Ivory was just like a little person and more like my baby than a cat and I loved him more than words can express. He was the my little companion and faithful friend and a wonderful, patient listener and he would talk back to me in his own precious language. He would walk up to me and gently stick out his little paw and touch me on my face to let me know he loved me. I would carry him around and he would patiently sit on my arm with his little paws on my shoulder. We spent many hours together just living our lives. He was always thrilled to see me and he would always let me know by talking up a storm and bouncing around beside me and under my feet. I loved it when he was happy to see me and he was always happy when I came home from anywhere.

Ivory, 1990 - Oct 2007

When Ivory was born, he was solid white and he stayed that solid color his whole life without developing other colors in his fur as other cats seem to. He was allowed to have 3 litters of kittens with three females and his kittens were all solid white. He was so beautiful that often people wanted him for their own. He was also a very intelligent cat and a great communicator which made him all the more precious to me.

He was a great hunter and would keep any mouse or rat out of my home. Many times Ivory would catch mice outside and bring one to me because that was his way of taking care of me. He would also provide mice for his other little girl and guy kitty pals and when he would bring them a mouse, he would let it go and lie down to watch them learn to catch mice themselves. He was the most wonderful cat I ever knew. He was faithful and loyal to me until the end and I can't tell you how much I loved him and how much I am going to miss him.

Ivory would kill rats almost as big as himself. He truly was a great hunter. Once we lived near a bayou in Houston, Texas and there were huge sewer rats that would try to get into our homes. Ivory would kill them and come and get me to show me his accomplishment. He was strong and very powerful even though he was not the biggest cat I ever had. He was the best mouser.

it was not just Ivory's ability to hunt that made me love him so much. He was a very special loved one. He was my companion and he was my protector. Once when a fellow I knew was speaking in a loud voice to me, Ivory started growling, hissing and showing his teeth to this person. He arched his back and started walking towards him sideways in a very threatening manner. He was literally going to attack him for his manner of speaking to me. He really did protect me and he was willing to fight what was a huge monster in his eyes. That cat loved me more than anything and he sure did let me know it in every way possible. He just oozed love and adoration from his little eyes and I adored him just as much.

Ivory went everywhere with me, but he never enjoyed being in a vehicle. He hated it so much that his fur would shed profusely from being so nervous. It took him a while to get used to being in a new place, but when he adjusted, he adjusted like a champ. Once, he traveled to Mississippi with me where, upon arriving, he was not used to the place yet. Somehow he got out the door of my little house there and was lost for hours way into the night. I found him several miles away in a sort of swamp. He was meowing his head off and the amazing thing is that he had crossed a stream and had gone into the wilds of a place where there were poisonous snakes, alligators and all kinds of wild animals. He had braved all that without a scratch. When I found him, he was a bit muddy, but other than that, he was ok, just scared. I cried my eyes out for joy and vowed to never again let him out of my site. I wish now that I had lived up to that vow.

Ivory, 1990 - Oct 2007

Ivory tragically lost his life to a dog attack. He was not with me because I could not keep him where I live and was temporarily with some people until I could find a place where he could be with me. He had been to the vet and had on a protective guard that cats wear when the vet doesn't want them to scratch a wound or surgery. He was let out of the house with that huge guard on his neck and he didn't have a chance against the dog that attacked him.

Please, never let your animals out of the house with those guards on because cats especially cannot hide from dogs with those things on, they can't run and they can't fight the animal, but most of all, if they try to get to a hiding place, they will get hung up on something and the dog or attacking animal can kill them without any trouble at all. That is what happened to Ivory. I am so hurt and angry and sad all at the same time because he had to die such an awful death. I cannot say that he didn't suffer, because I know that he did.

Ivory, 1990 - Oct 2007

One of the things I will miss most about him is when he would look up at me with his big yellow eyes and I could see the love in them. His love for me showed through his beautiful eyes and he would communicate in ways that only a cat can. I suppose people who don't have cats can't really understand what I mean by that, but those of you with cats know what I mean. That look of adoration is unmistakable. He loved me and I loved him and I can tell you that there is no way to replace such a wonderful, precious one like Ivory.

I can't tell you how much it hurts that I was not with Ivory in his last hours. That will bother me most of all. I just wish I could go back and hold him in his last hours and tell him how much I loved him and try to comfort him. That is the saddest thing that I have to live with and hurts the most. I just want to touch him one last time, but I can't now and he is no longer in my life, but he will always be with me in my heart and mind and if there is a place in heaven for animals, I know he will be there waiting for me.

Annette Potter