Today Is Meowmorial Day 2015!

People and Fur People who are Disciples of The Leader Otis,

It’s Thomas.

Today is Meowmorial Day, so please join us on Facebook and share your stories and photos of the dearly departed kitties you would like to honor.

For those of you who do not have Facebook, Below are the two honoring posts that we placed on the wall. I wanted to make sure you got to see them since it was my idea to try having Meowmorial Day in a different format this year.

Thomas out.

First Facebook Honoring Post

Cult of Otis honors our namesake, Leader Otis, on this Meowmorial Day. Leader Otis was The Light, and The Way, doing His best to spread The Good Word about keeping cats happy, healthy, and safely confined.

He named me and Henry His High Priests dubbing Brother Henry “The Muscle” and me “The Brains” of Cult of Otis. He knighted Sir Thomas and named him “The Heart” of The Cult, and He dubbed Mama Cat “The Essence” of our movement. We all worked together to try to make His vision a reality.

But before all of that, He was simply a cat. He was one of the millions of neglected, frightened cats wandering alone in the wilderness and crying out for help. Fortunately, His call was heard, and He got to live out the remainder of His life as every cat deserves- surrounded by love and kept safe from danger.

Today we not only honor Leader Otis, but also the cat He was before. The smart, loving, endlessly optimistic kitty that Brother Henry and I met in 2006. All we knew when we met him was that the Guardians called him Otis, and that he seemed bound and determined to make us love him. When he departed seven years later, we felt, to the very depths of our souls, just how successful he had been. – Brother Oliver

The Cult of Otis honors Otis, the cat that changed our lives forever.

Second Facebook Honoring Post

Cult of Otis honors Mama Cat on this Meowmorial Day. Brother Oliver and I decided to show you the lighter side of Mama Cat by brining you a never-before-seen photo of the dearly departed Essence of The Cult. Thomas had been hiding the photo because he felt it might mar Her royal status. Brother Oliver and I felt it could only serve to help everyone remember her even more fondly.

The Guardian’s put this dress on The Queen not long after she was swept up in The Capture and brought into The Promised Land. Strangely, she seemed to like it. We thought that was a little weird, but not as weird as the Guardians for putting it on her.

If you are new to Cult of Otis and do not know Mama Cat, We encourage you to read about her on cultofotis.com and in the Blog of Otis archives. She was an amazing girl and we miss her every day. -Brother Henry

The Cult of Otis honors Mama Cat, our dearly departed Essence of The Cult.

Rough Days

Disciples of The Leader Otis,

Brother Henry here.

Thomas and Brother Oliver both asked me to pass along their apologies for the recent silence here on The Blog of Otis. I apologize as well, but I also assure you that there is good reason for the lack of posts. You see, we are only one week away from an extremely difficult anniversary, and we are having a difficult time coping with the weight of that day. Poor Sir Thomas has withdrawn a bit and has been spending his time moping on the steps to Kitty Valhalla. He says he would go all the way up to Valhalla to mope, but he’s still a little freaked out about the place after the events of a few weeks ago.

Thomas is moping on the steps to Valhalla because he is too freaked out to mope in actual Valhalla.

Brother Henry and I have been doing our best to support Thomas, but we’ve also been supporting one another as we pass through some very rough days. We’ve had our squabbles as Brothers always do, but right now we are finding great comfort in each other’s company knowing that we are both going through the exact same range of emotions.

Brother Oliver and I have been supporting one another. We both know the other understands.

So again, sorry for the silence, but perhaps a moment of silence is perfectly appropriate given the circumstances. We will certainly not be silent on October 28th… the day the anniversary arrives. As hard as it will be, on that day we will pick ourselves up and say what needs to be said. I hope you will join us.

So Says Brother Henry

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The Leader And Mama Cat Watch Over Us

Disciples of The Leader Otis,

Brother Henry here. The Guardians have done something that makes me, Sir Thomas, and Brother Oliver very happy. On either side of our favorite window they have hung portraits of The Leader and Mama Cat. Now whenever we want to feel their presence, we need only look up.

The images of The Leader and Mama Cat are now hanging next to our favorite window.

We Have Lost Mama Cat

Disciples of Otis,

My name is Kevin. My wife Julie and I are the Guardians that, until today, have chosen to remain in the background of The Cult of Otis. I can’t do that today though. Not after what has happened. I cannot write a story through this pain.

