RIP Blackavar

Yesterday, one of the Guelph family cats, Blackavar, passed away. It was expected and peaceful. He was at least 18 years old.  He'd had some health issues leading up to now. About a year prior, he suddenly lost the use of his back legs. He was brought to the vet and they determined that he'd thrown his back out and that he was arthritic with bone spurs. When they heard what his age was, they were pessimistic but they prescribed him some painkillers. Surprisingly, he regained the use of his limbs and continued to live a seemingly content lifestyle. Since then, his senses deteriorated, and my mother described him as "Confused but still happy". 

On his last day, I was told that he was low on energy and appetite. If you've ever seen a cat pass, you might understand how apparent it is that they're time is running out. Even if they're still active, you get the sense that they have one foot into another world.

He hugged onto my brother's leg, and let himself be cradled and was purring. His meow softened. Eventually, he just curled up and stopped moving.

I remember when we first got him. My friend Josh knew someone who'd had a litter of barn kittens and was looking to adopt them out. We took one, because we wanted a kitten to keep our current cat, Penny, company after her friend Booshy had passed.

We weren't prepared for the difficulties of introducing the two of them. Penny, who we'd known to be fairly docile, immediately attacked the new kitten and we had to separate them. Eventually they did become friends, often curling up next to each other like a Yin-Yang symbol. Blackavar being the darker Yin, and Penny being the lighter Yang.

But before they learned to get along, me and Mom had to take turns sleeping in the same room as the new kitten. It was very difficult to get any rest because of how high-energy he was. I remember him pouncing on my throat with all his weight on his front paws to wake me up.

Eventually we named him Blackavar. I'm responsible for that. I've never been good at coming up with names, but I'm good at being temporarily excited by my own ideas, and convincing people to go along. The reason for the name was because my favourite rabbit in the novel Watership Down was named Blackavar. Later on, we'd get a rabbit and I'd convince people to name him Moss. So we had a cat named after a rabbit, and a rabbit named after a plant. Still later, we adopted a fluffy black cat named Thor. So now Blackavar, a grey-and-black tabby, was named after a shade that he wasn't even the most prominently coloured in.

When he was young, I'd wrestle with him and pretend to let him win. I attributed this partially to how egoistic he got later in life.

All in all, he was with the family through three moves. He saw Penny and Luna pass. He saw Luna, Thor, and Cassidy be adopted. In the time that he was alive, I graduated highschool, attended the Ways2Work program, did Katimavik and Canada World Youth, worked in eleven factories, got accepted into and graduated from Human Services Foundations and Social Services. I lived in the college residence and student housing with 20 different roommates overall. I was reacquainted with my father and fell out with him. My mother was diagnosed with Hepatitus C and recovered. I lived in three different places after graduating college, with five different roommates. I worked as a Summer Program Leader, an Independent Facilitator, a Direct Support Worker, a Safe Management Instructor and a Child and Youth Worker, and eventually got work where I am now. I met Lee-Anne, moved in with her, and got engaged.

Thor is a year older than Blackavar, but we adopted him when he was six. I think Blackavar holds the record for having been with us through the most life events. Rest In Peace, old friend.