The Winer family is currently me and two fabulous cats.

My friend Mark Weiss took this beautiful photo of my previous cat Bear:

Bear is a truly great cat. He cracks me continually up.

Meow!

Bear is so incredibly innocent, docile, and sweet. With no ego, he has no idea how cool he is.

On September 30, 2009 Bear passed away peacefully at the age of 18. He
lived a very good life filled with endless love and thousands of kisses!

My friend Mike Rodericks is an amazing professional artist,
as you can see in this 2008 painting of Ethan and Bear:

This is Grayson. He was a great kitty, very funny, with a huge personality. We got him
at the DAWS animal shelter in December 2009, but he was very old and lived for only
three months here. He died in his sleep on February 22, 2010. Grayson's passing was
very sad for us, but I'm pleased to have given him the home - and love - he deserved
for his final days. Fortunately, I had some video clips and made THIS funny movie.
You can see more of Grayson in this beautiful DAWS video promo.

Noah is another "special needs" kitty I found at DAWS. Noah has FIV (Feline AIDS), but
is otherwise healthy. He was about 4 or 5 years old when I got him in 2010, and he's the
sweetest angel ever. Noah is the most agreeable cat you'll ever meet, and he loves to be
petted and kissed. He purrs all the time. He's also a very big boy! Not fat, but a very large
frame and large paws. And huge eyes! He's also a climber as you can see in the photos.
The higher the object, the more he enjoys jumping onto it.

On September 15, 2013 Noah suffered a stroke brought on by congestive
heart failure, due in part to his FIV. He wasn't in any pain, but he lost the use
of his hind legs. The doctor at the emergency clinic said he had little chance
of recovering, and would surely have another stroke soon. So with great
sadness we had Noah put to sleep. Noah, you were a fabulous kitty!

The best way to get over the loss of a pet is to get another pet! So the next
day we went to the local shelter and brought home two new friends. Annie was
probably born around 2000, and she's the cutest little girl in the world. Her
right eye is bronze and her left eye is blue! Emma was born November 2004,
and she's an adorable little fatty-pie with special needs. She purrs so loudly
it wakes us up at night, and she loves to nibble fingers and even noses!

Annie's eyes are different colors.	Emma stalks the front foyer.

In late May, 2016 we learned that Annie had a cancerous tumor choking her intestine. Dr. Belden at the
New Milford Animal Hospital performed heroic surgery lasting more than two hours, and she seemed
to recover quickly! But only a few weeks later on June 13 our beloved little darling succumbed to her
illness. Annie was a very old lady, and she had a fabulous last 2-1/2 years here with us. Then later that
same year Emma's pancreas began failing. With Dr. Belden's help she stayed alive and comfortable for
several more years, but we finally had to say goodbye March 21, 2020. I'll always love you darling Emma!

After Annie died we got not one, but two kittens. It seemed a kitten would be less threatening
to Emma, which turned out to be true. Then a friend suggested we should get two, or the one kitten will drive
older Emma nuts, which was also true. So a week later we got Bella. They are both over the top amazing!
And they were instant friends, even though they came from different shelters and never saw each other before.
They are both incredibly sweet, and very grateful to have a loving home. Sadly, one day in June 2024 Lily
went out and never came back. Probably eaten by a coyote. Lily had a huge personality, as you can see in
THIS video where she "helps" play pinball.

Lily is tiny but feisty (born April 25, 2016).	Bella is too sweet for words (born April 30, 2016).

Here are my girls all grown up:

Two years later I took in a stray kitty who had been outside in our neighborhood for more than a year.
I thought maybe he belonged to someone, so I put up signs. No response. I realized he was homeless
when I saw him outside at all hours in the middle of the night. So I started feeding him. It took several
months to win him over and gain his trust, but now he's inside the house and doing great. In the first
year he went from an 11 pound waif to a very well-fed 17 pound monster. I have to say, I never expected
I'd ever have four cats! Mr. Tab Hunter (AKA "The Tabster") is a fabulous cat - very sociable! And he's
a real bad-ass tough guy. Until he hears the vacuum cleaner. Or the doorbell:

My parents are no longer alive, but they were wonderful
people and a hugely positive influence on me.

Frank and Roz Winer Apr. 4, 1917 - Feb. 17, 1977 and Feb. 17, 1916 - Dec. 26, 1997

Entire contents of this web site Copyright © 1997- by Ethan Winer. All rights reserved.