When you have a family pet that has reached into the double digits, you get a little twitchy when something out of the ordinary happens. If you are the kind of person who can’t take the stress of this blog already, remember it’s Thankful Thursday, which means it has to be a happy ending… and it is.

Last week, I noticed our rather geriatric feline, Basil, had been a bit more spry than normal. He’d been out and about socializing more than he had all winter long. I thought possibly he’d just finally stopped being mad that we adopted another cat but it turns out it was something else altogether.

So on Tuesday, when I couldn’t find him at first I wasn’t all that worried. But then after about 10 minutes of not being able to locate him, concern started to set in. While I said he was a bit more active, he’s still almost 17 and hasn’t climbed steps or been able to get up on the sofa or bed without assistance in quite some time. So his area of roaming is rather limited.

I was about to leave for an appointment and I had been all over the first level of our condo, and on a random whim, even went to the basement and our loft even though he hadn’t placed a paw in either location in a good, long time. I checked closets, under beds, even in the garage. No Basil.

I was a little worried but figured I was just overreacting as I tend to do. I went out for my appointment and a couple of hours later, called my husband to see if he was home. He was but he hadn’t seen the missing feline either. I figured he’d surface soon since John was home and they have a bro-mance.

I went on to the grocery and upon arriving home found a somewhat-stressed spouse, which is never a good sign since he doesn’t fret about much of anything. At this point, he had been home for about 30 minutes and still hadn’t found the cat.

Where could he be? So we went through the house, opened every cupboard, drawer (we were panicked), closet, looked under the sofa and anything else we could think of. We checked, re-checked and checked again all his usual hiding/sleeping spaces. Again, I asked, “Where could he be?”

Finally, after my heart rate was elevated way above normal for a random Tuesday night, I went to check the loft closet for the fourth time and pulled everything out of it. There wasn’t much in there so it seemed unnecessary the first three times. This time I moved a small roll of leftover carpet and found that Sir Basil, who we thought couldn’t climb stair steps anymore, resting inside. Further he was less than pleased about his hiding space being disturbed and the lights shining in his eyes.

I did a little ranting, sharing with him how worried we were and he possibly flipped me off with his tail. He didn’t much care.
We, however, did care. We were so relieved that he got extra treats for the evening. Great way to keep him on the first floor by adding another pound or two to his already large frame.

A week out we are still relieved that not only has Basil rallied from his winter slumber but he’s also a bit more agile and able than we ever knew.

Sunshine  & Sarcasm,
Lowi & G