Stinkerbelle.
March 28, 2007 – April 2, 2016.
On April 2, 2016 Stinkerbelle passed away unexpectedly. You can read my post about her here.
About Stinkerbelle.
(Written in April 2012.)
Stinkerbelle turned five years old at the end of March.
Stinkerbelle came to us in the summer of 2007 with a sister and two brothers, and they were the most feral bunch of kittens we’d ever had. (Stinkerbelle’s original name was Maryanne – we went with kind of a Gilligan’s Island naming theme, except for the one who looked like Spanky who we named Spanky.) We tried all the usual tricks and I thought they were never going to come around, and then her sister (Tina Louise) decided we weren’t so bad. This litter went off to Petsmart one by one rather than all together – as they became friendly, we took them to Petsmart – and then eventually Stinkerbelle was the last one left here. Once her siblings were gone, she decided we weren’t so bad, and she became somewhat friendly.
One day Fred and I were in the foster room with Stinkerbelle and her siblings, and Tommy was sniffing around the door. Fred opened the door and let him in, and all four of those kittens reacted like a long-lost loved one had just entered the room. They all ran over to him and rubbed up against him, meowed as if to say “Where have you BEEN?” Stinkerbelle loved him most of all. She became friendlier – though still apt to snap at you if you petted her for too long – and the day came when I decided it was time for her to go off to Petsmart.
I dropped her off one evening, and it just so happened that I was scooping and cleaning cages at Petsmart the next morning. When I walked into the adoption center that morning, the newspaper by the door to her cage was shredded, and I told Fred that it looked like she’d spent the whole night digging to get out of her cage. Well, Fred hadn’t wanted her to go to Petsmart in the first place because he loved her beautiful blue eyes and silky fur and bratty personality. He started harassing me to go back and get her, and when I wouldn’t, he actually stopped on the way home from work and got her himself. The instant she heard his voice as he walked through the door to the adoption center, she started howling her head off and didn’t stop until he got home with her.
She started off life as a permanent resident somewhat friendly – she’d come into the living room with us while we were watching TV and would sit next to Fred so he’d pet her – but she wasn’t crazy about the other cats (except for Tommy) and when she realized she could get up on top of the kitchen cabinets, that became her favorite place to be.
She doesn’t spend ALL her time on top of the kitchen cabinets – she often comes down and meows at Fred or goes and snuggles with Tommy – but I’d say she spends about 75% of her time up there. She’ll let you pet her – and will even enjoy it – but when she’s done being petted, you had BETTER stop or she’ll smack you and draw blood.
I don’t honestly remember how her name came to be Stinkerbelle. We knew she wasn’t a Maryanne, so I think we were just throwing out random names and Fred suggested Stinkerbelle. I laughed, he laughed, and the name stuck. We tend to call her “Miss Stinky”, but I also call her “Dinky Doo” when I’m sweet-talking her.
I often tell Fred that both he and Tommy had better outlive Stinkerbelle, because if she gets sick, there’s no way on earth I’ll be able to get my hands on her. And if Tommy dies before Stinkerbelle, I do believe she’ll die of a broken heart.
See more pictures of Stinkerbelle over at Flickr.
Edited to add: Oldcat has said that Stinkerbelle is a tortie-point with white (longer explanation below), in case you were wondering. I’m adding that information here, because I have a terrible memory when it comes to this stuff, and I’m sure at some point in the future, I’ll try to remember what she is, and will not be able to remember at ALL!
She looks to me to be a standard calitabby, black and orange with white, but she also has the pointed gene (to give the blue eyes). This will make the colors fade on the body, especially in hotter weather. On a standard siamese, the face tail and legs pale a little on the extremities to give the seal-brown, while the body fades to a light or dark cream color. On Stinkerbelle, the calico spots fade in a like manner – a bit on the head, and more on the body. So I guess the official term would be tortie-point with white.
awwww, does she still cuddle like that with Tommy? She’s so pretty!
Now that Tommy has gone on, how is she taking it?
How did she take Tommy’s death?
She’s handling it pretty well, as far as we can tell – her behavior hasn’t changed at all, though she MIGHT be coming down a little more often. But other than that, she’s been the same.
“I often tell Fred that both he and Tommy had better outlive Stinkerbelle, because if she gets sick, there’s no way on earth I’ll be able to get my hands on her. And if Tommy dies before Stinkerbelle, I do believe she’ll die of a broken heart.”
Wow, that was prophetic. So sorry for your loss, but she was able to live her life on her own terms because you loved her so much, and she crossed to the bridge on her own terms too. She’ll be happy to see you again some day.
I just re-read her page and it brought tears to my eyes again! Yes, Stinkerbelle lived her life her way, and I’m so glad we were allowed a peak at it!