R.I.P. Smelly cat

I have sad news to report. On Tuesday, March 10, Merle, a.k.a. Smelly Cat, a.k.a. The Most Patient Cat In the Universe left us. He developed what is called a "saddle thrombus"- A blood clot from his apparently failing heart lodged in his aorta where it branches to the back legs, cutting off circulation to his hindquarters. He became paralyzed and was in a lot of pain.

We tried giving him baby aspirin (to break up the clot) to no avail. But really it was his time to go. He came to live with my former Father in Law about 10 years ago and he was apparently very old THEN. He really didn't have much quality of life left.

He was deaf and one of his eyes was completely covered with thick cataract. He had gone from a very large cat to skin and bones slowly over the past couple of years, despite a decent appetite. There were several times that we thought we were going to lose him.

We are sad, but we know that he is now a young, healthy cat, and, most importantly, is in heaven with his best friend, my former FIL.

Rest in peace, Merle.