Bast Joins Caesar

Bast and Caesar were lucky to be born alive. There were four kittens in the litter and one of them was stillborn. Such was the state of decay, that it was blocking the mother’s uterus, causing a difficult birth. The vet operated and Bast, Caesar and the third surviving kitten were born via caesarean section. That was thirteen and a half years ago. We took on two of the litter –  Bast and Caesar. The third, Bounce, went to a colleague of Mrs L. An unfortunate choice as it turned out has he had a knack for losing cats and Bounce went missing like his predecessors, never to be seen again.

Bast and Caesar meanwhile settled in with us. The two siblings tended to be permanent rivals. Not least because Caesar was a wind up merchant and Bast could always be relied upon to take the bait. A small, rotund cat, she was a spitfire with other cats, but good natured with people. One of my enduring memories is watching her run up the stairs ahead of me as I made my way to the computer room. There she would wait on the desk for me to sit down so that she could settle on my lap twixt me and the keyboard, making typing an interesting affair.

Bast had one litter of kittens and Ptolemy was one of them. One thing we have learned in the last year is that heart disease is a problem in this family. Ptolemy succumbed last April, Caesar in November and yesterday, the same fate befell Bast. This is a consequence of having several cats of similar age and from the same gene pool, as Nefertiti, some two years older is still going strong.

Bast slipped away at half past eleven last night and for the fourth time in the space of a year we are mourning the loss of a companion who will be sorely missed.

I’ve taken plenty of photographs during the space of her life. This one, however, taken in November 2004, is my favourite. It epitomises the small tubby cat we loved –  her apple shape sinking to a pear once sat upon the fence post, like a little furry Buddha. This morning, I buried her in its shadow.

The second picture was taken a couple of years ago shortly after arriving in France. Bast and Nefertiti were the first of our cats to explore the outside world. Like two old biddies they would vie for attention. Nefertiti is now missing her biddy partner

Bast –  May 1997 –  January 2011