Casper The Commuting Cat: The True Story Of The Cat Who Rode The Bus And Stole Our Hearts

My dear cats were Dolly Cat and Mr Sam. Dolly became ill last July, and I was taking her to the vet every couple of weeks for checks, then in the early hours of 27 September she suddenly died. She would have been eighteen on the 1st of December Then a couple of days later Mr Sam wouldn’t eat, so off to the vet again. The vet discovered a tumour in his bowel. He wasn’t in any pain at that time, but there wasn’t anything to be done to save him, so it was just palliative care. I was taking him to the vet every two weeks for injections to help his appetite and vitamins. I cherished every minute with him, and worried about him constantly. Then on 13 January I knew that he couldn’t go on any longer, so he was put to rest by the vet. He turned sixteen on the 1st of January. It has been heartbreaking to lose them both so close together I’d had them both since they were kittens and I miss them so much after all those years. I will eventually get another cat, as life without a furry person around the house is very strange, but I’m too sad at the moment and I need some time to get past the last six months.

Please take care – I hope the pain of losing Casper in such an awful way is easing a little, but as you said it never really goes away, I guess you just find a way of living with it.

Kind Regards – Bronwyn, Australia

All over the world and closer to home, people were being reminded of their losses over the years by Casper’s death. A lady called Margaret sent a beautiful card in which she said:

To lose a true friend is never easy – know that you’re in my thoughts. I was so sorry to read of the death of Casper What an amazing cat he was! In these days of nothing but bad news in the papers, it was so enjoyable to read about Casper and his daily bus journey. There will be many people who will be thinking of you at this time.

I believed her. There seemed to be such love sent to me in every mail delivery, including this one: