Goodbye Little Jessica

Mum was crying today, she had just found out that her friends, Liz and John, had just lost Jessica their lovely tabby cat.

Mum used to have a tabby Jessica as well. She was a lovely lanky cat, waspish to other cats, but very very loving to people. She had come to live with mum when Jessica's mum went overseas and didn't know what to do with her - well naturally Jessica was made welcome (she has even more cats than she has donkeys) and had a very happy few years living with the other cats. Mum says she loved Jessica very much and that Jessica returned all the love and was an extremely gentle and sensitive cat who could tune into how you were feeling and give you a little extra hug if you were feeling down.

Jessica died suddenly and very dramatically. In the middle of the night she developed breathing problems, and Mum and Dad at 2am had to drive to the vets to get emergency treatment for her. She lay on mum's lap in the car, unable to breath, and choked to death, dying about 5 minutes from the vets. Her larynx had closed over and she couldn't breath. Mum still doesn't know what caused it, some allergic reaction but to what.

Mum says she has never witnessed such a dreadful death and never wants to, the fear and terror of poor Jessica as she fought for her life, all in vain. She says she has had many a cat make a final visit to the vet, but never seen one die in such panic and pain and never wants to again.

But there is a twist to the tail, so to speak.

Jessica's previous mum was working in Hong Kong and mum was trying frantically to get in touch with her to tell her that Jessica had died. She finally tracked her down and told her that she had died, but that we didn't know why. Her sister is one of these people who sometimes 'sees things' - no she isn't daft, she is just sensitive and sometimes things happen that can't be explain. She was on the ferry crossing the harbour at Hong Kong, on her own, hadn't spoken to her sister all day, didn't know that Jessica was dead or even ill, and then she saw Jessica, galloping along a long hallway. Jessica spoke to her and said that she was ok, it had been very sudden and frightening but she was ok now, and to tell mum not to worry. When she got home she told her sister all this, and she told her that Jessica had died that day.

Cynics out there might say this is all a joke, but no, she was able to describe our hallway at home perfectly, and she didn't know that Jessica was dead, or that Jessica used to love to gallop up and down it at great speed, doing wheelies. She had never been to the house, in fact she had never met Jessica only seen a photo of her, yet she was able to describe in detail the hallway, and Jessica running along it.

Mum says she would like to think that Jessica came back home, just one final time, to say goodbye to her home and her friends. She hopes that both Jessica cats are now running around in heaven together and playing, all their cares behind them.

Me, I don't know, I just think there are some things that just can't be explained logically.

After all, why was I, Vodka donkey, saved from death, when there are so many other equally deserving donkeys who don't get that chance? I think I had a guardian angel looking after me. Otherwise why me? Why not one of the others.

All I know is that I am truly grateful for the new life I have been given and I promise to live it to the full and not complain too much (well just a bit) and be a very good girl (have to say that but of course you know that I may be telling the odd little fib).