Peter came to PussyCat Lodge when the old lady who had been feeding him died. Her daughter-in-law didn't want him but couldn't bear to see him just left. He was in a terrible state: full of fleas and nits and all his white bits were grey; his breath stank and his teeth and gums were terrible; he had not been neutered. A trip to the vets sorted certain things out, but this pathetic sad sac' needed somewhere to live out his life.
Lauren, being a pushover for old cats, took him in.
Peter spent three months behind the sofa where Lauren gave in and put a litter tray and his food. He just would not come out, poor little mite. Even when he did venture out, he was very nervous and stayed behind things or under things. He definitely did not like being picked up or cuddled.
A few years ago, Lauren was ill and spent four to five months stuck at home. During that time, Peter became more confident and more affectionate. Even when Lauren returned to work, he didn't resort to his old ways. When Lauren opened the front door of her flat, he used to walk straight past her unto the communal hallway (in fact he was champing at the bit to get out there!) and stayed out there until told to get back inside. At night, he would take Lauren down three flights of stairs and follow her outside to take the rubbish out and go for a fifteen minute walk. He was not frightened at all, and when she picked him up off the grass, he was purring! That became their routine.
One day he also decided that his name was not Peter at all but "Edie", stealing the name from one of the other cats. When Lauren called "Ed-ie" from deep inside the flat, Peter would come running! It was so hard to believe that this was the same little man that hid behind a sofa seven years before.
Lauren estimated his age as about 18-20 years by then, but his actual age was never known. At least he spent his twilight years in warmth and safety.
About 2 weeks before Christmas 2003, Peter had a fall and was taken to the vets. His heart beat was racing and he had diarrhoea and was kept in for about a week. This was probably due to a thyroid problem that he must have had for years. His body was swelling as the heart problem was creating fluid and he was on tablets. He went home, but he didn't seem right as he was having trouble breathing. In the end, Lauren decided it was time to let him go.
Lauren Grace, January 2004
