05/08/2026
Cat - Red 1’s humans here. We really don’t know how to write this coming exactly a week after the loss of Smokey Bob but Ollie crossed over the Rainbow Bridge in the early hours of this morning. He passed peacefully which is a blessing. Ollie was only 10 years old & had been with us from age 10 weeks – he should have had more years ahead of him. Many of you will know that some time ago he had a seizure & although he bounced back from it as well as could be expected he then held his head at an angle, viewing the world at a 45 degrees & earning the title of Captain Wobbly. It certainly didn’t curb his zest for life although a second series of seizures a few weeks ago slowed him down. In consultation with our vets (whose opinions we trust) it was decided that a series of possible tests would be expensive & the anticipated results would not alter how he lived his life or any possible treatment. Something was obviously wrong yesterday & we think we both knew that Ollie’s time with us all was drawing to a close & the dreaded trip to the vet would in all likelihood be happening today. Ollie – a creature of habit – had his bed on top of the hifi unit in the dining room & always ate there. Even at teatime yesterday he refused to eat anywhere else, the Daddy lifting him up. Unable to find him at bedtime, he was eventually found curled up in the kitty tower at the side of the bed. Goodness knows how he had manged to jump down & get there but that’s Ollie for you. He died next to his Daddy which is what he wanted. Ollie’s party piece was to bestow kitten kisses - & never just the odd one or two. His record, sitting on the Daddy’s lap, was 67 without a pause. Here on Kittybook he became known as Ollie Cat – Red 1, leader of the RAF Aerobatic Display Team the Red Arrows, as he once fell asleep next to one of the Daddy’s models of a Red Arrows Hawk aircraft. His fur colouring made him the purrfect candidate & we know many of you enjoyed this persona & his many adventures & escapades. With so many friends & furiends in America it seems fitting that his final outing with the team was displaying as part of the America 250 celebrations. A classy end for a classy kitty. He earned his pilot’s wings & now he has his angel wings.
Lots of love from Ollie’s humans & lots of kitten kisses from Ollie Cat ###
