Tiger

"Tiger"
(1990-2008)
Tiger was put to sleep on November 25, 2008, he was at least 18 years old

November 2007 - at age 17 (approximately)
On December 16, 1993 I took in my very first cat. For the previous couple of days an orange tabby had been scrounging through the garbage near my apartment. There was just something about this hungry boy that called out to me. The winter's cold made me feel even more sorry for him, so I took him in. I named him "Tiger", and the vet said that he was between three and five years old at the time. I chose three. So he could actually be a couple of year older than the ages indicated on this page. When I took Tiger in, I was 27 years old and petless. After just two nights, Tiger was sleeping with me on my bed - a habit that lasted for the next 15 years.

Tiger was one of those cats who didn't ask for much, but gave plenty. He would excitedly run to me any time I called his name. He loved playing with me or the other cats that I got after him. He nuzzled my hand each night for affection, and purred for many minutes next to my head until he fell asleep. All the female kitties instantly fell in love with Tiger. Even ferals such as Princess who wouldn't let a human touch them, let their guards down for Tiger. Such naked affection is a moving sight to see. As you can see in the below pictures and videos, Tiger often groomed the gals quite a bit. He was the only cat they would let groom them. He was playful well into old age, and he showed his happiness with his "Tiger Trot". He was very smart - he knew his feline friend "Linda's" name. If I asked him where "Linda" was, he would start looking for her. Also, when he heard my home's central heat kick on in the wintertime, he would trot up the cat walks and lay right in front of a heater vent.

On September 1, 2007 Tiger's left hind leg went limp. During the following week he regained full use of it, but it was later discovered that he had suffered a heart attack which threw a blood clot causing the temporary paralysis of his hind leg. He was at least 17 at the time and in great shape for a cat that age. After a few tests (including two ultra sounds and several chest X-rays) it was revealed that Tiger's heart was only contracting at 20% of what it should be, and that his failing heart was causing fluid to press on his lungs making it a little harder for him to breathe. Some vets gave him only 3 months to live, but with lots of TCL and a few Lasix injections to remove fluid from his chest, he lived another 14 months. And he was remarkably healthy for the first 12 of those 14 months. But eventually he began losing weight, and the Lasix stopped removing fluid very well - making him extremely tired. He was put down on November 25, 2008. He was at least 18 years old at the time. Tiger sure was one heck of a special cat. He was THE reason why I became a cat lover. So it was because of Tiger that I built catwalks and a cat enclosure, and found good homes (often my home) for many strays. He will never be forgotten.

Below are some pictures of Tiger, followed by several short video clips.

December 1993 - age 3
This was one of the first pictures ever taken of Tiger. I had just taken him in a week or so earlier. My Mom and Dad bought Tiger that carpeted house - which proved to be his favorite place to play for the rest of his life.

April 1994 - Tiger age 3
Tiger and me just after we moved from my apartment to my house. At this point he was still my only pet. I was about to turn 28.

June 1995 - Tiger age 5, Linda age 10 months
It's hard to think about Tiger without thinking about "Linda". Actually it's hard to think about Tiger without thinking about how the female cats adored him - and how he would groom them. I got Linda from the Oak Cliff Animal Shelter about a year after I took in Tiger. By that time, Tiger and I had moved from the apartment into a house. I kept Tiger & Linda separated for two days - to induce curiosity about each other. Within a couple of days of being together Tiger was grooming Linda. And they were best friends for the next 14 years. The above picture won honorable mention at the 1995 State Fair of Texas.

May 2002 - Tiger age 11, Linda age 7
The living room was one of Tiger & Linda's favorite places to play. Linda would pull down the plastic plant in the left of the picture by standing on her hind legs and grabbing the plant with her front paws and then walking backwards. Once the plant was on the ground, Linda enjoyed playing in the plastic leaves. Tiger liked it when I'd play with the mouse tied to the fishing pole. I spent a lot of time on that floor playing with those two kitties. I enjoyed every minute.

May 2002 - Tiger age 11, Linda age 7
My friend, Nancy, called Tiger & Linda "story book cats". They certainly made a cute pair.

