alentino
(1983(?) - 2002)
alentino
Shortly after we were married, Janet and I bought a townhouse in Columbia, MD (doesn't every DINK in that area buy a townhouse in either Columbia or the Glen Burnie environs?). In our hearts, we wanted to get a dog to share our lives but with the hours that we worked and the limited yard area, we compromised on a cat. After numerous trips to the local animal shelter we found our boy. For whatever reason, a Maine Coon breeder had turned in a one year-old boy that was the most beautiful (and shy) thing we had ever seen. (For those of you who don't know, the Maine Coon is the only native American breed of cat (and that is Valentino, our Maine Coon, in the left side of The Box)). It took him quite a while to realize that we weren't going to hit or abandon him, but he turned in to a fluffy, purring, lap cat.
Valentino successfully trained two Dobermans and a Rottweiler (as well as a number of humans!) while providing comfort to the entire family whenever someone was feeling ill or just down. He taught everyone that came in contact with him something important -- like the time he stumped a vet's office trying to answer the question "How do you get diaper ointment out of a long haired cat's coat?". [No, the answer is not "Just wash it out with water" -- diaper ointment is waterproof. The correct answer is wash it out with Dawn dish soap. Down side -- as it takes out the ointment, it also takes out all of the oil from cat's coat ... which makes for over a week of A Bad Hair Day.]
Our big, fluffy boy was diagnosed as being hyperthyroid but was generally healthy. On the night of August 11th, however, as I was collecting him to go to bed, he began experiencing seizures. When they did not subside, we called his vet's emergency number (why do these problems always occur at 11pm on a Sunday night?). We found the over-the-counter medicine she recommended which helped control the seizures. I spent the night in the family room with him, planning on taking him to the vet first thing in the morning. Unfortuately, when I woke up, Valentino had passed away.
Walk softly, my Big Cat. We miss you.
