The skinny, onyx-black cat showed up on my parents’ front porch out of nowhere, basically just appearing one day. He was the scaled-down spitting image of their cat Jinx, who he followed everywhere and imitated to quickly earn the moniker “Shadow.”

It was more than 13 years ago when I surprised my wife by bringing him home to our five-room apartment, somewhat to the chagrin of our landlord who was kind enough to allow us to break the “no-pets” clause of our lease for a few weeks before we completed an already-planned move into a larger house.

Since then we have moved four times, lived in three states, welcomed two beautiful daughters, said goodbye to old friends, made some wonderful new ones and much more. Shadow has been part of our family for it all, a calming influence who could always lighten the mood with his unconditional affection and playful antics.

So it was with a heavy heart Monday that we took him to the vet for x-rays stemming from a problem with his mouth. When the doctors told us he had a cancerous tumor we were faced with the decision to subject him to chemotherapy and radiation or simply allow him to cope with the small knot on his lip.

In the end, we felt like we were choosing quality over quantity.

Removing the cancer may extend his life a bit — or it may not — but the treatment could severely impact his health. Leaving the tumor alone is somewhat of an unknown, but we hope it is a path that will allow him to enjoy the rest of his time as much as possible since he really doesn’t to seem all that bothered by it.

This was a difficult decision for our family and one in which we hope we made the right choice. I cannot even imagine the pain and heartache families face when similar decisions have to be made about loved ones.

Having always grown up in a house with pets, a love for animals was instilled in me at a very young age. I have no tolerance for animal cruelty or those who neglect their pets.

For us, Shadow has truly been a part of our family. My daughters have loved him from the moments they were born and he has always treated them so gently.

It will be difficult to watch if he struggles with this illness but, just like a human being, he deserves to be able to enjoy his time left on earth, time that we plan to will fill with catnip, treats, naps and lots of love.

If Shadow could talk, I think he would say that sounds like a great exclamation mark on a good life.

 

Michael Caldwell is the publisher of Leader Publications LLC. He can be reached at (269) 687-7700 or by email at mike.caldwell@leaderpub.com.