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I love cats because they remind me of myself - independent and not needy. And they don't stink - at least mine didn't.
My parents were both from farming families, and dogs just were not "house pets" for them, dogs were working animals they were smelly, dirty and stayed outside. So we always had cats - at one point we each had one (3 siblings) but none were allowed on the main floor, they had to stay in the basement "rec room" (which was fine as that's where we always hung out anyway. Mine had kittens, and my dad used to sit on the basement steps and play with them. Eventually we got a Siamese, and when I moved out at 23, she went with me. She didn't really like other people but she was a sweetheart to me.
I got my last cat when my son was 7, but I had to have her put down at 7 years old - her kidneys failed. She was a sweetie. As much as I loved and missed her, that was my last pet. I don't have the desire or time to clean up after them anymore. But I love playing with other peoples cats LOL.
There are not many good stories in my early life about cats...not in the sense that I had negative experiences with them, just that I saw cats not being given good care necessarily. The two we had when I was growing up...I remember disgusting and rarely cleaned litter boxes and horrific flea infestations. I loved the cats, but I was allergic to them. I didn't care. That wasn't the cats' fault. Some other situations I saw were far worse. For many years I lived with no pets as an adult, because I wanted to be sure that if/when I ever got one, it would get a binding commitment for the best possible care for the whole of its life with me. I wouldn't bring a creature into my life until I felt confident of my ability to do that.
I was always more of a cat person than a dog person though. I was attacked by dogs on multiple occasions as a kid, sometimes injured, and often frightened badly. In the part of the country where I grew up, people let them run loose or sometimes chained them outside. As bad as some of what I saw with cats was, when it came to bad pet owners, what I saw with the dogs was even worse...and I have no interest or aptitude to train an animal. Most of my preference for having a cat comes down to that right there. You don't really have to train a cat. Their needs are pretty straightforward if you know how to read them. And a cat is not as potentially dangerous, in my opinion, as many dogs can be if not trained and cared for correctly.
So I got Nimbus, my floofy cat buddy, back in early 2013. He is nearly 12 years old now, and still acting like he's in his prime. He's had a few health issues here and there, but nothing that's slowed him down much. We got a kidney disease diagnosis a few years back, they said it was going to kill him, possibly within months. So I did a bunch of dietary research and adjusted his diet, and his numbers have stabilized and then improved, now the vet isn't concerned about his kidneys at all. Which is amazing since they were very "doom and gloom" about it when they first told us. I'm still allergic to cats, but apparently not all cats. No real reaction to my Nimbus. I read somewhere recently that the particular protein that causes allergies is present in a cat's dander, saliva, urine...pretty much everything about the cat...but that male cats have less of it than female cats. Which is interesting, I guess, as I've always preferred male cats in general.
I've just always liked cats. They're cute, majestic, quiet and you can get all the companionship from them in a compact size, which fits the aesthetics I like. No loud noises, and no loud barking, although some typical cat antics will be involved. I always smile when I see one.
My cat story is that growing up, my father didn't really want pets in the home. We were surprised when in maybe sixth grade, he allowed us to get a cat. We only had one, and when it passed, there were no more. Then when I was starting out, I lived with two different people (separate timeframes), and neither would allow a cat in the residence. One of the first things I did when getting my own place was to get a cat.
I first got Vegas, and okay tabby cat, but I just wasn't feeling the connection, so I returned her. I tried another one and that is the most shy cat of all time. She hid everywhere, even under the kitchen cabinets. I got her to maybe eat and use the litter box once, and that was it. The rest of the time she mostly hid. The pet groomer tried bringing in a large black cat who was her favorite at the orphanage, and that seemed to draw her out of her shell. But as soon as the black cat left, it was right back to hide and go seek. I work full-time and wasn't going to be able to wait it out for the break-in period. Not only that, she had a weird habit of dragging her butt across the carpet, and obviously that wasn't going to fly for me. But more than that, she wasn't eating because she was so scared, so I had to return her.
After that, I said I'm not going to get one without seeing how their behavior is first; I really wanted to take my time. I went to the Humane Society to look again. This took about a month as I went to separate locations to find a cat that was a good fit. Finally I found Drake, my current cat. I almost didn't get him the week before because he was the only cat that was sleeping at the time, but I went in again and brought him into the area where you can spend some time with them. I still have the videos I took of him when he was at the Humane Society. He has been great. He greets me every time I walk in the door, he will play-scratch on me but never is violent, yet I can still wrestle with him. R.I.P. to my furniture because I will not declaw a cat, though, but other than that, it has gone well.
There's a woman who posts in the Travel/RV forum who is a van nomad with a cat, both of them traveling around the country. Her cat must have a strong homing instinct. I'd constantly be worried about a cat bolting while traveling.
