Today is one of the most important holidays of the year to me- sootys birthday! I did some backwards calculations on when we got her and how old she would have been, and concluded her birthday was probably mid to late April. I decided on the 12th before I realised it was Easter 1

Bc I did Wrong Maths about when national black cat day was (I thought it was October 12th but it's actually the 27th) and was like, 6 months from black cat day! But that's not actually true. But this date is 8 and a half weeks before my brother's birthday, for whom sooty was 2

Originally purchased, alongside a sister who passed away on the 27th of February 2008 (I think). They were the only two kittens left of a litter of five, so I added some leeway for the others to have been sold (we picked them up a day or two after his birthday). Now that you 3

Know this, it's time for some actual memories. Sooty was a very excitable kitten! We would bounce ping pong balls on the kitchen tile and she would race around after them! (her sister Jess was less impressed. Yes, Jess was a black and white cat). Her original name was loony! 4

I was 6 when we got her. When I was 8, we moved a couple hours away and stayed with my gparents while looking for a house, and my grandma kept forgetting sootys name, and we changed it (this is the grandma that passed away two and a half weeks ago). We found our house. We took 5

One of the farm cats with us, as well as sooty and Jess. Sooty and Jess each had a litter of kittens at the same time! 4 for sooty, 5 for Jess (altho sooty ended up with 5). We had 12 cats in a council house, and had to rehome all of the surprise kittens. All of our cats were 6

Spayed and neutered from then on, since they were all outdoors cats at the time. Jess went missing for a few days, then came back injured. She passed away at the vets that day. We rehomed another farm cat, stripes (renamed Numptey. I chose the spelling). We moved again. I was (7)

15 years old. We lost farm cat 1 (ginger tosser, criss cross, one eyed jack, and other names besides) before he turned ten. Last year, we lost numptey at 8. And sooty soldiered on! She doesn't like the dogs much (too loud, accidentally step on her). Mum adopted two new kittens 8

For her alone, ginger toms that were half Bengal. Sooty doesn't like them much, either. They keep trying to play with her, and she's a grumpy old lady now. All she wants is cuddles and treats and sleeping in the sun. So I took her to uni with me. Almost 21 years old, and for 9

The first time I was a solo cat owner. It wasn't easy. She's an anxious cat, and I'm an anxious person. Sometimes she doesn't use the litter tray. There were struggles with fleas (she won't let anyone touch her tummy or her legs, but I can comb her chest and tail now). She 10

Rarely uses her scratching post, so her claws get long and I get covered in accidental scratches, which sometimes scar. Its my own fault for teaching her to climb on my shoulders! She likes to sit on my laptop. She demands cuddles when I try to get things done, but ignores me 11

When I have the time for it. I took her for her first vet check up in years and got her her only recorded vaccines (no records from before she was 2, but presumably she had them). She won't eat her crunchies unless they're mixed in with a meat gravy pouch, so I have to check 12

Her teeth for plaque regularly, in case there's a build up. Sooty is an amazing cat! I have known her for over two thirds of my life. She has moved house 5 times and sometimes she still goes back with me to mum's. She has outlived three cats and three dogs (we tend to rescue 13

And rarely have pets from baby. Sooty was the last before mums current kittens- even numptey was half grown). She has seen my through most of my schooling, and all of my mental health difficulties. She has helped with meltdowns, panic attacks, and grief. She is the singular 14

Best cat in the whole wide world and I love her more than anything and anyone. She is 15 years old today. I hope she enjoys herself! This is the oldest pic of her I can find... with ginger tosser, and between Jess and numptey, so probably 2010. She was five years old!

I also have a TON more photos of her which I'm going to add to this thread st some point today. This is my mum, with sooty, fafnir, and Billy. From October 2019