2008 to February 16, 2022
Sleepy was born under a shed in Mechanicsville, VA in early 2008. He played in the woods with his mom and brothers for three months while the owners of the shed fed and socialized the kittens. Sleepy, the runt of the litter, seemed to always be sleeping more than his brothers, hence his name! Sleepy and some of his brothers eventually came to live at an apartment on Grace Street along with a bunch of animals already living there, including a dog, a guinea pig, and two cats. His brothers were quickly adopted, and Sleepy stayed with his human.
He was a special being: a curious and mischievous kitten and an affectionate, tolerant, and sweet adult cat in his later years. He went on many road trips and enjoyed lots of adventures, including camping with his human.
Sleepy lived in a few different homes, but one place had a large yard that he loved. He would lay in the sun, munch on grass, sharpen his claws on an old log, and hide under the foliage. He even had a Pitbull companion who would try to help him hunt and provide warmth during naps – but Sleepy only did this when he thought his human wasn’t looking.
When he first moved to the home with the yard he loved, he escaped and was missing for 5 awful weeks. His human was distraught and hung huge neon “missing” signs in the neighborhood, put up motion cameras in the yard, and checked all of the shelters and online adds for found cats. She even planned to have a blood hound come to track him down! She was never going to stop looking for her dear companion. Fortunately, Sleepy was found by a neighbor, way up high up in their tree. He had survived 5 weeks in the “wild” in the rain and the cold; he was skinny, bedraggled but otherwise OK. He never shared all that happened during that time, but his human was very grateful to have him back home.
Everyone he met remarked that he was a special cat. He was fearless, brave, and oh so confident – he was not a cat who hid when visitors arrived. He was king of his castle and he knew it!
He eventually moved with his human to live with her family. At his new residence, Sleepy loved to go on walks and he spent most days napping blissfully and providing comfort to his humans. He became sick and his humans discovered he was dying from cancer. His human did what she could to make him comfortable. He was dignified and calm until he died peacefully overnight while his human slept beside him. She loved and revered him. He was her constant companion and comfort and he is missed profoundly by his family.