Farewell, Ziggy

One day a small kitty showed up where the family at Sheep Thrills Farm parked their cars and followed them to the house. He then parked himself on a bench and stared into the sun room through the window. Because they are nice and kind people, they set up a nice place for him in the barn and got him some food and water. They didn't bring him inside right away because they already had a houseful of cats and two dogs. Every day, Ziggy would be back on the bench, staring in the sunroom window. Finally they couldn't stand it any more and decided that they could at least fix him up a place in the basement. You can guess how long that lasted. Ziggy moved right in and became part of the family for 17 years. He absolutely loved to play fetch. He had a rabbit-fur mousie that he would bring to anyone who would sit still for a little while. He would fetch the thrown mousie for hours if the person would keep throwing it. He only stopped this game after he had a bad fall and injured his back. Ziggy was a big cat, weighing up to 26 pounds. He had a big frame to go with it and the vet said that he was in perfect health. He did develop a thyroid problem, but that was easily controlled with medication. This winter, he just didn't seem to be himself. He got one problem after another, ending up with pneumonia. He died on his heating pad with his Mom petting him. He is sorely missed.

                                          Ziggy got his new home by staring
                                          At the folks he sensed were caring.
                                               They welcomed him in
                                               To their cozy den.
                                           Now he's at the Bridge, where it's all about sharing.