Kitty
I am an animal lover. Actually, I think that is an understatement. Animals are a huge part of my life. They always have been. Growing up we had hamsters, birds, fish, dogs, cats, and even a horse. As a child, I used to keep caterpillars (“Wooley Bears”) as “pets” too.
Currently we have five cats. They mean the world to me. I joke that I like them more than my own kids (who are now in their 20’s). Of course I’m joking about that, but my cats are a huge part of my life.
Recently we had to put two cats to sleep. One cat, Kitty, was put to sleep back over the summer. She was 21 years old and suffered from senility and severe Irritable Bowel Disease. She was skin and bones and had a hard time walking. We knew it was time. She’s pictured above.
About a month later, we took our 16 year old cat, Padmé, to the vet for a physical and her vaccinations. We also wanted a lump on her neck checked out. I had a dog when I was younger who developed cycts that were nothing to worry about, so we thought that is what it was. It was not. It was a tumor. The vet recommended that it be removed and biopsied. We did that. The results came back that she had an extremely rare form of cancer. It was both a carcinoma and a sarcoma. There were only a few documented cases (it’s even rarer in cats compared to dogs). Chemotherapy and radiation would only extend her life by a few months at best, not to mention all that it would do to her. Without it, she had a month at best. We chose not to have chemo or radiation, because we didn’t want her to go through all the trauma of injections and hospital stays.
The vet wasn’t kidding. The lump came back with a vengeance. Within a couple of weeks it took over half her face and neck.
During this time a brand called Petsies reached out to me about their products, and offered to make a plush toy that resembled Padmé for me. I could have done any of our cats (alive or deceased) or our dog (also deceased), but I thought a plush of Padmé would have been perfect. It would have been a great way to remember her, and because I’d miss her sitting next to me on the couch (something she did all day, every day when she got sick). I also chose Padmé because our cat Loca always looked towards her as her “mom.” Loca loved Padmé so much. So I thought a plush version of her might bring some comfort to Loca too.
Petsies was also kind enough to send me two more products – their personalized pillows, both regular shaped (like a throw pillow) and a shaped pillow (more on that later).
To have a personalized stuff plush pet created, Petsies needs a few photos of your pet. The clearer pictures the better, that way they can see every little detail of your pet (color, stripes, spots, marks…). I sent Petsies several pictures of Padmé.
The time frame for Petsies to create your pet takes about 6-8 weeks (longer during the holiday season). I’m not kidding when I say I was so anxious to receive my “surrogate Padmé” plush.
Then it arrived… and when I tell you I cried my eyes out, I truly did. Not at first, but when I put the plush on the couch next to where I sit, the tears came pouring out of my eyes.
Here are some photos of my Petsies’ Padmé plush.
I know it’s a cliché thing to say, but honestly, these pictures don’t do this plush justice. She’s so much nicer in person.
The creator was able to recreate her coloring and stripes, and even the outline around her nose. They also gave her big green eyes! Padmé had the most beautiful green eyes I’ve ever seen.
Petsies also made her overweight. Padmé was always overweight (14-16 pounds on average). We wanted to remember her that way too, since she was chubby all her life. The end of her life she had a difficult time eating due to the tumor and it’s location, so she lost a huge amount of weight. That was NOT how we wanted to remember her.
I put this plush out when I first received it on the arm of the living room chair before my husband and I went to bed. Our son doesn’t get home from work until around 1:00 AM. He said that when he walked past it, he had to do a double take. He honestly thought it was one of our cats (he didn’t realize it was Padmé), or that we adopted another adult cat.
My son really likes this plush too. Him and Padmé had a special bond. We joked that it was “his cat,” because she adored him just as much and was always by his side (until she got sick, then she never left my side).
This is a large plush too. It’s cat size! I’d say it’s the same size that Padmé was. At least it feels that way when I pet it as it sits next to me on the couch, just like Padmé did.
