The story of Ed....

Some time during the fall this little skinny cat started showing up at my house. We would feed him and then he would go on his merry way.  He was a very skittish guy, but he liked to rub up against your legs. One night while coming in with his dish to give him food, he followed us in.  He ate and then wanted to go back out. This went on for a while. Eventually it started to snow so we would just feed him in the house and when he would scratch we would let him back out to go where ever it was that he went. Back in December he disappeared for about a week, we just assumed he found a warm place to hunker down. Then one night there he was again, I mentioned to my husband that I thought he got into a fight because a piece of his ear was missing......We decided to keep him inside and take him to get fixed. The next day my husband took Ed to the local shelter that has a catch and release program in order to keep the kitten population down. Turns out that missing piece of ear is their "mark" plus he has a tattoo on his belly to prove that he has been fixed. So we are thinking that that week he went "missing" was because he had gotten fixed! It started snowing real bad and I just couldn't put him out, so what went from "lets keep him until the weather gets warmer" ended up being "we should just keep him" I believe Ed was a dog reincarnated into a cat, he was the ONLY cat I have ever met that would flop down on you for belly rubs. I already have 3 cats, so when my friend expressed interest in Ed for her daughter, I knew we couldn't find him a better home. We kept Ed until she closed on her house. Unfortunately, Ed took a fast decline in health and on Wednesday was rushed to the Vet where he had to be put down. He tested positive for both Feline Leukemia and Aids. Putting an animal to sleep is never easy no matter how much time you may have spent with them. The Vet was very nice and mentioned "Although this is hard, you have to be thankful that he didn't suffer outside, alone in the snow, he was loved for a short time, fed and kept safe during his last days" Sweet, little Ed, the cat that liked his belly rubbed!