Patitas (Patti)

A couple of years ago in mid December, my wife and I decided to adopt a cat. We knew pretty much instantly who we wanted when we saw her. Her name was Patti, a shorthair tabby, the softest you’ve ever pet. She was diagnosed with leukemia but it was inactive. So we knew that we wouldn’t be able to spend a long time with her, but we wanted to be with her every second we could, so we took her home. Patti was very afraid at first, and hid under our couch for about a month. I used to sing songs to her and try to steal as many pets as possible, reaching my arms between the couch cracks. Eventually, she got brave enough to come out for short periods. To our excitement, she finally meowed for the first time. We honestly thought she might never do that. We grew very close after that. She would follow me all over the apartment. When I sang, she would come running to me. She was slow to trust, but every so often she opened up to us enough to get closer. Eventually she would sleep with us on the bed, and on top of us. She loved to play fight, and was always ready to do so. Often at night she would get the zoomies and run from window to window, most likely trying to chase some animal. Whenever I left the apartment, she would cry at the door till I came back. We were best friends, and she was always there to sit with us when we were sad. We are so incredibly grateful to have been given her trust and love. She was the biggest goof in the world. We decided that her full name would be Patitas, meaning “little paws.” Unfortunately, Patti’s illness progressed. We stayed by her side every second near the end, giving her all of the kisses and pets and love that we could. She passed on March 11th, while I sang her favorite song to her. We are relieved that she is no longer suffering, but very much wish we could have had more time with her. We are so lucky for the time we got with her though, and we will cherish the memories we made with her forever. She will always be in our thoughts and will never be forgotten. Thank you, sweet Patitas, for loving us. Thank you for being such an amazing kitty.