"Princess Sneezers," Beloved Cat
Sneezers was a well-loved cat that spent most of her years living on a dead-end street in Bethesda, Maryland.
On February 24, 1996, she did not yet have a name. She was four months old, surviving on her own, and starving in a remote wooded area in Loudon County, Virginia, miles from any house. She weighed less than two pounds. It was cold, and there was snow on the ground. Her emaciated body was crawling with fleas. Her ears were so filled with ear mite dirt that the pink parts of her ears could not be seen. Internal and external parasites were feeding off her little body.
Her luck changed that afternoon when some men and teenage boys came to the woods to shoot paint balls at each other. When they cooked hot dogs for lunch, she joined them. She was so hungry that she ate the hot dog buns they offered. One teenage boy wrapped her tiny body in his football sweatshirt and took her home.
Suddenly, her life changed.
She was called "Sneezers" because she sneezed for the first few weeks in her new home as she recovered. At night she would sleep in bed with "her girl." On nice days she would watch the world go by from a high perch just outside her house. One time she climbed up a tall pine tree, and it took her a week of cold nights before she learned how to climb down trees.
She had the prettiest heart-shaped face, and she had a "meow" that sounded like singing. She was sweet and gentle, never weighing over eight pounds, a black and tan tabby, with wavy fur on her tummy. Her favorite place to sleep was on a pillow.
The mom in the household had a shoulder injury that caused pain, almost constantly. When the mom was lying down, Sneeze would lie on the woman's shoulder, like a heat pad, and Sneeze always picked the correct shoulder.
Sneezers was like "Puff the Magic Dragon," and her little girl was like "Jackie Paper." Sneezers would come when her girl whistled. When Sneezers was ten years old, her girl moved away but would return on the weekends, and when her girl would come home, Sneezers would hold her tail high and run to her girl. Then, when Sneezers was almost 14 years old, her girl moved so far away that she did not return often, and Sneezers missed her girl, just as Puff the Magic Dragon missed Jackie Paper. Another cat moved in, and Sneezers had a new cat friend. They would sleep next to each other on the high perch outside, but Sneezers still missed her little girl.
When Sneezers was 17, she moved to live with her girl, in a little town, in a little apartment that overlooked sailboats on the Susquehanna River. Sneezers shared her girl with a parrot, but it was Sneezers who got to sleep on the pillow beside her girl at night. For seven months, Sneezers had her little girl again. Her girl would fix her special meals and brush her fur every day, and Sneezers knew she was loved.
Sneezers was dearly loved and will be missed.
Her grave is under the old oak tree in the backyard of the house where she lived for so many years, where her girl once had a tree house. Four months after Sneezers died, her "foster sister cat" died and was buried next to her: Meowzers.
TO LOVE AGAIN
Oh what unhappy twist of fate
Has brought you homeless to my gate,
The gate where once another stood
To beg for shelter, warmth, and food?
For from that day I ceased to be
The master of my destiny,
While she, with purr and velvet paw,
Became within my house the law.
She scratched the furniture and shed
And claimed the middle of the bed.
She ruled in arrogance and pride
And broke my heart the day she died.
So if you really think, oh cat,
I'd willingly relive all that
Because you come forlorn and thin,
Well, don't just stand there -- come on in!
(author unknown)
Sneezers was a well-loved cat that spent most of her years living on a dead-end street in Bethesda, Maryland.
On February 24, 1996, she did not yet have a name. She was four months old, surviving on her own, and starving in a remote wooded area in Loudon County, Virginia, miles from any house. She weighed less than two pounds. It was cold, and there was snow on the ground. Her emaciated body was crawling with fleas. Her ears were so filled with ear mite dirt that the pink parts of her ears could not be seen. Internal and external parasites were feeding off her little body.
Her luck changed that afternoon when some men and teenage boys came to the woods to shoot paint balls at each other. When they cooked hot dogs for lunch, she joined them. She was so hungry that she ate the hot dog buns they offered. One teenage boy wrapped her tiny body in his football sweatshirt and took her home.
Suddenly, her life changed.
She was called "Sneezers" because she sneezed for the first few weeks in her new home as she recovered. At night she would sleep in bed with "her girl." On nice days she would watch the world go by from a high perch just outside her house. One time she climbed up a tall pine tree, and it took her a week of cold nights before she learned how to climb down trees.