When Tiger was 11 he developed a pretty bad bladder infection. I was stunned when an X-ray revealed a pellet (the white, hourglass-shaped object) lodged in Tiger's back. He must have been shot before I took him in back in 1993. It's heartbreaking to think of someone deliberately aiming a gun at Tiger and pulling the trigger. It undoubtedly caused him great pain. Scratching out an existence on the streets was certainly tough enough without being shot. It's amazing that he survived. It's even more amazing that he turned out to be such a gentle ol' soul. Unfortunately his vet, Dr. Fling, said that she sees stuff like this with regards to cats a lot. Heartbreaking indeed.

An interesting aside:
Note the faint collar bones on the far right side of the picture - they look like thin toothpicks on each side of his neck. Dr. Fling said that very few cats have two very distinct collar bones like that. Most cats either have no collar bones or just one.

June 2002 - Tiger age 11, Linda age 7
Tiger (left) and Linda loved laying together in my bay window. As you can see, Linda often wanted to be as close to Tiger as felinely possible.

Sept. 2002 - age 12
Tiger's favorite place to play was at his carpeted house. Mom & Dad bought that for him just after I took him in back in December 1993. He played on it for 15 years.

Feb. 2005 - Tiger age 14, Princess age 3
In May 2004 I took in the semi-feral, one-eyed, black cat, Princess, making her my third cat at that time. Princess wouldn't let me touch her, but she instantly fell in love with Tiger. If ever there was a case of love at first sight, this was it. In fact, all the gals fell for Tiger at first sight. It was very touching to watch Princess give so much of herself to Tiger, when she trusted no other animal on the planet (including my other female kitty, "Linda"). Yep, Tiger was a special guy.

Dec. 2005 - age 15
Tiger enjoyed the catwalks I built in my house. At night, just before I'd turn off my lights to go to sleep, he would often run full-bore across the catwalk in my bedroom and then pounce down the cat steps, leap over a cat tunnel on my floor, and dart into the hallway and then into the den. Seconds later he'd be on my bed wanting some affection before curling up next to my head for the night. During the winter he would listen for the sound of the central heater coming on and would dart up the catwalks and lay in front of the heater vent. He was a pretty smart fella.

Dec. 2006 - Tiger age 16, Linda age 12, Princess age 5
Even though Linda (gray tabby) and Princess (black) didn't care much for each other, they would tolerate being close to one another if it meant they could be close to Tiger. He certainly had a magical way with the ladies.

April 2007 - Tiger age 16, Princess age 5

July 2007 - Tiger nearly 17, Josie age 3 months
In June 2007, I took in "Josie", making her my fourth cat at that time. My other two females, Linda & Princess, didn't care for Josie - but Tiger tolerated her. Josie was an extremely playful kitten, so Tiger would periodically have to set some boundaries with a hiss or two. But being the gentleman that he was, Tiger put up with a lot of play from her. Unfortunately, Tiger curtailed his play after I got Josie because if he would run across the floor, Josie would become extremely excited and want to tackle him. Oh, that Josie. Sometimes I would separate them into different rooms so that I could let Tiger play without fear of being pounced on. Three months after I got Josie, Tiger suffered a heart attack. Although his severe cardiomyopathy didn't slow him down much at first, I often kept those two separated - in an effort to provide Tiger with a relatively calm environment.

Feb. 2008 - Tiger age 17, Princess age 6, Josie age 10 months
Tiger is in the middle of the poignant picture, Josie is up and to the left, Princess is sitting on the window sill (partially obscured). Tiger had been diagnosed with heart failure for five months at this point and was doing quite well.

May 2008 - age 17
Tiger loved going out into the cat enclosure. Princess also enjoyed being outside; she and Tiger often laid close to one another on a shelf as they soaked up the sun and felt the wind move through their fur. Tiger had been diagnosed with heart failure for eight months at this point, and he was still doing very well.

Sept. 2008 - Tiger age 18, Princess age 7
It had been one year since his heart attack and subsequent diagnosis of heart failure. Tiger had remained remarkably healthy up to this point. After this point, however, his weight loss accelerated and the LASIX seemed to have stopped clearing the fluid from his chest as well as it had. He lived another two months after this photo was taken. He was at least 18 years old when he was put down. He was my buddy for 15 years, and I will always miss him.

Windows Media Player Video Clips
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