When I was growing up we couldn’t have a cat or a dog. My mother didn’t like them.
My father liked birds and he raised parakeets, he kept them in the basement because my
mother was terrified of birds.
He also had fish and when he married off half his
children he made one bedroom his fish room.
What pets I had while married were because my husband or daughter wanted them.
I had one pet a parakeet named Anne who didn’t live very long.
We had a Minor bird, who whistled and said Charlie, that was his name. They are filthy
birds and I couldn’t wait to get rid of him. We had a great dane named Blue who was not
house broken, what a joy that was.
We had a snapping turtle and we had fish tanks. All
these pets my husband brought home and never took care of them.
We had gerbils and hamsters. I didn’t like them but my daughter did. We had a great dane
named Sam who was a great dog. He died when my husband came home drunk at 11pm and took the
dog out with him to show off. My husband flipped the van he was driving and Sam got out and
ran. We found him dead on the side of the highway the next day.
The last pet we had was
Rags, a terrier, poodle mix.
When I moved down south to my daughters, she had 3 dogs and 15 birds.*sigh*
So although I don’t like animals in the house, I have lived with them most of my life, but
we never had a cat.
I don’t like cats, and that probably comes from when I lived in the Bronx and I kept
trying to put the stray cats in my doll carriage and pretend they were my babies.
They didn’t go along with my idea and would scratch the hell out of me.
Thanks to Katrina I move back to New York and live with my brother and his family.
My brother has a fish room in the basement and they have a cat, Trouble.
It took me a few weeks just to give him a little pat on the head.
My brother and nephews play with him and they have come away with some nasty scratches.
Trouble always wins.
But I like Trouble. When something smokes in the oven, he meows and meows and tries to get us to go to the basement. I know if a fire ever starts here, he will wake us.
I stepped on his tail once and he hissed at me like a snake. When my brother is out I know when he is near home because the cat sits by the door to greet him.
Although they bought him all kinds of cat beds, Trouble likes to sleep with them at night.
If there is a cardboard box in the house, he will lay in that during the day.
Would I ever own a cat? I don’t think so, but thanks to Trouble, I like them a lot more.
Hi Rita,
This is an interesting post about all the animals in your life. I like cats a lot. If I could make a suggestion – I know that Trouble would appreciate it if you would start to call him by a different name, one that is more worthy of him, like er, well, you\’ll think of something. Don\’t pick a name that has an "s," "z" or soft "c" sound. These are not good for cats because when you use their name it sounds like you are hissing at them (s-s-s-s-s), the ultimate in rude cat language. I believe Trouble will sense that you are trying to improve his lot, unless of course, he is a real cool cat and likes to think of himself as trouble.
~Truly
Cats are evil manipulative little creatures that take over your life…. I had a cat named Ralph who was a great cat and kept to himself and like to sleep on my back at night…. then when I started dating Big D he freaked and became devil kitty….. he would shred things and pee all over Big D\’s clothing…. I sure hope Ralph likes his new home and from now on I will still with my doggies.
Smiling…it only takes one cat who is a character to turn the heart of someone who hates them….
I was like you with cats, hated them with a passion. But volunteered at the human society in the town I use to live in and there was this cat (whom I now call Tommy, the one I shaved this spring) He was like a dog…when you opened his cage he would shove his head out at you in a semi-head butt and as you scratched his neck he would turn sideways and press into your hand as it scratched…
he loved dogs and as I cleaned his cage would go to the most pathetically abused ones of the bunch and play with them, or curl up beside down and out dogs. He changed my heart, I took him home, adapted to him. My kids loved him, the dog loved him and even my \’grown up on a working farm\’ husband began to love him so that now I don\’t think I could handle life with out his dogginess
Trouble sounds like a character unto himself, to be respected and given space but still a cool guy….thanks Rita
Blessings, Graciously