02/08/2026
Butterbeer was small of stature, but large of presence. He owned the place as soon as he walked in with his big strut and tiny meow. He loved everyone, especially Cindy Lou Whoo. He taught her to be friends as well. She adored him, they played and wrestled all the time. He was everywhere you were, and he loved a box!
Back in April he had disappeared over one weekend. We didn't see him for 2 days. That was completely abnormal so I sadly said my silent goodbye to the wind. Only, I went back out to call for him one more time and he answered with a very loud high pitched meow. I found my Butterbeer over by the wildflower garden unable to walk with his back legs. After a fast trip to the vet, we discovered he had had a Saddle Thrombus (blood clot in the groin area that paralyzed his back legs). He had only the slightest ability to wiggle a leg. It was enough to hope. So we started him on meds to see if that would help it break down slowly. It worked, within the next week he had an easier time dragging himself around and crawling and within the next month he was able to put his pads down and walk. His muscles had atrophied but it didn't stop him from darting out the door, wrestling with Cindy, and getting back to catching rodents and rabbits on the farm. He even managed to start jumping up and down on the barn table again.
This is almost completely unheard of. Most cats get euthanized when diagnosed with a saddle thrombus. They are typically in too much pain to allow that suffering to continue. But not for Butterbeer. This tiny badass of a cat didn't care one bit that his legs stopped working. He just brought himself home the only way he could. He healed and thrived and lived out his days doing whatever he wanted.
Unfortunately we knew our time together was limited due to what usually causes his issue is congestive heart failure. So we did what we had to when it progressed too far and breathing became too difficult. So last Friday, we said goodbye to our dear little friend Butterbeer. There's a hole in my heart without him here. He went everywhere with me and the dogs. He was the best and we miss him like crazy.
