love to use roasting bags too! I use them for chicken and pork pretty often. Your cats are beautiful. I've never had a cat for a pet but I might like to someday. :)

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    1. Thank you for your very kinds comments. I suppose he was our cat in many ways. It so hard losing pets, it makes you wonder why we keep putting ourselves through it but they are so worth it :) yes, roasting bags are awesome! Oh, I wonder if I could do pork chops in them...

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  2. I'm so sorry to hear about your kitty:( It's always hard to lose a pet. I'm sure he knew he was loved with those last cuddles with you. Snuggle up on the couch with your colorful blankets and your other babies, and that might help ease the hurt in your heart a little. All the food looks wonderfully tasty:)

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    1. Thank you Laurel, I hope he did :) I took your advice and the blanket snuggles were definitely worth it ;) aww, thank you for the comment on the food. I'm a serious beginner with all this cooking stuff so whenever something comes out ok it gets photographed lol just so I can remember that I once did it well!

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