She had the prettiest heart-shaped face, and she had a "meow" that sounded like singing. She was sweet and gentle, never weighing over eight pounds, a black and tan tabby, with wavy fur on her tummy. Her favorite place to sleep was on a pillow.
The mom in the household had a shoulder injury that caused pain, almost constantly. When the mom was lying down, Sneeze would lie on the woman's shoulder, like a heat pad, and Sneeze always picked the correct shoulder.
Sneezers was like "Puff the Magic Dragon," and her little girl was like "Jackie Paper." Sneezers would come when her girl whistled. When Sneezers was ten years old, her girl moved away but would return on the weekends, and when her girl would come home, Sneezers would hold her tail high and run to her girl. Then, when Sneezers was almost 14 years old, her girl moved so far away that she did not return often, and Sneezers missed her girl, just as Puff the Magic Dragon missed Jackie Paper. Another cat moved in, and Sneezers had a new cat friend. They would sleep next to each other on the high perch outside, but Sneezers still missed her little girl.
When Sneezers was 17, she moved to live with her girl, in a little town, in a little apartment that overlooked sailboats on the Susquehanna River. Sneezers shared her girl with a parrot, but it was Sneezers who got to sleep on the pillow beside her girl at night. For seven months, Sneezers had her little girl again. Her girl would fix her special meals and brush her fur every day, and Sneezers knew she was loved.
Sneezers was dearly loved and will be missed.
Her grave is under the old oak tree in the backyard of the house where she lived for so many years, where her girl once had a tree house. Four months after Sneezers died, her "foster sister cat" died and was buried next to her: Meowzers.
TO LOVE AGAIN
Oh what unhappy twist of fate
Has brought you homeless to my gate,
The gate where once another stood
To beg for shelter, warmth, and food?
For from that day I ceased to be
The master of my destiny,
While she, with purr and velvet paw,
Became within my house the law.
She scratched the furniture and shed
And claimed the middle of the bed.
She ruled in arrogance and pride
And broke my heart the day she died.
So if you really think, oh cat,
I'd willingly relive all that
Because you come forlorn and thin,
Well, don't just stand there -- come on in!
(author unknown)
"Princess Sneezers," Beloved Cat
Sneezers was a well-loved cat that spent most of her years living on a dead-end street in Bethesda, Maryland.
On February 24, 1996, she did not yet have a name. She was four months old, surviving on her own, and starving in a remote wooded area in Loudon County, Virginia, miles from any house. She weighed less than two pounds. It was cold, and there was snow on the ground. Her emaciated body was crawling with fleas. Her ears were so filled with ear mite dirt that the pink parts of her ears could not be seen. Internal and external parasites were feeding off her little body.
Her luck changed that afternoon when some men and teenage boys came to the woods to shoot paint balls at each other. When they cooked hot dogs for lunch, she joined them. She was so hungry that she ate the hot dog buns they offered. One teenage boy wrapped her tiny body in his football sweatshirt and took her home.
Suddenly, her life changed.
She was called "Sneezers" because she sneezed for the first few weeks in her new home as she recovered. At night she would sleep in bed with "her girl." On nice days she would watch the world go by from a high perch just outside her house. One time she climbed up a tall pine tree, and it took her a week of cold nights before she learned how to climb down trees.
She had the prettiest heart-shaped face, and she had a "meow" that sounded like singing. She was sweet and gentle, never weighing over eight pounds, a black and tan tabby, with wavy fur on her tummy. Her favorite place to sleep was on a pillow.
The mom in the household had a shoulder injury that caused pain, almost constantly. When the mom was lying down, Sneeze would lie on the woman's shoulder, like a heat pad, and Sneeze always picked the correct shoulder.
Sneezers was like "Puff the Magic Dragon," and her little girl was like "Jackie Paper." Sneezers would come when her girl whistled. When Sneezers was ten years old, her girl moved away but would return on the weekends, and when her girl would come home, Sneezers would hold her tail high and run to her girl. Then, when Sneezers was almost 14 years old, her girl moved so far away that she did not return often, and Sneezers missed her girl, just as Puff the Magic Dragon missed Jackie Paper. Another cat moved in, and Sneezers had a new cat friend. They would sleep next to each other on the high perch outside, but Sneezers still missed her little girl.
