The Finding of a Therapy Cat: a series about Tinkerbelle, Registered Pet Partner Therapy Cat (retired) and our journey together.
By Mollie Hunt
Part 10: Losing a Patient
The thing about hospice work is the inevitable loss of a patient. I knew this logically but when the time came to say goodbye to our first, it was difficult for both me and Tinkerbelle.
Tink had enjoyed her ongoing visits to see Carol. Carol was a true cat person and Tink loved lying on her bed, the old hands caressing her soft fur while the humans talked about all sorts of things including cats of Carol’s past. When we suddenly stopped the trips in the carrier to the comfortable friendly bed and Carol’s gentle touch, Tinkerbelle was confused. How do you explain to a cat that we would never go there again?
It was a sad time, but my volunteer coordinator helped me through, and I helped Tinkerbelle. We were gentle to ourselves. After a while, a new hospice patient came along and we were caught up in another life story.
About Tinkerbelle:
Tink served for four years as a registered Pet Partner Therapy Cat, visiting assisted living facilities and hospice patients. Tink is now retired and living the quiet life. Check out her Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/TinkerbelleTheTherapyCat/
About Mollie Hunt:
Mollie is the author of the Crazy Cat Lady cozy mystery series, featuring Lynley Cannon, a sixty-something cat shelter volunteer who finds more trouble than a cat in catnip. Mollie is a member of the Oregon Writers’ Colony, Sisters in Crime, and the Cat Writers’ Association. This year she won a CWA Muse Medallion for her 3-part blogpost series, “Life Stages”.
Like Lynley, Mollie is a grateful shelter volunteer. She is a longtime volunteer for the Oregon Humane Society where she socializes sad, fearful, and behavior-challenged cats. She also fosters sick and elderly cats in her home. In 2014, she had the privilege to work with cat behaviorist Jackson Galaxy on a particularly thought-provoking case.
You can find Mollie on her Website: http://www.lecatts.wordpress.com/, her Amazon Page: http://www.amazon.com/author/molliehunt, and her Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/MollieHuntCatWriter/.
Sign up for her Extremely Informal Newsletter at: http://eepurl.com/c0fOTn.
oh not met a hospice cat before, I worked in them for years and we certainly had regular dog visitors and occasionally horses but no cats … glad you got through that first loss and went on to help more people 🙂
Tinks is beautiful. So sorry you lost Carol. Thanks for sharing x
That is sad, Tinkerbelle missed Carol. Bless that little kitty.