Everyone who met our cat Reggie thought he was a cool little guy. And everyone always commented what a beautiful cat he was. He had the cutest little nose and alert green eyes. He died earlier this spring at the age of 18 years, and we will miss him so much.
We got Reggie from a pet shelter in the spring of 2001. He was already two years old then, living under his alias, Smokey. He had come to the shelter with his brother, The Bandit. We had another cat, Buster, at the time, and we could only take one cat, so his brother was left behind. We have often wondered what happened to The Bandit and hope he had as good a life as Reggie did.
The first order of business after bringing Reggie home was to find him a more suitable name. We lived in Wisconsin at the time and are big Green Bay Packers fans. Our daughter Allison and a friend came up with Reggie after seeing a Packers plaque we had in our house. Reggie White was a defensive end for the Packers during the Brett Favre years, and he was a big, likeable guy – just like our new furry friend.
Our Reggie was a very outgoing and intelligent cat, who often acted like a dog, but who was also never afraid to show his cat independence. He had his own unique personality and definitely thought he was the king of our house. He had an odd habit that lasted for many years of sitting across one of Rick’s forearms when Rick went to bed to read – we were never sure whether that was his way of showing who was boss or just showing affection. Maybe it was a little of both.
We moved to Colorado in 2013, and Reggie showed just how brave he was by flying with Rick from Wisconsin. Since our new Colorado home had a fenced-in yard, 2013 was the first opportunity Reggie had to spend any significant amount of time outside. It only took him a short while to decide that he loved the great outdoors. He would spend long hours sitting under a bush in our backyard, munching on grass, chasing bugs, ignoring the scolding birds, lounging on our patio in the dark, and even catching a couple of small rodents – which he was kind enough to share with us inside our house.
Reggie never failed showing that he loved us unconditionally, while doing his best to simultaneously please us and rule the roost. He was always there to greet us when we came into the house from outside and enjoyed being at our side or on our laps when we were inside. Our house seems quite empty now without him, and we will always have a special place in our hearts for that sweet, lovable little guy.
Rick and Julie Packard