Sweetie arrived at my door in southern Indiana on 9/1/05. The photo was taken that day. She was such a small little cat that I thought she was still a kitten. Instead, she was approximately 7 years old. At first, she lived outdoors. Skunks were everywhere at night in my small town. One evening I drove up, parked, got out of the car, and saw a black shape running toward me. I jumped back into the car. It was Sweetie running to greet me.

Gradually, she spent more and more time inside. I noticed that she drank a lot of water, and soon I discovered that she was diabetic. From then on, she was an indoor cat. She loved to play with her mouse toys, just like a kitten.

For the next seven years I gave her insulin injections twice a day. If her glucose dropped sharply, I rushed her to emergency. After the last episode on April 25, 2012, her health never seemed to fully recover. She lost weight and was very frail. The veterinarians tried to stabilize her condition throughout the spring and summer.

On Saturday, August 11, she stopped eating. She had difficulty walking. The following Monday, she was diagnosed with renal failure. I visited her at the vet's each morning and afternoon. Sometimes she recognized me with a quiet meow. Most of the time she was semi-comatose and unaware of her surroundings. She never returned home.

On Thursday, 8/16/12, around 6:30 am, a lab technician was nearby. Sweetie was awake, gave a brief meow, and died. She was a gentle, quiet, loving cat, the best kitty in the world.

She was my precious kitty for the last seven of her 14 years.

I will remember my beloved Sweetie every day of my life.