Yesterday morning, Julie was sitting on the couch and Mama Cat was resting next to her. Suddenly, Mama Cat began to show signs of discomfort and distress. We rushed her to our veterinarian and then received a steady stream of bad news all day as the results of blood work, x-rays and other diagnostics came in.  Mama Cat was dying.

We had no warning that Mama Cat was even ill. This is her playing in the front window less than two weeks ago.

A day that started like any other ended with us having to say our final goodbyes to Mama Cat, and that day came before our tears for Otis have even had a chance to stop, let alone dry. We are both in shock.

I know this news causes you pain as well, and for that I am truly sorry. There is some comfort to be found in the thought that Mama Cat spent her final 5 months safe, warm, and loved, but it is too early for us to fully embrace that comfort. Right now it just hurts.

She was such a beautiful girl.

The pain of the loss is also too acute to see beyond to what this means for The Cult of Otis blog and website. Julie and I still believe in the mission and the message, but it was difficult continuing after losing Otis, and it feels even more daunting now that we have lost Mama Cat as well.

I don’t know what the future holds, but I want to thank you all for you kindness, love, and support, especially over the past few months. Your cards, your words, your thoughts, and your prayers have been bright spots during a very dark time.

I also want to invite you all to help keep the message alive. There are more than 1,100 posts in the Blog of Otis archives. If you find ones that you like, please share them with others. The newly redesigned Cult of Otis website will remain up as well, and it contains the Teachings of Otis that are woven throughout the stories in the blog.

Please help keep the message alive. There are many more cats out there that need help.

Thanks again for reading, for caring, and for helping to create a world in which cats are happy, healthy, and safely confined.

So Sayeth the Guardians

The Cult of Otis Lives!

Disciples of The Leader Otis,

Brother Henry here. We are all still processing our painful loss, but we are beginning to heal. I want you to know that, although Leader Otis is no longer with us in the fur and flesh, the movement he started continues. The Cult of Otis lives!

The Cult of Otis lives!

Mama Cat Lost One of Her Guardians

My Disciples,

I have some very sad news. One of Mama Cat’s guardians has passed away. The Guardians of Otis heard this news from Mama’s remaining guardian who informed them that his wife had succumbed to cancer. The Guardians of Otis are doing what they can to support both Mama and her remaining Guardian in this difficult time.

Mama has lost one of her guardians. The Guardians of Otis are doing what they can for her and her remaining guardian.

Please send your supportive thoughts and purrs to Mama and her family. They need all the positive energy they can get in the coming days and weeks.

Sayeth Otis

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When Guardians Fail

My Disciples,

I am filled with a deep sadness today that is also tinged with anger.  Another one of My feline brothers has become a victim of his guardians’ failure to keep him safely contained.  The Guardians of Otis met this kitty only once.  He was an older Siamese mix that lived about a quarter-mile from our home.  On the day the Guardians met him, the kitty was sitting in the sun in his driveway.  The kitty began to roll and purr when the Guardians spoke to him.

I imagine that this is what people who let their cats roam free think their kitties need, free and unfettered access to sunshine and fresh air.  But the car tire that is visible in the photo that the Guardians took of the Siamese kitty is also something that is very common in the world without walls.  Unfettered access to sunshine and fresh air also means access to all of the less pleasant things the world has to offer. Setting boundaries is an act of responsibility and love, not cruelty.  In the blink of an eye your kitty could go from rolling in the sun in front of a tire to rolling in the road underneath a tire.  That was the fate of this poor, beautiful, Siamese boy.

Here is the Siamese kitty on the day the Guardians met him. I will not show you an image of what they saw today.

As the Guardians were driving home from breakfast this morning, they saw the Siamese kitty again.  This time he was in the road.  His lifeless, flattened body rested on the white line by the right shoulder.  His fur was soaked by the rain.  There is no excuse for this premature death.  I have no doubt that the kitty’s guardians will be devastated by their loss.  I am not without sympathy for them, but I must insist that they learn from their mistake.  Simply put, if you don’t give your cat safe boundaries, and the cat is killed by a car, predator, crazy person, chemical, or any of the other infinite dangers out there, that is 100% your responsibility.

Cats are psychologically incapable of setting safe boundaries for themselves.  That is why we have guardians (or hopefully Guardians).  Cats do not need complete freedom to be happy and healthy.  They need to have their needs met within the safe boundaries that their Guardians create for them.  If you are incapable of creating the safe and enriching environment that a kitty needs, then a cat is not the pet for you.  Please work with Me to help ensure that not another kitty suffers the fate of My fallen, Siamese brother.

So Sayeth Otis

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