In Memory of Ralphie 3/22/2021 – 6/11/2024
Ralphie’s start was about as scruffy as you’d expect by looking at that sweet face! He hailed from the streets of Kerrville, TX, where this sweet-natured boy prowled and scavenged until he was rescued. Unfortunately, a complication we’re all too familiar with here at Shadow Cats arose: Ralphie wound up testing positive for Feline Leukemia. He was at risk of euthanasia, so Kerrville Pets Alive reached out to us, and we made room for those chubby cheeks and scruffy little face.
Ralphie came to us in May of 2023, and our lives were forever changed by this sweet black and brown kitty. Ralphie may not be one of the kitties to immediately swarm you when you enter Cookie’s Place, but he found his role amongst the busyness of the room all the same. His attitude was fitting for a reformed street cat: an inherent gratefulness for all he had and a complete and utter lack of table manners!
With the exception of being medicated, Ralphie just seemed happy to be included. Where loving hands and soft words were involved, Ralphie was happy to be generous with his time. When you’d take the time to clean out his ears, which had a propensity to get as messy as the rest of him, he’d allow you to do it with this soft, gentle look in his eyes. Most cats would run in the other direction, but Ralphie happily perched on the sink, and when you were done with your spa duties, he’d ask you this question with a look. Like he knew you were done, but could you just mimic the task again? He just wanted to spend time with you, grateful for any softness you had to spare. Those big, round eyes would just melt your heart.
Even if the surrounding areas of his face tended to be covered in crumbs more often than not! Ralphie, perhaps a thread from his days on the street, was the messiest eater you’d ever seen. More food tended to be on his cheeks and chin than in his mouth, and he’d sport the look proudly…and he’d put it on complete with loud smacking noises, too. We’d just smile at our messy boy, happy to take the extra time to wipe the excess off from around his mouth just so he could look up at us with those sweet eyes once again. Ralphie absolutely melted all of our hearts, and as grateful as he was for our kindness, we were perhaps more grateful for his presence.
It was hard when it became clear that his time had come. Our time with Feline Leukemia kitties can be so short, and though we treasure every last moment we have with them, it never seems like enough. Our hearts broke when Ralphie became sick: the sudden development of diabetes paired with organ failure proved to be too much for this sweet angel. Our staff lovingly tended to and treated him for weeks, doing everything in their power to help him over this bump in the road, but those grateful eyes looked up at us one last time and with one last question. A final gift: a gentle passing, surrounded by the loving hands he loved so much.
Ralphie passed on in a room brimming with love for him, in the place he’d called home for a little over a year. We remember it all: all those gentle moments, the playful ones too, the quiet presence that didn’t loudly demand your attention but struck a match within our hearts all the same. Days spent lazing about on the catio, sunbathing and luxuriating, playing with plentiful cat toys, and enjoying the most delicious of meals with gusto. It doesn’t make his passing easier, but we know in our hearts that we impacted Ralphie’s life as much as he impacted ours. With heavy hearts and tears in our eyes, we guided him across the rainbow bridge, where we know many plates of fancy feast lay scattered for him, all for the taking. And for the smearing on his face!
We will miss cleaning you up, messy boy. Your gentle look is imprinted in our hearts forever, because we love you. We always will.
Thank you to Vista Vet and Heart of Texas for the incredible medical care he received. Thank you to the staff who lovingly cared for him every day and did their absolute best to nurse this boy back to health. Thank you to the volunteers who were always ready with lots of pets and playtime, and to his sponsors.
Ralphie had 2 Sponsors
Ray & Sonia Sinclair
Debbie Patterson