Bug's Hobbies

Bug was always playful. His idea of fun was chasing treats around the room or attacking your hand. He would grab on with his front claws, then use his back ones to take a sample of the flesh from your forearm. He enjoyed his post with the fake mouse attached (see picture). He eventually got strong enough to rip the mouse off... we didn't buy him another toy like that. Bug's other favorite hobby was hiding. No matter how small or how big he was, he would always find the good hiding places in our house. You can barely see him hiding inside the computer desk. He would actually climb in from behind by using the printer as a starting point... he would then lay down inside the desk and just peak out so he could keep an eye on everything.

What's in a name?

Initially, our new kitten was without a name. We got him shortly after a lunar eclipse, so we thought that might be a good name. It just didn't fit though. We thought long and hard, but couldn't come up with anything. He was so small and energetic, so I felt we should call him "Little

S#!t" (or L.S. for short). Athena did not approve. Eventually as his energy grew, I started referring to him as the Little Bug. He would run around and bounce around like a bug, so we decided it was a fitting name, so we started calling him Bug. We told the vet it could be short for Bugsy, but he was just Bug to everyone. As you can see, he was a very little kitty with big ears. He eventually grew into his ears.

When Bug was little...

We got Bug one night outside of the Giant Food Store in Falls Church, VA. The store is right across the street from the Skyline mall. We came out after shopping and there was an Hispanic man with a box of kittens. He said he was looking for good homes for them. Athena picked up the grey one, then the black one, then the grey one. She then decided that she would like to have the one that had the little tuxedo on him (although at the time, we weren't sure if it was a he or a she). I went back into Giant and bought some kitten food, but they didn't have litter boxes. I drove us home while Athena held the little kitten in her lap. He seemed happy enough. We got our new kitty home and gave him some food. Athena, ever mindful of germs, felt that it would be a good idea to give him a bath. If any of you have ever tried to wash a cat, you'll know that they aren't exactly fond of such things. Our kitten took it all in stride though. We washed him and fed him and he seemed happy. We prepared some newspaper for him to use and quickly learned that only dogs fall for that trick. The next day we were able to get him a litter box which made him very happy. He practically filled it up.

Bug is gone...

As some of you have heard, we lost a dear family member last week. Bug (our black and white cat) passed away sometime on Thursday. Unfortunately, Athena and I were in Italy. Russ found Bug on Friday morning and called us and took him to the vet. The vet tells us that she believes Bug suffered from a urinary tract blockage probably caused by crystals or a stone (common in cats over 5 years old). The build-up of toxins would cause a severe imbalence and eventually a heart attack. This could happen in 24-48 hours and is difficult to diagnose and treat.

Over the next few days, I will try to post some images of Bug.

As you can imagine, this came as quite a shock for us since Bug has been very healthy. He was 10 years old and was amazingly strong. His unique personality will be missed.