Omar

• Oh-my-O-mar
• Mal-Omar
• (The Ultimate Fluffy Pumpkin!)

He found our house one chilly day in February 1996. Terribly thin (at the vet's, he weighed in at only 6 pounds, and was estimated to be between two and four years old*), full of fleas, flea dirt, anemic and horribly matted.

It took two evenings of brushing before we discovered that he had been both neutered and declawed. The poor boy had absolutely no business being outdoors, yet his condition showed that he must have been for quite some time.

Generally, he's a very quiet and relaxed sort of fellow, but he's always the first to fuss if a meal is a little late or the kibble bowl is empty (gasp! oh-no-oh-no, how can this beeeee?). The other cats learned to gather in the kitchen when Omar starts to complain, because food will be appearing shortly.

The first Persian member of the clowder, he's not quite like any of the others, a different version of Cat altogether. When he was introduced into the general population, he was completely non-confrontational. He didn't do a single thing that any of the resident cats could take affront at. Mietze was particularly disturbed by him (she may not have even recognized him as a fellow cat), she hissed and said rude things ("flatty, flatty, flat faced ugly THING!") but always kept her distance. Omar just ignored every bit of hostility and never seemed frightened or the least bit upset. A mellow breed, they say, the most domesticated of them all.

Neko adored him right away, perhaps sensing that, lacking front claws, he was unable to harm her, perhaps realizing that it wasn't in his nature to hurt her even if he hadn't been disarmed. The two of them are best buddies; they love to play chase-me-chase-you through the house and to practice their Sumo wrestling together.

On the Usenet newsgroup rec.pets.cats.community, he replies to posts from other kitties who were "once inna furry similar position" (quoting Liddle Olive, who was the first such cat that Omar replied to, back in the old newsgroup rec.pets.cats), offering congratulations to the newly-adopted, advice on new-home behavior, and his commiserations about any treatments that the other cat must undergo in order to heal from life in the cruel, cold and lonely Out. His tone is just a little bit fussy, but he is always the Southern Gentlecat. He is a very proud member of both the Orange Cats Club and the HPCC, an honorary member of the Tabby Cats Club, and is the "offishul Unclekitty" of the Comeback Kitties.

* In May 1998, Omar was diagnosed as having chronic renal insufficiency, a progressive, incurable problem that most often occurs in older cats. The Feline Chronic Renal Failure Information Center is an excellent source of information about this condition.

Omar died quietly the afternoon of July 12, 1998, in his OneTrueHome.