Fergus was at least 10 years old when he came to SHUA in August 2002. His owners had taken him to the vets to be destroyed but the vet couldn't bear to do so. The senior vet at the practice had known Fergus since he was a kitten - she had given him his annual checkup and boosters for 10 years. So when the owner's son brought him in saying that he had bitten the owner, she suspected that something was wrong. It just wasn't in Fergus' nature to bite anyone and she could not ethically put a healthy, placid cat to sleep.
It transpired that Fergus' owner was an elderly lady and that the son had only recently come into the picture. He had taken over and decided that he did not want the burden of caring for a cat. Sadly, this sort of thing is all too common - people do take perfectly healthy animals to the vets to be destroyed for no good reason.
He was known as "Fat Fergus" back in the day because he really was MASSIVE. He joined our "silly old sods", spending most of his time in the conservatory, chilling out and sunbathing. He really was a gentle giant and was so affectionate. Fergus was at SHUA for just over a year before he was adopted by a bachelor living in Cardiff. They spent 4 happy years together before work commitments pulled Fergus' new owner abroad in July 2006. Sadly, Fergus could not go with him so he came back to SHUA.
Fergus was a shadow of his former self when he returned to SHUA. He clearly missed his Daddy terribly and had aged significantly. He was doddery and quite deaf - but he still had his famous appetite (a 4-sachets-a-day man until the end) and a fighting spirit. He frequently sparred with another of our senior citizens, Cliff. We used to laugh so heartily at these two former street-fighting tom cats, now in their golden years, a bit deaf and arthritic, squaring up to each other and pretending to talk the talk! Of course nothing ever happened - and so it was a joy to watch. Bless them.
Fergus was euthanased on the 3rd of April 2007. He had severe heart problems and had started to lose the use of his hind legs, which distressed him greatly. He died with his dignity intact and with his SHUA family cuddling him until the end. He was a larger than life character in so many ways and we were all honoured to have known him.
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