[pct-l] Leaving pets

[Sonya Dickinson]

Becky, 

I am leaving 6 cats behind with my partner to care for them.  I, too, am experiencing guilt and anxiety as one of the cats is old and in kidney failure and I know she does not have long with this world.  The rest are all very attached to me as I am their primary care giver - I feed and care for them.  The responsibility now falls to my partner who loves them, but is somewhat absent-minded and not quite as diligent as I am about their care.  

I know they will be fine and will be here when I return and I am absolutely positive that they will not forget me.  It will be incredibly difficult to say goodbye to all of them, most especially Lilly, the old, sick cat, because she will more than likely not be here when I return.

Last year, a friend of a friend decided to give up her cat that she had since he was a kitten - he was now 8 years old.  She was going to take him to the local animal shelter, which would've kept him for 5 days and then, if not adopted, would have euthanized him.  We heard about it and told her that we would take the cat.  Ivan, a Russian Blue, was scared and unhappy for several weeks, but then, with persistent love, he came around.  I am his human now and I just adore him - he is my lap cat.  

Animals adjust.  Punk will be fine and will wait patiently until you come home.

Sonya

--- On Thu, 3/21/13, Rebecca Cummings <Rebecca.Cummings at csulb.edu> wrote:

From: Rebecca Cummings <Rebecca.Cummings at csulb.edu>
Subject: [pct-l] Leaving pets
To: "pct-l at backcountry.net" <pct-l at backcountry.net>
Date: Thursday, March 21, 2013, 5:39 AM

This is a tad embarrassing, but as my trip departure date nears I've begun to feel enormous guilt about leaving my cat (Punk) behind.  It's something I haven't even allowed myself to worry about until now. I'm only section hiking, for about two months, but this will be the first time I've left her for so long.  My boyfriend will be caring for her, and she loves him and he loves her, but she doesn't curl up in his lap, and sometimes he pets her like a dog (I think he's a bit more of a dog person).

No matter how I feel now, I'm going anyway. That is certain. I guess I want to know if any of you out there are also leaving behind pets or have done so on previous hikes, and how you dealt with it.

Thanks,
Becky