When I arrived in Texas in late December of 1999, I didn't know anyone. I slowly met friends and adapted to a new place. I was lucky to come across a very special kitty one day in May of 2001. He became my best friend during a lot of wonderful and not so wonderful times. When I first layed eyes on him, I knew he would be mine. He fit in the palm of my hand. It wasn't the right time for a kitty, but he was such a beautiful red and had the fluffiest long hair and bright blue (later gold) eyes. I loved him from day one.
I brought him home to my apartment and we became great friends. He would sleep on my neck under my chin for hours and we would play. He could fetch (when he wanted to) and he used to jump from the floor to my shoulder and sit up there like a bird. He eventually became too big for that though. He wasn't hard to litter train but he was so picky about the pan. I literally bought 4 litter pans in his lifetime before I finally went to a big rubbermaid container which was perfect. One day he pulled the keys off my laptop and ate an entire plant.
I cried the first time I dropped him off at the vets to be boarded while I went to Australia. His little face was full of worry as he didn't understand that I would be back. The vet techs loved how playful and friendly he was and always gave him a big cage.
Lonestar grew to be a large handsome cat, and he had tons of hair. I never had an issue clipping his nails or doing anything with him. He even flew home with me for Christmas one year. We trusted each other totally.
He was a somewhat of a biter early on. He was not mean or vicious, he just liked to play hard and when you are 17-18 pounds, you tend to get a little rough. We adopted Alamo so that he could bite her instead of us. It worked like a charm. I remember bringing Alamo home for the first time. She was sick so we had to isolate her for 2 weeks. It was a great opportunity for them to get used to each other through a door. Sean and I prepared ourselves for the first meeting. I put on gloves in case I had to break up a cat fight and Sean was in charge of getting a small Alamo out of the brawl if needed. We opened the door and Alamo ran right up to Lonestar. Lonestar was shocked and just backed up. He never hurt her at all. They sometimes played a little rough and we intervened until Alamo grew a little bigger, but they were fast friends.
Lonestar was a lap kitty. He liked to be held and loved to be scratched on the cheeks. He didn't even mind the occasional belly rub. He loved to be brushed and he loved visitors. He would crawl into anyone's lap for some attention. He was king of the cat tree and liked to sit on the kitchen table and read with Sean.
In the end Lonestar's liver starting failing because he stopped eating food that he didn't care for. Unfortunately, it wasn't obvious until he became very lethargic. During a procedure to get food into his stomach he aspirated and came down with pneumonia and never recovered. He spent 10 days at the vet being force fed baby food. Finally, his little heart couldn't take any more and he passed away.
He was buried in Madonna, Maryland next to his cousin. He was a wonderful kitty and I will miss him for a very long time. He was named for the beer, the band and the state. Lonestar was 8 years old and I hope he is having a relaxing time in kitty heaven.
I am so sorry that he is gone from my life so soon.
In memory of Lonestar
~March 24, 2001 - July 16, 2009
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