OMG I love felines.
XAH brought a beautiful Mancoon (breed was at least part if not all) into our home, a cat who had been staying at XAH's mother's (yes I found XAH there too, ignored the clue). I changed this beautiful cat's name to Gandalf after the divorce because the name the X had given him just didn't fit and wasn't regal enough
His name was Gandalf BEFORE the Lord of the Rings movies came out. He WAS named after Gandalf.
After the divorce, I wrote a short story called, "The Cat Who Arranged A Marriage To Find A New Owner."
It was because of the way I saw my XAH treating Gandalf that I realized how badly he was treating me. Gandalf was ready to get out, and worked on me to get out, too.
Life for Gandalf after the divorce was so much better. He became much more outgoing. He was a big cat, 20 pounds of loveable muscle and fur (longhair) that needed to be brushed often. The neighbors would say that Gandalf was as friendly as any dog they knew, and they would say, "Gandalf is the cat who thinks he's a dog!" They meant it in the best of ways.
The vets loved him too. They'd kiss on him just like I did <3 He was irresistible. He didn't crave attention or get in anyone's face; he just went from being a sort of depressed cat with XAH, to being a happy, loveable furball.
He came down with diabetes, and then asthma, so needed a lot of care and medication for his health. He died in December 2007 at the age of 17, in my arms during an asthma attack. It was quick. I did try to resuscitate him a bit but then I realized it was time to let him go. My AH was so good to him too; we both mourned him for quite a while.
