A couple months later on Halloween night, he slipped past us when we opened the door for some trick or treaters. He went missing for three nights and we thought we'd never see the kitten again. Then on the night of Oldest's birthday he remarkably returned. Remarkable because he was only a kitten who had never left the house before that and we had no idea how he found his way back. Fast forward two years later, we moved to our first farm and August suddenly had the luxury of being an outdoor cat and the great wide world (or at least the countryside) to explore. He went missing one day and was never seen again. At least not until a year and a half later. Yes, eighteen months later while sitting outside in the backyard, we heard a familiar meow and sure enough up the lane he came shocking all of us. We have no idea where he went for those eighteen months but we are certain it was not on his own accord. As a matter of fact, we are certain that he tried everything in his power to return to us just like the characters in Homeward Bound. He was ecstatic to see us and couldn't stop rubbing against us and purring happily.
Shortly after that we moved back to town and August refused to let us out of his sight. If we simply walked downtown he'd follow us. If we walked over to the coffee shop, he'd follow us. We couldn't go anywhere on foot where he did not follow us. Passerby's would often chuckle at the cat following us or exclaim "Do you know there is a cat following you?" And he was glued to the house and the neighbourhood houses. He loved the neighbourhood and they loved him. After school all the kids would stop in front of our house, drop their backpacks and start playing with him as he rolled around on the ground purring soaking up all the attention. Alas, he was so loved that many a people tried to keep August as their own. He would come home at the end of the day with a new collar on. We'd remove it and the next day he'd have another. I eventually had to tape a note to his collar when he'd go out informing whoever wanted him that he already belonged to a family and two little girls that loved him very much.
As the years went by, August got older and so did the girls. Dogs began to enter the household and August got forgotten. He continued to be loyal to us, never leaving our site. The day we moved back to the country, he stalked my feet until I eventually put him in a cat carrier and transported him to the new home. Admittedly, he never liked this home very much. Other cats joined him but they weren`t as nice as he. Some were downright nasty. He tried to befriend them but they turned against him. More dogs filled our home and August got designated to the barn with the other cats. I always felt bad about that, but the house was beginning to overflow with canine's and besides, the cat food was stored in the barn. I thought he`d be happy to be out there with his own kind where the mice was aplenty. But far too many days and nights I`d find him at the back door begging to be let in. Some days I`d cave and he would come in but then I`d find him up on the kitchen counter and loose my temper and send him running back outside.
Today was a beautiful day. The sun was warm and bright and the snow was beginning to melt. I mucked out the stalls with the barn doors wide open. The barn cats frolicked in the straw bales. The dogs were all outside playing in the sunshine. I did not see August. Not that I was looking for him. I went out to the pastures to break the ice in the water troughs then went and dragged the hose out of the barn to refill them. My gloves got wet so I went back to the house to change them. It was while I was standing in the kitchen that I heard a cry. I thought it was Ivy and worried she had fallen into the ice pond, went to the front of the house to look. I saw four of our dogs standing between the greenhouse and the pond, something laying on the ground between them. I immediately called out and they all ran away. I could tell it was a cat but couldn't believe it was August. They knew August. They loved him. Besides, he was smart and knew how to outwit them.
He was no match for the pack today. They decided to go hunting and for whatever reason, chose August as their prey. I don't believe most of them knew what they were doing and believed they were playing a game, but I am certain our German Shepherd, Dakota, knew exactly what she was doing. She has lived with August the longest and has never harmed him in these years, but today she felt her role as Alpha was being challenged by the only male in the pack and the younger and stronger females entering the pack beneath her. I am certain it was her bite that was the fatal bite. My only condolence is that August died in my arms. He looked at me, blood dripping from his mouth as he gurgled to try and breath, then quietly slipped away.
My girls cried, I cried, as we knew that August deserved more than what we gave him these last few years. He did not deserve to die this way. It was our fault for putting him in danger, for not keeping him safe, for not letting him into the house. I am so sorry August. You gave us many years of happy memories and we thank you for that. I hope you are in a better place. Tomorrow, we are going to try and find a proper burial ground for him. Normally, all dead stock get thrown into the dead stock hole out back but August deserves better. The ground is frozen solid but tomorrow, tomorrow we will find him the right spot.
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