Muffin was destined to by my cat from the very beginning. My parents picked her up at the pound where we used to live. Both her and myself were about 6 months of age. From then on, we just celebrated our birthdays together.
Muffin enjoyed living near the praries in Alberta, and was famous for catching all kinds of mice, birds, and even the occasional bat. She even liked to leave some of her catches on our front porch for us to admire. Muffin didn't like to be kept inside, for she was certainly a country cat. But, when we moved to Ontario, things changed. She couldn't hunt like she did in Alberta, and spent more and more time indoors. This was fine with me, for I loved having her with me at all times.
I remember going to bed at night, and reading a book. My mom would open the door to let her in. As soon as she would enter my room, she'd jump on my bed and purr. It was a challenge for her to reach my other pillow, because that was where she liked to sleep, and I wanted all the room. Of course she would win, and spent the whole night by my side.
Muffin never got angry with me. Whenever I was feeling down, she would make me feel better, with a kiss on my hand or nose, everything would be alright. She was definitely my best friend.
Muffin loved going to our trailer up North. She loved it so much that she spent an entire year up there. When we were leaving one day, she jumped out of the car and took off. We got her back the next year, after having moved into a new home. She would lie on the deck, and just be at perfect ease the entire time we would be up there. Shortly after her death, I swear I felt her jump on the couch I was sleeping on, and lie directly above my head...her favourite place to sleep.
When we buried her, that patch of grass was the only one that grew clovers in my whole yard. I believe it was her way of telling us that she is okay. I often dream about her, and I know she is here with me at all times.
Whisper was quite the dog, full of energy, continuously on the move. My parents bought her shortly after we moved to Ontario. Of course, Muffin was not impressed, and gave her some beatings, but they soon grew some sort of bond. Whisper was the tiniest puppy I had ever seen. She'd fit right between my mom's two feet when she was watching tv, and would often hide under the couch. When she was about six months old, she broke her leg, and had to wear a cast. She had this habit of running outside when the door was opened to follow us. One day she followed my dad and I, and while he was pulling on to the street with the car, he ran over her leg. It was her cast that saved her other leg. All she received were a few bruises...and then lots of love. Whisper was definitely my mom and sister's dog. She'd sleep with my sister at night, and after my mom had worked nights, she'd sleep with her during the day. It never failed. As soon as my mom got home in the morning, she'd be jumping on and off my mom's bed, eagerly awaiting the time to spend sleeping with her. She was always our sign that mom was awake, for we'd hear her jump off the bed, and we'd know it was safe to go see mom. She was also my mom's protector (as well as the rest of us...but more so my mom). If anyone entered my mom's room while she was sleeping, she would go crazy, barking and growling. And if you went closer to my mom and touched her, she'd attack. Not really biting, but it was still scary. For a dog of her size, she could sure appear mean. Whisper had a little stuffed dog my mom bought for her when she was still a pup, to keep her from chewing on other things in the house. We named it 'baby' and soon Whisper knew what we meant when we said 'baby'. She'd go crazy for that thing, licking and biting it. I don't know how many times my sister had to resew it's ears or head. All you had to say was "where's baby?" and she'd go hunting. There were many other words she knew, such as "mommy" (which was her favourite word...and ours to get her to listen to us), "cookie", "Grandma", and "car ride". She LOVED to ride in the car, with anyone, at any time. She especially loved sticking her head out the window while someone was driving. All you had to say was "wanna go for a car ride?" and she'd be at the door, jumping around, ready to go. Whisper passed away after suffering a problem with her brain. She was in perfect health otherwise, which made it so difficult to accept. She passed away quietly, for we had to put her to sleep. We couldn't bear to see her like that. We'll sure miss her a great deal...even her "huhs!"