Arto's Blog

Our beloved cat Germaine is not with us any more. At the age of 18,5 years, she took her last breath on our bed and passed into the world of spirits. This blog article is dedicated to her and all the joy she brought when she was living with us.

When we got Germaine in autumn 2013, she was shy at first. However, in a couple of months she got used to us and little by little also to our lifestyle of often having guests around. During the years the bond became stronger and she trusted us fully — seeking closeness and developing many funny habits.

Sleeping was one of Germaine's favourite activities and she always found new favourite spots to do that. During the day, she often lay on the cushions of our kitchen bench or higher on the countertop, where a small corner was reserved for her. In the night, she usually came and slept with us in our bed. In the beginning she stayed at the foot end, but during the last couple of years she strectched herself or formed a furry roll next to our heads, usually right in the middle between our pillows. Sometimes she even slept under Sandra's blanket, with just her head and front paws sticking out.

When awake, Germaine wanted to have the full attention. She miaowed loudly and vibrated her tail, asking either food or to be petted. Petting was rewarded by a funny "kurr" sound. She sat or lay down on top of the newspaper or on the laptop keyboard, showing who was more important. She didn't mind being touched anywhere in her body, for example scratching under the belly just resulted in more "kurrs" and her walking in a loop around our feet. We could lift her up from the floor and hold her on our arms, cuddling and looking at her directly in the eyes.

The eating habits of Germaine were special. She categorically refused all dry food and preferred canned products instead. If she didn't happen to like a particular one, she either started licking plastic bags or simply miaowed more, knowing that sooner or later we will open another can. When we had found the suitable flavour for her mood, she started grabbing the pieces in her mouth and chewing while simultaneously moving her head, spreading half of the food around the plate in the process. She didn't hurry, often eating just a bit, walking around and coming back several times to have a few more bites. Her absolute favourites were grilled chicken, fatty fish and a piece of butter in the morning or every time we were sitting at the table. She really loved butter.

One of the funniest habits of Germaine was to jump on the kitchen chair and stand up with her front paws on the back rest. That was one of her favourite positions to watch what was going on in the kitchen and to be petted in. She answered our gentle strokes with the usual "kurr" and scratching her head against the side. Some other Germaine's habits which we fondly remember were

• Following Arto inside the flat when he was walking from room to room
• Going for a small excursion in the house corridor when the door was left open. She walked until the main staircase and sniffled around, before turning and trotting back to our flat.
• Smelling the fresh air on the balcony, before deciding it's too cold and quickly coming back inside
• Taking a peek inside the fridge every time we opened it
• Coming to our laps when we were eating, jumping from there to the kitchen bench and back again
• Walking on the tile floor at night, making a small tic-tic-tic sound with her claws which were slightly too long
• Jumping on the bed and climbing to her place over us, carefully avoiding to step on our faces.

Germaine had a few health problems, but generally she was quite fit for her age. Finding catsitters during our holidays was sometimes complicated, but eventually it worked out every time. We believe that she had a good and happy life with us. She was a one-of-a-kind cat and we loved her very much. She will always stay in our hearts and in our memories.