R.I.P. Barge

I forgot to upload this back in December 2010, although I posted about it on my blog back then. I was thinking about him today. Here is the long caption that I put in my blog:

"We had to put one of my family’s cats to sleep, 12/11/10. He suffered from IBD, a generally incurable disease that’s akin to Crohn’s Disease for humans, except cats with IBD sometimes can’t make it to the litter box, so he would get bad cramps and do his business everywhere in the house. It was exhausting for us all, especially for the cat. Due to his age and the bevy of medications we had him on, we were only able to keep him alive and well for so long. He was a strong and gentle spirit, and he loved us a lot. He would always wait for me outside my door in the mornings when he was well, and would basically force his way into my room when he got the chance to cuddle in my bed with me.
My brother took the decision we finally made the hardest, Barge used to be “his cat,” before he moved in with his fiancée. But this was for the best, as we tried every medication and form of care possible to try and keep him stable and well, but he just kept getting sick over again. He lost too much weight, and he started becoming incontinent. He was losing his fur when we came back to the vet to put him to sleep. It’s so sad because he was doing alright, he was as lively as a kitten, chasing a laser pointer I had bought. Then the other night, he just started having problems again out of nowhere, and it was bad. We took him to the vet and they said there were no more options left for him and that they were having a hard time keeping him stable. At least our vet knew us well and really cared for Barge. He didn’t charge us for the euthanasia, we only got charged by the funeral home he was sent to for cremation. But it is going to be very lonely in the house, his sister Brittany is still here with us, though she’s more of a “let me sleep and feed me when I want food” cat, she mourns for him, too. The house is quieter now..."