Trila
Well-known Member
- Location
- North Central Arkansas
This is Opie's "mug shot", from the Humane Society. He was the third cat that we had, since we moved to Arkansas.
When we decided to get our next kitten, I already had a name picked out. So, the next thing I did was to look online and saw that someone had found 4 kittens by the side of the road and brought them to the Humane Society. There were two short haired, male gingers. Perfect! So we went to take a look at them, and we both picked the same one....I'm not sure why, since they were almost identical! So, Opie came home with us that very same day.
It didn't take very long, but we started to notice some things about Opie that was different from all of the other cats that we had ever had. First of all, he bonded to us immediately, and he was incredibly affectionate! Everything about his personality was geared to us. Also, a few weeks after we got him, we noticed that he looked different form our other cats. His ears had long tuffs of fur coming out of them....and the fur on his tail started to grow. It became obvious that, regardless of what the Humane Society said, Opie was not going to be a short haired cat. Besides the extra fur, we also noticed that Opie was growing...and he was growing fast!!
He was a beautiful kitten, and I would show his picture to people that I worked with. That is when someone suggested that he looked like a Main Coon Cat. I had never heard of a Main Coon, so I looked them up. I was amazed at what I learned.....and that Opie was (at least partially) a Main Coon Cat!!! That explained his awesome personality, and his unique looks.
Opie was supposed to be with us for many, many years....he was like the cat version of our soulmate. Instead, he with us for 10 months. He died from Bobcat Fever when he was a year old. Bobcat Fever is a parasite that is gotten from a tick. By the time that the first symptoms are noticed...it's too late. The parasite attacks the organs, and they start shutting down. There is no cure. It is an incredibly painful, and horrible way to die. Opie died in our arms...rubbing his head in our hands, and trying to purr. I don't ever expect to be fortunate enough to ever have a cat like Opie.
This was very hard for me to write....I miss him so much!
Opie was so full of fun, love, and life... it breaks my heart that his story is so short.
