Big Gray ruled the house through sheer terror and with an iron paw. He was truly Lucky's best friend and Master of his Domain (i.e. us, the house, and the yard). It was by sheer luck he showed up at the house as a small cat many years ago and decided to stick around for food. No other tomcats dared enter our yard thanks to him - I can't remember how many holes, scratches, and cuts we doctored on him. He was both a lover and a fighter - even managed to mark me twice. Big Gray was never to be ignored; he was demanding but he freely gave kisses to those he deemed worthy of them. Our poor foster dogs learned very quickly to respect him and he put up with them in his house in return. I think out of all of the fosters we have had, he and Georgia had the best relationship. Although, it may be because she, like the rest of us, was both smitten and terrified of him at the same time.

This weekend we had to make the decision to euthanize Big Gray our tom/housecat. He had numerous fast growing malignant tumors, one was cutting off his throat/airway and one was growing into his brain. He had been getting steadily worse for the last 2 weeks and he was showing signs of suffering and was very confused most of the time. It was a heartbreaking decision but it was time to let him go to the Rainbow Bridge. Nancy, the wonderful vet tech, came and did it at our house so he could go in his own surroundings with Ed and I holding him.

The house is emptier now. I miss him and so do the kids.

All I can say is, "he was a great cat, not worth a damn, but he was a great cat".