In Loving Memory of Bagheera

Bagheera

March 29, 1995 to July 23, 2014

It is with a  heavy heart we share the news that Bagheera died peacefully in his sleep while we were at work yesterday. He was 19.

Bagheera was our first pet, named for the panther in the Jungle Book, my favourite Disney movie. He was a slight terror as a kitten, climbing the curtains, opening the freezer to steal bread, and there was the time he ate a magnet and nearly died. His favourite game in his young years was stick. We had a round dining room table and we would run the stick around the edge of the table in circles until he would get so dizzy he would fall over. His worst habit was the nose bite. If he loved you he would bite your nose, and he would often do it in a sneaky way so you couldn't block him, like when you were sleeping. He had the loudest purr I have ever heard. He once caught a mouse in our house and was upset I wasn't thrilled with the present.

During his middle years, he was not a happy cat. He disliked our little dogs who chased him. However,  he had been very happy the past few years, especially since the move to the country. He spent many an hour lounging in a favourite chair in the sun. He loved the time we allowed him to spend outside. While he was getting old and slowing down, we had no indication that it was his time, but are grateful he went peacefully in one of his favourite sleeping places. May we all be as lucky to end rich lives full of love so peacefully.

Dear Bagheera,

We didn't have a chance to formally say goodbye. Thank you for being such a great, if not moody and bossy, pack member for 19 years. You will always be remembered, and not just because we all have scars from your claws, but because you were such a character. Cranky one moment, happy the next, always letting us know that it was your house and you could decide at any moment to kill us in our sleep. Thanks for keeping us all in line.

We will miss you.

Your loyal subjects