In Memory of Stanley 1/21/2012 – 7/3/2025
In December of 2012, while many families were gathered in front of the warmth of a crackling fireplace, countless animals were experiencing winter’s harsh bite and even some snow in some parts of Texas. Stanley was one of those outdoor kitties, if you can imagine!
Friends of Shadow Cats saw Stanley outside just before Christmas Day, a new face in the neighborhood. Because they were unsure of his situation, they made sure to trap him and take him in for a checkup. He was in great health, except for some ear mites, and was released shortly after. They assumed that Stanley surely must be an owned cat.
But Stanley stuck around.
As wintertime magic faded, and people began wrapping up and putting away Christmas lights and decorations, Stanley remained. The tiniest inklings of buds emerged from the soil soon after, flowering into brilliant and beloved bluebonnets. Still, Stanley remained. The heat of Texas summer began trickling in. People blew up their pool floaties, applied their sunscreen, and soaked in sunbeams not unlike our cats who adore it so very much. And still…Stanley remained.
They began to think that Stanley wasn’t an owned cat at all, and if he was, that he must’ve been left behind. The healthy boy they met that fateful Christmas faded into a gaunt, sickly cat, no matter how much they fed him. He used to be indifferent when presented with food, and soon gobbled up everything they had to offer. They trapped him, then, and took him in to be evaluated again. Stanley had a persistent fever, and it was clear that he needed more care than he could receive as a community cat.
Thankfully for us and for Stanley, he recovered beautifully in our care. He filled out again, and soon became the talk of the town around the sanctuary. Stanley…marched to the beat of his own drum, you might say! Independent to his core, he wasn’t particularly concerned with whatever your plans were for him, and he certainly wasn’t going to be bossed around by other cats!
His kingly energy was matched only by a scowl that would send the bravest of cats skittering away with the stereotypical Halloween arch. But, to his credit…that was just Stanley’s default expression! Stanley suffered from a severe case of RHS—Resting Hiss Face. He wasn’t upset, or angry…he just was! His fixed frown rivaled Queen Elizabeth II’s (when she deployed it). It was just one of his quirks, and we absolutely adored his grumpy expression. It was part of his charm. He also had the Olympic Gold Medical for peeing the longest distance, but we won’t get into that story.
Stanley was just a character. As he settled into Sanctuary life, he also decided of his own volition that he would be the neighborhood’s alarm clock. Perhaps he’d been raised by a band of Roosters; he certainly took after them. At dawn, he’d sound off, alerting everyone that it was time to rise and shine. Maybe just a ploy to be fed earlier, as cats often do, but we appreciated the effort nonetheless. The neighbors…? We’re not so sure.
Stanley LOVED to be outside! He loved to perch on the shelves of the old sanctuary and watch the birds go by. He was a lone-wolf type as a younger kitty, so his outside time was important to him. As he grew older, we watched Stanley really blossom. He went from allowing us a few pets to actively seeking laps. You would go to pet him, and he’d instantly start purring enough that you’d feel the vibration against your hand. Nobody had it on their respective bingo cards that tough boy Stanley would turn into such a lover, but it happened regardless of our plans, as life often does.
Stanley loved to dress up for the holidays and pose for photos. He had the sweetest, tiniest little meow despite his tough guy exterior. He made peace with his roommates in his older years and even formed bonds with them. Violet, our Wild Side tripod, absolutely adored Stanley and would constantly follow him, lean on him, and be generally up in his business. Stanley didn’t know what to do about it most of the time…but we think our old man really secretly loved it. He was the team captain of Wild Side in our first team-based Shadow Cats on Parade fundraiser, and he was a snack taster in our March Snackness Smackdown. He was really a temptations connoisseur…we trusted his opinion!
Stanley lived a beautiful, full life at Shadow Cats. He formed bonds, he loved and was loved, and over time, he softened his street cat ways, showing us just how sweet he could be. We feel eternally grateful to have borne witness to his incredible progress, the beauty of a life that once hid in the shadows coming into the light. Stanley made us laugh; he made our hearts warm. Every shade of emotion was felt with Stanley over the course of so many years, with so many people. Through changes, through seasons, Stanley remained.
He remained…with us.
But all is taken by the passage of time. Sweet Stanley grew older every year as we all do, and in the last year, he began to feel his age. Stanley slowed down, living a more peaceful, quiet life. Slowly, Stanley began to have the medical issues you’d expect to have with an aging cat. Over time, standard issues transformed in ways that let us know Stanley’s body was fading with the passage of time. IBD turned into GI lymphoma, small infections became harder to overcome, and fluid began to accumulate around his heart.
We knew that the final gift we could give Stanley, after giving him years and years of a beautiful life, was the gift of a peaceful passing. Though there were no twinkling Christmas lights at the end of his story as existed in its beginning, he had long since become a light in our lives.
There is no greater pain than the pain of absence, but it is matched in equal measure by the pride and privilege felt at being touched by such a special being. Surrounded by those who loved him the most, Stanley was held in the arms that cared for him at the end of his life. Those same arms held him as he passed into the beyond, carried on wings of magnificent white to match the shade of his sweetest paws.
Now, Stanley stands at the first step of the rainbow bridge. Across the way sprawls an endless meadow, speckled in flowers and sunbeams that stretch on into eternity. Stanley looks upon the faces of so many friends, so many soft blinks and sweet chirps. Heidi, whom he just guided into the beyond, waits to return the favor. He strides into forever in a form free of cancer, free of the burdens of age, free of pain. The trees canopy overhead, and through them filters the most beautiful golden light. He curls beneath a fine sunbeam, warmed in body and soul at the fullness of life he lived, and watches the birds chirping and fluttering their wings overhead with a softer look than his stern expression has ever allowed.
Thank you to Stanley’s amazing sponsors, Carmen T & Robert M, Shannon M, Reiko G, Susan F, and Catherine M. Thank you to the amazing volunteers who helped Stanley evolve into the wonderful lap cat he became in his old age. Thank you to the incredible staff who nursed Stanley through every phase of his life and earned his eternal love and gratitude. Thank you to Vista Vet for providing his amazing care. Thank you to everyone who ever loved this sweet, silly cat despite the fierceness of his expression.
We love you, Stanley. We always will.
Stanley had 5 Sponsors
Carmen Tym & Robert Marsa
Shannon Mackintosh Murdock
Reiko Graham
“In memory of Riley”
-Susan Fisher-
Catherine Mustoe