Jay still remembers thinking, “I don’t like cats, if they were big enough they’d eat you!” But it was only matter of days until that all changed, after he began to care for his beloved cat Helen.
Helen was one special cat and came into Jay’s care at the end of 2000 as a rescue kitten. She was the deaf runt of the litter. From there, a wonderful friendship grew between Jay and Helen that lasted for 18 long years!
Helen dispelled a lot of age-old cat myths. Especially over the summer months, it turned out Helen was quite the water lover!
“She took delight in jumping under the shower to cool off (or meowing insistently from a dry shower recess for the tap to be turned on!),” Jay said.
Communication was a never an issue either. Jay and Helen developed a number of sign language commands for Helen to respond to.
Jay said, “It’s quite the sight to see a deaf cat do as she’s told, I must tell you!”
Over the years Jay and Helen had many adventures together – 18 different homes in 18 years!
Jay said that didn’t worry Helen either, “Helen was utterly adaptable and robust in her capacity for change. The sight of packing boxes and her cat cage were always a source of amazement and wonder, as if to ask me, where are we going? Where’s our next adventure going to take us?”
Helen took every new adventure in her stride, and it was Jay’s mission to make sure her last journey could be met with the same source of amazement and wonder. After 18 long years, Jay and Helen both knew it was time to say goodbye.
When Jay reached out to the RSPCA Pets at Rest team, he was after a service befitting for his loyal companion of 18 years.
“It was one of the most beautiful things I have witnessed, to see how Rick gently and carefully collected her and the way in which she was tenderly returned to me,” Jay said.
Helen was a special cat with a very special place in Jay’s heart. Losing a pet is like losing a family member and Jay can’t thank Rom, Rick and the team enough for the compassionate and dignified service they provided for Helen.
The loss of a pet is devastating for any pet owner. If you need help, reach out. You can read more here.
