March 16, 2018

Goodbye Niea

Niea died last night on March 15, 2018 at approximately 9:38pm. She was born on July 7, 2003.

I named her Niea because she was curious and playful. Niea was also so smart and determined. She would spend hours figuring out how to get past the board we tied on the stairs, finding a way to pull it forward so she could slip underneath, or to push it around so she could walk past, or even tearing a hole so she could grip the board more easily or to pass through.

She was the most human-like, always wanting hugs and kisses and to nestle herself against my neck and face. She liked ice cream, Goldfish crackers, and trying all sorts of foods. She enjoyed listening to music, watching my shows with me, and would sit at my feet or on the chair next to me while I worked on the computer. Her favorite thing was for me to hold her close against my chest, and to place her two arms over my shoulders and push her head against my face. When I lay down, she would sit on my chest facing me or curl up against my face.

The night before, she slept on the bed next to me, on one of my T-shirts. During the night she got up to sleep on the other side of the bed, and also on the floor. In the morning she came with me into the bathroom, and lay down on the bath mat outside the shower. I carried her down in the morning with her head and arms over my shoulder.

In the morning, she lay at my feet under the computer, her head on my foot. In the afternoon she spent a few minutes looking out the back door, enjoying the fresh air and nature. As she grew weaker and moving became painful, she nestled on my chest and neck as we lay on the living room sofa. I tried showing her some ocean scenes on the iPad, and her eyes followed some of the fish. When she tried to move, we carried her upstairs to the bed so she could be in her favorite place, near my pillow. We comforted her, pet her, held her paws, and told her everything would be okay. She left quickly, knowing that we loved her.

Posted by josuah at 1:30 PM UTC+00:00