He passed away almost 4 years to the day after his kitty niece Lexi passed away. Lexi was our other indoor kitty. She passed away October 8, 2022 from HCM at the age of 4 years 3 months. Her memorial is here at the Rainbow bridge website. For the last few weeks, Simon had been spending more time downstairs, eating his breakfast there and sleeping on the bed. He slept right next to me nearly every night for the last couple of weeks, something he rarely did. When he slept downstairs, he usually slept on a bin at the foot of the bed. I wonder if he wasn't feeling well, and the security and comfort of the basement where he grew up as a kitten brought him some comfort.

Simon came to us through an abandoned kitty we had been looking after. This abandoned kitty was left behind by her family when they moved away the autumn of 2017. She made her way to our house during that winter. The next summer she had a litter of four. We kept one who became Simon and took the other 3 to a non-kill shelter. I was able to catch her later in the summer and had her spayed. She is still with us at the time of this memorial writing and lives in the garage with another abandoned kitty we look after. This other abandoned kitty is where Lexi came from.

Simon had a normal indoor kitty life. He grew up with Lexi. They were the same age and have been with us since they were very young kittens. As a kitten we spent many hours playing with Simon every day for the first six months of his life. We wanted to make a strong connection with him. At six months we had him neutered and the play time stopped while he healed. After healing, his play time started again. He used to love to chase his toys when we threw them; he would retrieve them and do it over and over again. We played this game for years. His favorite toys were some knitted fish, a green mouse, and an orange fish.

Even though he was an indoor kitty, he was able to use his cat instincts and catch mice. During the winter months a mouse or two would find their way into the basement; between Simon and Lexi they didn't last long. In the last few years of his life, my wife and stepson started taking him into the back yard to explore. He seemed to enjoy this very much.

Simon was a big boy. At the time of his passing, he was 26 pounds. The veterinarian at the emergency clinic asked if he had some Main Coon in him due to his size. I told her I didn't know. He was just a big boy. He was our first male kitty. He was a very good boy, and we are going to miss him very, very much. He was our "bestest boy". We love you Simon, and hope to see you when we pass over into eternity. We trust you are in God's keeping now and reunited with Lexi.

October 11, 2026. Simon's earthly remains came home to us today.

Please also visit Betta, Lexi, Pete, Goofy Bird, and Knibbles and Smokey.