His name was Brody and from 1995 through August 2015, he was my faithful cat and companion.  For twenty years he was an ever-present part of my daily life.  When he started showing signs of sickness and weakness in June of this year, I didn't realize that his end was near.  This cat was so great that for twenty years, he never missed his litter box;  in June, when his aim went from directly into the center of the  box without a hitch to the corners of the box, I took notice.  The downward spiral had begun.  From the corners of the litter box, it moved to the corners and a little outside the box to all outside the box.  Eventually, he wasn't even making it to the bathroom, and I knew at this point things were going to get rocky.  I suppose I still didn't realize his end was near because he had been around for so long without showing any signs of letting up, that i just took his existence for granted.  I was also probably a little in denial.

In July, the veterinarian informed me that he was completely blind.  Well that explained some things.  His appetite started diminishing and he drank less and less water.  The veterinarian told me that his kidneys were barely functioning.  It seemed he went from being the happy active cat I had always known to being lethargic and pensive overnight.  It got to a point where I would have to lift him into my bed, feed him there and then have to carry him to his litter box where he would immediately go.  Then I would pick him up, litter still clinging to his tiny paws, and bring him back to bed where he would curl up beside me and still purr a little.  Over time, the purring became less and less and eventually stopped.  When the purring stopped, I knew he had no more joy and that keeping him in existence was nothing more than a selfish act on my part.  I knew it was time to let go.

Isn't this blog about Palm Springs vacationing?  Yes, it is.  Sorry to bring you down with the above.  I thought about the recent loss of Brody because I saw a show last night about a local tennis tournament/benefit for a cat and kitten rescue and wanted to blog about it. 

As you can probably tell, I love cats.  If you love them also and will be vacationing in the Palm Springs area on February 7, please consider attending the Kittyland Cat & Kitten Rescue's second annual fundraising lunch and tennis tournament at the Westin Mission Hills Resort and Spa in Rancho Mirage.  to learn about it, please click here; http://www.kittylandrescue.org/

If you are still looking for a place to stay in Palm Springs on February 7 or any time, please check out all the amazing luxury Palm Springs rentals at dryheatresorts.com