Kuma

Name: Kuma

Date of Passing: 06/21/2024

Message to Kuma: Our beloved Kuma gave us twenty years of love, cuddles, purrs, fun and companionship. Letting go of her soft paws and her sweetness was incredibly hard and we feel blessed and grateful we had the kind and warm support and guidance of Dr. Kristina to guide us through it. Though we have a Kuma-shaped hole in our hearts, we are thankful we were able to have the last memory of her be with us, in her home, surrounded by the great love that wove our lives together.

Tell us about Kuma: Kuma was a rescue kitten, adopted when she was three weeks old. Her mother and the entire litter had died of fulminating feline leukemia, and also Kuma was infected with it. When we took her in she fit in the palm of our hand, and we were told she would not live past six months. A Japanese colleague advised giving her a strong name, like Kuma, which means bear in Japanese, to ward off the illness. We were all happily surprised when she grew to be a very bouncy and happy one year old cat. We had her tested and voila', no more leukemia! The strength of her name gifted us two decades of priceless companionship and joy. She traveled across state lines, by car, plane, and bus, loved climbing trees, roll in the grass, and sit on our laps, purring with the strength of a lioness. She will be missed until the end of our days.