RIP Freddy Snowpants

My brother had one of the coolest cats in the world. We called him Freddy Snowpants, because he had furry fat hind legs that looked like he was wearing snowpants when he walked. One of my favorite things to do was stand behind him and make the "zip zip zip" noise, which always resulted in much mirth and laughter.

Jeremy just e-mailed me that Freddy's cancer finally was too much for him, and they had to put him down today.

This picture tells you everything you need to know about him, why I loved him so much, and is the way I'll remember him:

Snow Pants

38 thoughts on “RIP Freddy Snowpants”

  2. Somewhere, just over the horizon where we cannot see, the animals at the Rainbow Bridge pause.
    Another is coming. They gather close together to see if it is one they know, and when he arrives, they welcome him. Some do recognize him, and others do not, but that is the way of things here. It hardly matters.
    As the newcomer is brought into the fold, he walks with tail held high next to an old bruiser from the alley. Healthy again but still wizened, that one likes to show the new ones around.
    As the pair walks away from the now dispersing crowd, one young kitten can’t help but crack a smile. The youngster starts to speak under his breath to his friends.
    And as the new one takes in the sights, he smiles a little, too. He hears the kitten.
    The young one might think he is hurling an insult, but the new one holds his words dear as the kitten whispers a soft “zip, zip, zip” into the clouds.
    Farewell, Mr. Snowpants.
    You are remembered.

  3. Pets are the reward we get for having to live in a civilized world. I don’t know what I would do without my cats…and holy smokes, I would have loved this guy.
    What an awesome picture. Hope he hangs with the kids I’ve already had to say goodbye to…and shares that beer.

  4. That reminds me of this:
    The Rainbow Bridge
    Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.
    When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge.
    There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together.
    There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.
    All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor; those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by.
    The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.
    They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent; His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.
    You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.
    Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together….
    Author unknown…

  6. R.I.P. Freddy Snowpants :(. I’m so sorry for the loss of your family’s loved one. I just got back from the vet’s just a few minutes ago, and I am still in a daze from the news that they found “a mass” in my cat’s lungs. So I think the phrase, “I feel your pain,” is appropriate here.

  7. My sympathies. My grandmother just had to put down her last two remaining German Shorthair Pointers. This is the first time in 56 years that she hasn’t had a dog in her house. For the family legacy it’s sort of sad, Kaposia Kennels is no more. But for the family itself it’s a great thing! Grandma can actually come and visit without having to worry about the dogs missing her, or not being home soon enough.
    I explained to my husband about the Rainbow Bridge. He looked at me like I was insane. But although I do not believe in “God” as he does, or heaven , I do believe in the happy hunting grounds over the rainbow bridge. Anachronistic, yes, but it’s what I believe.

  8. That sucks.
    I actually just happened to be listening to your audiobook “Happiest Days of Our Lives”, including the touching reading of “let go – a requiem for Felix the Bear”, which made me cry thinking about my own stray puppy that died a year after we got him of cancer.
    Pets are like our kids, and when they go, it can hurt a lot, so despite the emotional disconnect of not knowing your brother, I can understand his pain.
    On a side note, after I die, I am going to make sure that the only picture that people ever see of me again is me laying belly up on the couch with a bottle of Stone Brew resting on my belly. Probably the Smoked Porter though.

  9. So sorry to hear about your family’s loss. Pretty clear he was a well loved cat and probably had a great life. That’s always what I try to think about when I remember my cat who passed away.

  10. Freddy seemed like my kind of cat: curled up in a comfy chair, passed out with a bottle of some sort in tow (although in my case, it’s usually a bottle of Coke or Pepsi).
    *pours one out for Freddy Snowpants* Zip zip zip, little fella. You’ll be missed.

  11. Wil,
    Sorry to hear about your loss. 🙁 My cat died not too long ago as well, it was very hard for our family to deal with.
    A bit off topic but I have to ask you: are you going to be at Comic Con this week? I’m traveling all the way from Utah with some friends and immediately thought of you when they invited me.
    Hope you’re going this year! That would be aweshum.
    -Syntaxnixon

  14. I had a similar cat, a Mainecoon, he was the most laid back cat I ever had. I lost him to cancer myself a number of years ago, I still think of him to this day. My condolonces.

  15. Awww. That’s so sad.
    I know it would break my heart if my best friend/cat died on me. It’s the personality that grows on you and will miss when they’re gone.

  16. Farewell, Freddy. Fly free among the stars, little one, and know that you brought joy to “your people.”
    Wil, please thank Jeremy for his compassion in giving Freddy peace. It’s SOOO hard to euthanize a beloved friend but sometimes, it’s the kindest and most loving thing a person can do. I hope it’s of some comfort to know Freddy’s no longer suffering. It’s just hard to be left behind to mourn the loss. I had to do this back in 2005, and I still grieve for my Tommy. I’m glad I gave him wings, but it hurt like hell at the time, and I still miss him madly.
    Merry meet and merry part and merry meet again, Freddy.

