Cleo Mader  

April  2006 – November 2019

We found Cleo along with 8 littermates and her injured Mother in the backwoods of Maine.

I was working as a veterinary technician at the time, so I took her and her family into work for care. We stitched up her mother and all the kittens received testing and a check-up. 

Cleo stood out as the only purring kitten with a totally black mask. I instantly fell in love with her and claimed her as my own, along with her brother- a tuxedo cat, Elmo!  

We moved back to Pittsburgh shortly afterward and poor Elmo got out of the house and, unfortunately, lost.  Cleo thrived and we were never able to keep her completely indoor. She had a wonderful temperament as a Calico, and an outgoing personality, and a real lap cat.  She was known as our “healer kitty”, as she always knew when someone wasn’t feeling well and would curl up on top wherever you were ailing and go to work making you feel better!

Through the years her antics and amazing presence made her very special to us.  She had many close calls throughout the years. She was lost in the storm of 2010 for 5 days and came home smelling like a cherry cigar! Several years later she disappeared in the summer of 2017, and after posting flyers, we found her after 17 days, about a mile away.  Luckily, she wasn’t injured and was back to her old self in no time. 

Cleo finally succumbed to a bladder tumor this past November, at age 13. We decided to make a real grave for her on our farm to honor her. 

Cleo will be missed and never forgotten as the most special kitty that we have ever had ☺ 

Carla Mader