Memorial For Taco Belle

We learned today that a beautiful soul named Taco Belle left this world on July 23, 2020, crushing the heart of her amazing Cat Mom, Claudia. Taco Belle passed less than a week after she celebrated her 18th birthday and our hearts and thoughts are with Claudia. We thank Taco Belle’s furriends on Instagram for caring so deeply for both human and cat to let us know about this tragic loss by making a donation to Senior Cat Action Network in memory of Taco Belle.
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They say that “a picture is worth a thousand words”, but when you look at pictures of Taco Belle (and even more so when you look at pictures of Taco Belle and Claudia together), only one word comes to mind. Love. Well, maybe two words - unconditional love. Taco Belle and her Cat Mom spent 18 years together, forming a bond of love and gratitude that was, and always will be, unbreakable. A bond that only grew deeper with time.

Although we mourn human loss greatly, mourning the loss of a beloved pet is on a different level. It seems to me that the connection we share with a pet (particularly a cat) is much more intimate than the connection that we share with other humans. It is unspoken and completely unconditional. They don’t care if you are in a bad mood, or sad, or having a bad hair day. For cats, every day with their human is joy and love - nothing less. And that has a way of turning our days around, just because they are there and love us regardless of how we are feeling.

Taco Belle was exactly that kind of cat. Not only was she unabashedly beautiful, but she was her Mom’s rock when she needed support the most. Her soft fur, her gentle purr, her adoring gaze lifted her Mom up when she was dealt a very significant human loss. Taco Belle stood beside her Mom, comforting her just by her mere presence. She slept with her Mom every night giving the warmth and security needed and spoke volumes to her with just a few meows. And Claudia was always there for Taco Belle - caring for her with her IBS and helping her when she lost her vision. This is a love story that will never truly end.

But, the house is quiet and the beds are empty while Claudia’s heart is literally breaking into a thousand pieces. We cannot bring Taco Belle back, but we do want her Mom to know that Taco Belle will never be forgotten. We honor her life and the love that they shared for almost two decades. And we thank Claudia for being the most loving and caring Mom that a cat could ever ask for.

We chose 18 photos of Taco Belle from her Instagram account to represent each year of her life. She truly was stunning and we fell in love with her while reading Claudia’s posts about her and seeing these pictures. Rest easy beautiful girl…please visit your Mom in her dreams.