That poster crashed her car, then her cat got away a few days later (she was not careful to keep her close ) ... and then the poster just left the cat behind to fend for herself. I was so horrified and angry but could do nothing. I kept looking for updates (for several months) but never got any so I gave up and haven't been back to that thread -- I was too heartbroken at what she had done to Marigold.
We had cats growing up but mostly dogs. I adopted my first 2 kitties in 1991 from the Berkeley East Bay Humane Society. That was the start of my love affair with cats.
I've lost many of my elderly kitties in the past couple of years, and it's always devastating. Right now Moggie is my eldest at 16 -- she's the only one left out of several we adopted over 3-4 years. Then there's Chloe and Jack, who are both 7, and the babies, Shirley and Georgie, who will be 2 years old this summer. All my kitties have been with me for their entire lives although Jack is testing that -- he won't let me anywhere near him (has been like this for years now -- I have no clue what triggered it but cannot seem to fix it), and that is incredibly sad but also means I can't get him to the vet.
All my kitties have been with me for their entire lives although Jack is testing that -- he won't let me anywhere near him (has been like this for years now -- I have no clue what triggered it but cannot seem to fix it), and that is incredibly sad but also means I can't get him to the vet.
Oh, you got that right. We adopted a feral, and for his first vet visit, I had to wear heavy up-to-the-elbow work gloves, a heavy work shirt, and safety glasses, in order to get him into his carrier. I managed, with minimal damage to me. All my safety precautions came into play, and protected me. But it wasn't easy.
He eventually calmed down, accepted his fate, and rather enjoyed living with us. He'd curl up next to me in bed, and I could coax him into a ragged purr if I tickled him just right. Believe it or not, he liked to watch TV football with me. I guess his favourite teams were the Cincinnati Bengals and the Hamilton Tiger-Cats. He was a mackerel tabby, after all.
What you need is a heavy lined work shirt, elbow-length work gloves, safety glasses, and a solid cat carrier. It sounds cruel, but once armed, grab the cat, stuff the cat into the carrier, regardless of what it wants (this is where the safety gear comes into play). You, being stronger, will succeed, and the cat will bring its tail in on its own. Close the door. The cat will be angry, and hiss and spit, but now the cat is in its carrier, and can be taken to the vet. Let the vet worry about the cat after that.
I've lived with cats almost my entire life. My mother owed two when I was born. One of them had distemper when she was very young. My mother had been able to nurse her through it, but she was left with permanent brain damage that affected her movement. She couldn't walk in a straight line without falling over, so to cross a room, for example, she would lean up against the wall or furniture and that worked pretty well for her. We had steps placed around the house so she was able to get up on things. Growing up around her of course I thought all of this was perfectly normal. I had two cats when I got married and my husband knew from the day he met me there would always be pets in the home.
I got a cat from my father and my aunt on my 10th birthday which was also the day they were holding my grandfather’s (paternal) funeral. It was my father’s way of saying I’m sorry we screwed up your birthday.
I’ve had cats most of my life since. Mostly females, a few males scattered here and there.
I seldom go long without one. My husband and I currently have 6, but we are aging and I told him it’s not fair to adopt any more. So after this group passes, we will start fostering instead. That way, if something happens to us, they will be taken care of. We will also get our cat/kitten fix that way.
I consider myself a dog person. But man do cats have such personalities. The best are the expressions they make, how their pupils change. They are so funny.
I was around 10 when my cousin's cat had kittens. I don't remember the family decision making process that went along with choosing one of those kittens to come home with us, but that's how it started. Alas, I discovered at age 10.5 that I was allergic to cats, and avoided getting a cat of my own when I left home. And then I met a wonderful guy who had a cat, and I learned all about the benefits and side effects of Benadryl. When his cat became elderly and sick, two tuxedo kittens showed up in our backyard; Checkers lived to be 13 and Cookie to 15. Now I'm in a new relationship, and this guy has a cat, too. The universe is speaking to me - I must have feline companionship.
There's a woman who posts in the Travel/RV forum who is a van nomad with a cat, both of them traveling around the country. Her cat must have a strong homing instinct. I'd constantly be worried about a cat bolting while traveling.
We RV’ed for 5 years in a 5th wheel which meant that every travel day, the cats got crated in large wired dog crates and loaded in the back seat of the truck. The 2 small dogs went in a small space left over, harnessed in. We had 6 cats, all were chipped and fixed. That meant 3 cats in each crate (the crates were designed for labs). Those crates were tightly in there.
We only had two temporarily escape in 5 years. Both were so freaked out by being outside, they were easy to catch, thankfully.
We now are back in a house. All cats are fine for their travels.
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And they don't stink - at least mine didn't. 
