My kitty meant so much to me as many other with an animal companion will concur.  I mean as I write this on one of his last days in an attempt to deal with the sadness, I wanted to share with you how wonderful he has been since becoming his guardian.  I received my kitty while I was dating a Slovenian woman prior to Reena.  She had a big yard with lots of outdoor cats and one of them was pregnant, so I decided to take one as they were looking to sell them all.  Out of all of the cats, he was the only all-black kitty as well as acted a little different than the rest of his brothers and sisters.  He has immediately my kitty.
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I saw him grow-up from far for the first few months of this life in the backyard of this 2-acre lot just outside of Mississauga and when we brought him to my apartment in the middle of the Annex in Toronto, a new life had begun for me.  Sadly, the relationship with this long-term girlfriend suddenly ended shortly for unrelated reasons.  Of course, the kitty remained with me as we developed a special bond in the short time together and I wasn’t going to be one of those dads.
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Since he was born on September 11, 2001, I initially taught of naming him “Crash” but eventually after continually calling him “buddy,” the name stick.  I was always a homebody where I needed to spend time at home in order to de-contract from my exhausting workday.  I spend a lot of my socializing time during normal hours of work, so during the evenings, I spent time at home relaxing, hanging out with my kitty while trying to become the next up-and-coming web designer.
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He actively spent time on my lap during all of my online classes that I was taking, back in the day, for technical writing, web design and graphic design as well as hours warming my lap while playing various video games on my PC.  He always came at interesting times to provide me with a much-needed break, distraction or idea.  I still remember the days where he was so small that he would sleep on my stomach.  That ended after a few days as he grew into a large, not fat, kitty.  He would be much larger than most of our friends’ small dogs.  He was very talkative, maybe ‘cuz I used to brainstorm ideas out loud and he was part of my process.
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My kitty was blessed with having lived in various areas of Toronto including: the Toronto Annex; St.Clair/Bathurst; St, Clair/Dufferin and then Yonge/St. Clair.  Afterwards, we moved to Windsor, ON before finally arriving in Hamilton, ON in 2014.  He’s honestly lived in 10-12 different homes across Ontario and even spent an entire summer living the luxury life in a five-star hotel along with his guardians.  Trust me when I tell you that this kitty has plenty of stories to share.
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But, honestly, he mostly grew up in Windsor, ON, since Reena and I lived there for 10 years.  Reena Rampersad became his official mother when we started dating in Toronto and he honestly couldn’t have been blessed with a better mother; one who truly adores cats and has defended her cat against various enemies.  While living a life as a property manager for six properties that we owned across Windsor and Detroit, my kitty had a 1-acre yard in the middle of Downtown Windsor where he would spend his summer days sleeping in the basement and spending his evenings hiding in the summer grass or off on some adventure until the following morning.  He would be at my window to wake me up and let him into the office for breakfast. 
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He had great communications skills with the local raccoons and skunks, but had real issues with any other cat or kitty that ventured in his eye sight.  I have seriously seen my kitty hang out, interact and play with raccoons and skunks in both the Annex when he was a kitten and frequently in Windsor where he matured into the kitty that he is.  He would constantly chase away any cat that venture on the property without any discrimination.  We tried to get him to be nice to other kitties, but it just wasn’t happening.
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After moving to Hamilton, ON, we knew that our kitty would be retiring here.  We both hoped that we had more time with him, but a malignant tumour showed up in his mouth to interfere with our time together.  In the close-to 20 years together, my kitty has been my rock by providing me with the best support that I could ask for.  His daily reminders kept me happy, disciplined, soft and sensitive to others.  As someone who is single, lives alone with few friends and an immediate family that lives on the side of the country, he has acted as a genuine member of my immediate family and have relied on him for emotional balance, support and stability.  The rituals that I complete daily to accommodate my animal friend is done to see him smile, to see him enjoy that sunshine on his face, to enjoy that treat as well as any other possible things you may do to a child.
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The experiences that I’ve had with him have impacted me tremendously and I would say that I’ve become a better person becomes of him and my love for him.  The hardest part for me is ensuring that he isn’t suffering at all.  I want to remain completely selfless and allow him to transition to the next world when his time is right.  In the perfect world, I would have loved to remain his guardian until he passed away in his sleep peacefully.  Rest assured that I pamper my kitty as much as possible and he has lived a very privileged life.  I certainly don’t want to take away any part of his life, so I begging that the universe reveals that ideal moment for this transition.  I love you buddy and thank you for being part of my life.