Remembering Millie Jo

Millie Jo Moore was our newest little kitty in the household

Forgive me if this post sounds sappy or overly sentimental, especially since this is a blog about weight loss, diet, and health. But I also talk about LIFE at this blog and a very sad LIFE moment happened today.

Today was already a little anxious in the Moore household because my wife Christine had a scheduled colonoscopy early this morning regarding a mysterious pain she has been having in her side (she reminds me that the pain in her side is not me because I'm her pain in the BUTT! LOL!). All went well with the procedure and her colon is fine, but she will need some more tests in the coming weeks to find out what is causing the pain. Please pray that her doctors can figure out what's wrong.

Meanwhile, back at home the youngest of our four little kitty cats named Millie Jo had not eaten or drank anything for over a day and she was just lying around the house quite lethargic. When she started vomiting a white frothy substance and hiding from us for hours on end, we knew something was very bad wrong. We just didn't know how bad it was.



When I returned back from playing volleyball at my church tonight, my wife gave me a look that told me we needed to do something about Millie Jo because she was getting worse not better. Our other cats had gone through spells that lasted a day or two and then they would be better. But it was quite obvious Millie Jo was sick and her lack of any nourishment had caused her to lose a lot of weight fast.

I called the local veteranarian hospital and they were closed. The answering service gave me a number to an emergency vet place about 40 miles away, so then I looked up a local ER for animals in Spartanburg and found one. They said to bring Millie in right away to have tests run.

When we arrived, Millie Jo weighed just a little over 5 pounds, which was about a 2 1/2 pound weight loss in two days. She was totally oblivious to her surroundings and had a dazed look on her face with whatever it is she had. We were bracing for the news from the animal doctor.

After the veteranarian explained what he was going to do to check on Millie Jo, he came back with the terrible news that we dreaded hearing -- Millie Jo had leukemia and a tumor had already developed on her abdomen. He explained that the mortality rate in cases like these with felines is extremely high and it was up to us whether we wanted to pursue chemotherapy treatments to prolong her life further or to put her out of her misery with euthanasia.

Since Millie Jo was only a little over one year old and because we have three other beautiful, healthy cats, we decided the best thing to do was to say goodbye to this special little kitty who brought lots of joy and laughter to our lives over this past year.



If you would have told me last week that Millie Jo was going to get sick from cancer, I would have thought you were crazy. This was arguably the most rambunctious, energetic kitten you have ever seen and she did some of the most quirky stuff, too. I always say that cats are pretty stupid (and they are!), but they sure are entertaining to watch.

About a month ago, we caught her using her mouth to open up a retractable drawer in the bathroom where my wife keeps her hair scrunchies and she picked one up with her mouth to play with it. We noticed there were a lot of scrunchies scattered throughout the house and wondered how in the world they got there. Then Christine caught Millie Jo in the act and videotaped her doing it one day. That video would easily win the best clip on "America's Funniest Home Videos!"

Although she was our youngest, Millie Jo was a precious member of our family that will sorely be missed. It's times like these in life that you learn to appreciate what you do have and stop taking for granted the things you hold dearest. As soon as we got home from the vet after stopping to get some ice cream (sugar-free for me!) at Bruester's, I picked up each of my other three cats (Smokey, Ginger, and Muffin) one at a time and gave them hugs and kisses.

Today, I love them even more and will continue to do so to cherish the memory of the one we called Millie Jo. THANK YOU for allowing me just a moment to write what some may call a silly, sappy, sentimental blog post remembering Millie Jo. I don't care what people think about this because it's what is on my heart right now. Plus, I'm sure others of you have been through this before yourself while some have yet to experience the emotions that come with losing a pet you love.

One thing is for certain -- while I am sad that Millie Jo is gone, I will NOT be turning to food for comfort. These kind of situations in life can put you in a vulnerable position to "loosen up" on your low-carb lifestyle. Don't fall for this trap! Stay strong and find comfort in other ways besides the carb-loaded foods we come to enjoy during these times.

So, I guess this is goodbye, Millie Jo! Somewhere in heaven there's a little kitty cat in Jesus' arms being comforted by the One who created her. She'll be safe now because God will take good care of her forever. And HE can clean her litter box from now on! Hee hee!

Again, THANK YOU for indulging me for just one post to talk about this because it is real life. That's what I try to deliver at my blog and make no apologies for it. I promise to get back to low-carb topics next, but I wanted you to know what happened in the Moore family today. Until next time...keep on livin' la vida low-carb.