  17. I can hear my husband “tormenting” (read: snuggling until she’s pissed off) one of our cats, and I dread the day I have to make this kind of post about any of our babies.
    I hate that their lives are so short.

  20. I and my five cats send our condolences.
    How old was Mr. Snowpants?
    Oh, and I do not recall reading any recent updates on the So. Cal. Wheaton pet menagerie. Everybody in good health and spirits?

  22. I myself believe we are all creatures of light. We bond ourselves to each other with brilliant threads, twined together for ever. These bonds are created by love and will help guide us to those we love when we no longer need these bodies of flesh.
    Not to sound crazy or anything, but I once stepped from my body and watched the threads as they flowed out from my soul. It has given me a wonderful calm in my life, because I know that we and those we love will always be connected to one another.
    We are star stuff, alight with the energy of the universe, we are eternal and can never be extinguished.

  23. Having lost another of the coolest cats in the world to renal failure a couple years ago, I totally feel for you. It was pretty devastating when Thanatos lived (well, er, something like that) up to his name. He was more of a Binaca lover than beer lover, but I can see him lifting one with Freddy, wherever they are. My condolences to you and your brother and your families.

  26. I really shouldn’t read this stuff at work. Please tell your brother I am so sorry and he has my sympathy – we lost one of our cats (Merlin) last year and just found out Merlin’s brother, Gandalf either has IBD or cancer. Gandalf’s nickname is Captain Fuzzypants because he also has snowpants. In any case, Freddy looks like Merlin’s kind of guy and they’re probably already lying next to each other, snoring away.

  27. I have no words beyond I’m so sorry and that I’ll keep your brother and all of Freddy’s friends in my thoughts. He looked like an awesome cat. Putting a pet down is hard as hell. My sympathies.

  28. Gosh, Wil… my sympathies to you, your brother, and all those who knew & loved Freddy Snowpants. If you’re any kind of human being at all (as I know the Wheatons are), pets aren’t “like” family… they ARE family. Freddy is now playing with my Sandy (canine sister), Pumpkin & Cleo (feline sisters) and all of the other non-human friends of those who have posted here who have walked across the Rainbow Bridge. ((hugs))
    -Alicia (@AliciaWag)

  29. Aww..sorry to hear about Freddy Snowpants. I’m with Alicia in the school of thought that pets do become like family members. We get attached to them, they get attached to us, and it’s really sad when you lose a “fur” family member. We just had my “fur sister” put to sleep around a month ago, and even though it was the humane thing to do, it’s still really hard on the humans in the family.
    Take today for instance. It’s my Stepdad’s birthday. Usually, I would sign the card “Love, Danyiel & Smokey.” Couldn’t do that this year, and I had to leave the room while he was opening my gift because I was already crying about the dog and he’s devastated enough as it is.
    R.I.P. Freddy Snowpants. ((hugs)) to Jeremy, you and anyone else that loved him.

  30. Aw Jeremy (and family)Dammit! I am so sorry!! It’s a horrible thing when you have to make that call, I went through the same thing in April and just today I was saying how I really really miss TJ Hooker cramming his head into my bag of Cheetos (he loved Cheetos and pudding)or waiting in the hallway to ambush me. They bring us so much joy when they are here but such exquisite pain when they have to go. I love what Jedivet had to say.

  32. So sorry to here about your brother’s cat! He looked like a cool cat. 😉 I understand about loosing precious kitties!
    We lost Tigger the Wonder Cat to a Mt Lion a couple years ago. And our replacement cat, Inky Midnight Diamond (had a white diamond patch on his chest – otherwise mostly black), disappeared a few months ago & we think he must have run afoul of a car! Just a week ago, a good friend’s cat also lost his life to a hit&run with a car.
    We haven’t gotten another cat yet despite my 6yrold daughter wanting a new kitten. I just don’t want to see any more cat death for awhile!
    Again, sorry for your own loss! I so understand!

  33. My sympathies to the bereaved.
    If humans – who like to perform genocide, ethnic cleansing, and rape as a tool of convenience, of expediency, have souls, there is no doubt in my mind that animals do – in fact, ask the great shamans who preceded the priests, animals are a part of us.
    Freddy had a good life, and if anyone would like to memorialise him and his ilk, PLEASE consider supporting any charity that prevents cats just as adorable, and great, from living hellish lives and dying screamingly brutal deaths.
    I’m on my third rescue hound, and also aware of the things I can do to make his kind happier. A few bucks when you have them to spare, will help countless Freddy-a-likes and others to be safe, secure, and free from pain or starvation.

  34. And another furry soul spirit has been released to the sky to go zip-zip-zip through the clouds.
    Much empathy and sympathy.
    karenls in pittsburgh, pa

  35. Freddy and my old girl ‘Jabba the Cat’ who passed in March after a prolonged illness as well can chill together – she’s a mensch and will look after him.

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