When Sneezers was 17, she moved to live with her girl, in a little town, in a little apartment that overlooked sailboats on the Susquehanna River. Sneezers shared her girl with a parrot, but it was Sneezers who got to sleep on the pillow beside her girl at night. For seven months, Sneezers had her little girl again. Her girl would fix her special meals and brush her fur every day, and Sneezers knew she was loved.
Sneezers was dearly loved and will be missed.
Her grave is under the old oak tree in the backyard of the house where she lived for so many years, where her girl once had a tree house. Four months after Sneezers died, her "foster sister cat" died and was buried next to her: Meowzers.
TO LOVE AGAIN
Oh what unhappy twist of fate
Has brought you homeless to my gate,
The gate where once another stood
To beg for shelter, warmth, and food?
For from that day I ceased to be
The master of my destiny,
While she, with purr and velvet paw,
Became within my house the law.
She scratched the furniture and shed
And claimed the middle of the bed.
She ruled in arrogance and pride
And broke my heart the day she died.
So if you really think, oh cat,
I'd willingly relive all that
Because you come forlorn and thin,
Well, don't just stand there -- come on in!
(author unknown)
Sneezers was a well-loved cat that spent most of her years living on a dead-end street in Bethesda, Maryland.
On February 24, 1996, she did not yet have a name. She was four months old, surviving on her own, and starving in a remote wooded area in Loudon County, Virginia, miles from any house. She weighed less than two pounds. It was cold, and there was snow on the ground. Her emaciated body was crawling with fleas. Her ears were so filled with ear mite dirt that the pink parts of her ears could not be seen. Internal and external parasites were feeding off her little body.
Her luck changed that afternoon when some men and teenage boys came to the woods to shoot paint balls at each other. When they cooked hot dogs for lunch, she joined them. She was so hungry that she ate the hot dog buns they offered. One teenage boy wrapped her tiny body in his football sweatshirt and took her home.
Suddenly, her life changed.
She was called "Sneezers" because she sneezed for the first few weeks in her new home as she recovered. At night she would sleep in bed with "her girl." On nice days she would watch the world go by from a high perch just outside her house. One time she climbed up a tall pine tree, and it took her a week of cold nights before she learned how to climb down trees.
She had the prettiest heart-shaped face, and she had a "meow" that sounded like singing. She was sweet and gentle, never weighing over eight pounds, a black and tan tabby, with wavy fur on her tummy. Her favorite place to sleep was on a pillow.
The mom in the household had a shoulder injury that caused pain, almost constantly. When the mom was lying down, Sneeze would lie on the woman's shoulder, like a heat pad, and Sneeze always picked the correct shoulder.
Sneezers was like "Puff the Magic Dragon," and her little girl was like "Jackie Paper." Sneezers would come when her girl whistled. When Sneezers was ten years old, her girl moved away but would return on the weekends, and when her girl would come home, Sneezers would hold her tail high and run to her girl. Then, when Sneezers was almost 14 years old, her girl moved so far away that she did not return often, and Sneezers missed her girl, just as Puff the Magic Dragon missed Jackie Paper. Another cat moved in, and Sneezers had a new cat friend. They would sleep next to each other on the high perch outside, but Sneezers still missed her little girl.
When Sneezers was 17, she moved to live with her girl, in a little town, in a little apartment that overlooked sailboats on the Susquehanna River. Sneezers shared her girl with a parrot, but it was Sneezers who got to sleep on the pillow beside her girl at night. For seven months, Sneezers had her little girl again. Her girl would fix her special meals and brush her fur every day, and Sneezers knew she was loved.
Sneezers was dearly loved and will be missed.
Her grave is under the old oak tree in the backyard of the house where she lived for so many years, where her girl once had a tree house. Four months after Sneezers died, her "foster sister cat" died and was buried next to her: Meowzers.
TO LOVE AGAIN
Oh what unhappy twist of fate
Has brought you homeless to my gate,
The gate where once another stood
To beg for shelter, warmth, and food?
For from that day I ceased to be
The master of my destiny,
While she, with purr and velvet paw,
Became within my house the law.
She scratched the furniture and shed
And claimed the middle of the bed.
She ruled in arrogance and pride
And broke my heart the day she died.
So if you really think, oh cat,
I'd willingly relive all that
Because you come forlorn and thin,
Well, don't just stand there -- come on in!
(author unknown)
