Was your cat adopted from East Coast Maine Coon Rescue or is your cat an ECMCR foster cat?
Yes

City and State
Ridgefield, CT

Your Cat's Story or Bio
Kelso (he came with the name Grayson - they thought he was around two years old at the time) was the first cat I fostered for ECMCR back in 2011. After about two weeks with us, my heart told me I could not give him up, and my family and I decided to welcome him into our home permanently.

Kelso lived a happy life with his Maine Coon "sister" Bree. They had a "love/hate relationship", but I would find them occasionally sleeping to each other on the couch, which would make me smile and warm my heart.

In 2020, Kelso was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism and irritable bowel disease and was put on medication and a modified food regimen to control both. He would have IBD flares the past couple of years, and I did what I could to support him the best he could to get him back on track.

By the end of July this year, he had had the worse flare and lost the most weight, and it didn't look like he would bounce back. Out of the many flares he had and eventually bounced back from, something was different this time. My family and I had to make the gut wrenching decision to put him down.

We lost our sweet boy on July 28, 2023. He will forever be missed and will never be forgot. We all knew it was time and was the right decision for Kelso. He suffered a lot and always put his family first, not wanting us to worry about him. He was a real trooper, and it was evident that he loved everyone in our family. I still imagine him being with us, hanging out on the couch next to me while I watch TV or read my book. Even a couple of months later, it's still hard to believe he his gone.

I will always be grateful to ECMCR for bringing Kelso to my family! We were blessed to have him for the many years we did, and he was a special guy who touched our hearts and will forever be a part of us!