One day I want to get a Petsies made up for our other pets that have crossed over the Rainbow Bridge. That would be a dream come true.
Petsies also send me a throw pillow made from photos of all our pets, past and present.
You can see Padmé front and center, next to her deceased “brother” Anakin (Star Wars fans will recognize their names).
Top left to R\right: Maisey Boo (our newest addition), Callie, Loca and Emma.
Middle left to right: Bella, Padmé, Anakin and Kitty.
Bottom left to right: Velcro, Espn, Bear and Pixie.
Here are a few more photos.
Loca
Bella
Emma
Velcro
My hand can be seen in some of the pictures because I was holding it to get a closer picture, and it was not easy.
This pillow is SO SOFT – cuddly soft if you ask me. I want to rest my head on it, but I also don’t want to ruin it. I love to look at it. I keep it on the couch, next to my Padmé plush. I LOVE seeing all my “furbabies” together, even if some of them have been “gone” for year. Oh how I miss them! This pillow is a wonderful way to memorialize them and keep them next to me forever.
As you know, not all pets are furry and four legs. There are other pets too – birds, turtles, fish, lizards, snakes. That doesn’t mean that they can’t be remembered in a special way too.
We have a giant Goldfish named Fishy. We won him at the country fair 13 years ago (maybe 14 now). It was one of those games where you get a fish if the ping-pong ball lands in the tiny fish bowl. We won seven that day, but only Fishy survived. We ended up getting him a big tank and a friend (Wishy), but Wishy only lived about three years. Since then it’s just been Fishy in the tank. We tried getting him friends, but he ends up eating them.
He’s no longer a tiny Goldfish. He’s HUGE. He’s about 7″ long (if not longer). He’s in a 20 gallon tank, but I still think that he needs a bigger tank.
I adore Fishy, and he likes me too. He gets excited when he sees me (I talk to him and feed him) and will splash when he wants attention or food.
So how can I get something special to remember him by? How about a shaped pillow from Petsies. They even sent me a pillow of him. How cute!
I should mention that Fishy “lost” his orange color years ago (we can’t figure out why), so now he’s a silver-white color. The only thing left is a small dot, which is on the pillow version of him too. I love it!
Since my photos are not that great (I am horrible with indoor photos… I’m a great outdoor photographer), here are some photos from the Petsies website to give you a better idea of their products.
I make no claim to the above photos. I just found them on Google under a Petsies search to show you how their products look (better photos than mine).
Petsies sells other personalized pet products, made from photos of your furry or non-furry friend including;
- Magnets
- Blankets
- Socks
- Pajamas
- Bobblehead Figures
- Face Masks
- Keychains
- Ornaments
- Renaissance Blankets (your pet reimaged as a renaissance individual).
I am not sure of the creation and ship times of the other products (I can only imagine that some might ship out quicker than others), so I am not sure if there is time to order and receive before Christmas. You’ll have to reach out to Petsies customer service to find out.
Petsies even has a sister company, Budsies, where they create plush toys based on your child’s drawing. I think this is a fabulous idea! If I can get a copy of my son’s “meat truck” that he drew when he was little, I would love to get that made into a pillow because he’s now drivers a tractor trailer. I think he would appreciate that.
Budsies also sells pesonalize dolls and puppets made to look like you or anyone you’d like (imagine playing with a doll that is made to look exactly like you? How cool!).
You can learn more about Budsies and all they have to offer at Budsies.com.
To learn more about Petsies, visit MyPetsies.com. You can also visit Petsies on social media. All of their links are found on the bottom of their website. There you can see even more wonderful examples of their work.
I am forever, or should I say “furever,” grateful that Petsies provided me with this opportunity. I will forever cherish my pillow and plush “Paddy” (one of her nicknames). One day I’ll get more plush made up of my other pets, that way I can always pet and snuggle them.
Kimberly
*I received free product samples in order to do this review. There was no compensation. The opinions expressed are my own and not influenced in any way.
