It has been almost four months since we had to put our Snow Shoe Siamese down. I have often wondered if our animals go to heaven? I have done a tremendous amount of research on this, both pro and con as to "if" they do infact go to heaven. I have found that if you, as a person, are "right" with God, that you will indeed once again see your companions. Pets can be loyal, loving and kind without expecting anything in return. They take on their own personalities such as Racci did.
Some 20 years ago, my wife and I while living in Lake Jackson took in a Snow Shoe Siamese that was found at the Dow Chemical Plant in Lake Jackson, Texas. It would be quite an undertaking for the both of us as neither of us where cat people and had always had dogs. At that time we had two Labrador Retrievers.
Racci Racoon was the name that we gave her. She was a little ball of tan and white fur with seal point markings and white boots on her feet. Her face resembled that of a Tabby and she took very quickly to her new home enviorment along with her 70+ lb. brother and sister.
Siamese, as we soon found out, are usually one owner pets and she quickly took to me. My wife, on the other hand, had ankles that looked as if she had walked through a brier patch. Racci would attck her first thing in the morning as she came out of the bedroom. It became apparant that Racci would have to have her front claws removed and remain as an indoor cat for most of her life if we were to keep her. My wife took her to the vet and had this done and cried when she went to pick her up and bring her home, as her feet were shaved and very small.
Racci quickly learned how to adapt to living in a house with large dogs. She would wait for them to go to sleep on the floor and would walk over to them, grab there jowel. pull it out and then walk away as if nothing had happened. She also had "her" territory" and insured that she was well protected on all sides from attack of those large dogs. She would sleep and hide under the entertainment center on the very bottom shelf. ( That is where she resides now, watching over everything that goes on).
As she progressed in age, Racci became more my wifes cat than mine. My wife would sit in her chair at night and Racci seemed quite content to curl up with her and stay there for as long as she could. Occasionally, she would get down and come over to my chair and curl up with me for a while. Her demeener seemed to be changing with age. She even would allow company to perhaps pet her, if she was in the mood. We noticed some changes in the last few months before we had her put to sleep. She normally would get up on the bed and curl up between my wife and I which she did not do. She would walk around the house and seem to get lost and stand there and cry until we came and got her.
June 23rd, was when our Lab/Ridgeback mix (Tassy) woke us up. I went into the living room and found Racci laying on her side unable to move. I quickly picked her up and got a towel and wrapped her up and put her in her bed. She had a stroke sometime during the night. My wife and I anguished over what to do, as the Vets office was closed and we could not reach them. We went to church that morning leaving her in her bed and comfortable for the time being. We came home to find still no change. We went to bed that evening praying that she would go peacefully in her sleep that night. Upon arising the next morning we found no change and we decided that it was time to put her down. I took her over to the vets and went through all of the paperwork to have her put to sleep. As the Doctor administered the shot, Racci looked up at me with those eyes that I had looked into so many times before as if to say, "It's O.K. Dad." As she drew her last breath, I bent down to kiss her on the head as I had done so many times before, but this time with tears streaming down my face.
Edwin Arnold has written a poem that describes why I feel that we will see our beloved pets again.
"Farewell Master yet not farewell,
Where I go, ye too shall dwell,
I am gone, before your face,
A moments time, a little space,
When ye come where I have stepped
Ye will wonder why ye wept."
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