I’m writing with the sad news that our wonderful cat Dingle has passed away at the end of January.We adopted Dingle from the cat shelter in 2005 after the death of another former resident, Moose (formerly Smudge) who was unlucky enough to have liver cancer and died seven months after we adopted him. Our remaining cat Mia (formerly Sooty) was lonely, so we came to the cat shelter to find her a friend.
Dingle was a grey SOS kitten, born feral, and took a lot of patience and care to bring out of his shell. He used to hide under his fleece at the shelter and the other kittens used to sit on him, unaware there was a cat underneath! He spent the first month with us in a bag, refusing to come out, and we didn’t even realise he was grey until a month after we adopted him and could see him for the first time! However, over the years, he grew in confidence and became an incredibly loving and affectionate cat, especially with our 3 year old son, who misses him terribly.
Dingle contracted FIP at the beginning of this year, and as I know from having worked at the shelter, there is really only one outcome. We refused to let him suffer, and took him to the vets who confirmed my suspicions and put him to sleep.I then spent three days in the Northern General and had an operation on my hand to repair the damage he’d done trying to get him in the cat box (like I say, he was the most gentle and friendly cat you’d ever hope to meet, but if you frightened him, he’d fight to the death to get away from you) and I’m now left with a lasting memory in the form of some cracking scars!
Although life with Dingle has been often challenging and difficult, he was a truly wonderful cat and I miss him very much. He was a shining example of what can be achieved with an ex-feral cat and loved nothing more than to snuggle up on your knee all evening. Thank you for letting us offer him a home, I feel we did the best we could and he had a good life.
