Cats

[botias]

6yo wants a cat. He's been spending some time with my MIL who lets her cats breed and there are two or three litters to play with. "Grandma Missy's cats don't have fleas," he says when I remind him that he really didn't like that aspect of cat ownership before our old cat passed away. I really didn't either. *shudders* I despise fleas.

I do like cats. I used to love them. But there are many cat owners on my flist, and so my reading is sprinkled with little gems like (I am paraphrasing here): "I hope my cat quits pooping in my shoes..." "I came home to discover he had been spraying urine. I scrubbed and scrubbed all morning, but..." "I'm tired today. I worked late yesterday and then my cat woke me at 5 a.m...." "I sat down at the computer and got a wet butt. The cat's been busy..." "My cat sitter flaked the day before my trip and I had to find someone else..."

I find myself remembering the very stressful, very large, veterinary bills; stepping in cold hair balls and feeling them squish up between my toes; finding the occasional intestinal worm segment writhing on the floor; the swollen ticks; the prey animals (alive and dead, in whole and in part); replacing all the carpet in one of my homes... It's not the inconvenience, or the grossness, so much as the fact that they seem more inconvenient than children in many ways, but much less fulfilling. Now I understand how my mom felt. :P I was so into animals as a child, that I never thought I would be THAT sort of mom myself.

ETA: perhaps best not to read if you are eating

Comments

[louise39.livejournal.com]

a remembrance:

My mother would never allow pets and I got used to it. When my children wanted pets [and we lived in apartments], I always answered, "Only in glass cages". We had frogs and turtles. With three children, there was enough stuff and mess.

Pets of any kind are an investment of emotion, time, money and experiences. [As you know.] Choose wisely. Pets live a long time.

[botias.livejournal.com]

My mom allowed a cat. Reluctantly.

Yes, pets do live a long time, cats even more so than dogs. My last two cats lived for 20 years. It's really a big responsibility, and I really don't know if I can go there again.

[kitmarlowescot2.livejournal.com]

One can the say the same about children. One thing I reccommend on prey animals and fleas is to keep the cat inside. Two, you need to convince your mother in law to fix her cats. Otherwise she will end up with hundreds quite soon.

[botias.livejournal.com]

Yeah, that was kind of my point. :) I would rather have another child instead if I'm going to be cleaning up puke, brushing someone else's teeth and hair, and not sleeping in on weekends. Maybe I will see it differently when the kids are older or moved away.

It's true that you can keep a cat indoors, but I know I don't have the time to provide the sort of enrichment I think would be fair to the cat. Though probably, a cat would rather be bored witless rather than homeless. It's tough out there.

My MIL has been letting her cats breed since I was in diapers, so I probably can't tell her anything she hasn't already heard before. I don't agree with it at all, but it's a free country.

More cat info if you're interested...

[cheezey.livejournal.com]

In general, short haired cats don't need to be brushed often. I hardly ever brush mine, although back when I had a long-haired white cat, he had to be brushed or his hair would mat up something terrible.

My indoor cats entertain themselves, although one solo might get bored. Two can keep each other company. When I did have one, she liked to watch the scroll bar on things like CNBC and for whatever reason, she would sit and watch the Weather Channel also. They also like open windows.

Interestingly, my indoor cats that have never been outdoor are the only ones that ever try to go out. The ones who used to be strays or barn cats never try to go outside. I guess they've come to appreciate the cushy lifestyle.

Indoor cats will get fat, though, if you aren't careful. Even the active ones will likely get plump once they get a couple years old or older, but the lazy ones will look like Garfield without watching their food.

Also, a cheap and easy cat toy is a laser pointer. I can run my cats ragged chasing one of those. It's really fun to watch them go after that little red dot.

[petzipellepingo.livejournal.com]

Yes, they are messy and need to be fed, picked up after, etc. but they are also hilarious and sweet.

But I think everyone has to make their own decision on owning a pet, it should never, ever be a rush decision.

[botias.livejournal.com]

They are hilarious and sweet. I remember that about them too. :)

The decision seems much clearer when one is a child and lives completely in the present.

[cheezey.livejournal.com]

LOL I see my post about the cat peeing in my computer chair made your list! My husband also got his computer monitor sprayed by one of our cats, completely destroying it. On the bright side it was the perfect excuse to get a bigger one, which he wanted anyway, but still... uh, I guess this isn't going to convince you to get a cat, is it? ;)

Fleas aren't a problem for us, but we are diligent about using Frontline on all the pets that go outdoors (our dogs, as the rest of our cats are strictly indoor) once a month. We even give it to the garage cat we inherited with our house when we bought it. Fleas are horrible and you only have to get an infestation of them once to never want it again.

Vet bills are killer, though, but with one cat you probably won't be hit too bad once they're past the kitten stage (initial shots and spay/neuter) until they get older, unless you're unlucky and get one that's sickly. I wouldn't trade my cats for anything, but I do wish that I didn't have quite so many. I never want more than 3 at a time again after the ones I have now get older and pass on.

[botias.livejournal.com]

The chair thing did! It seemed especially applicable because my 3yo just ended a phase of soaking our computer chairs on a regular basis. My husband wisely started keeping a folded towel on his seat.

Frontline is a miracle product, though I managed somehow to get a flea infestation going anyway. Perhaps I was worried about using it on my cat because he was so old.

Vet bills are a killer if you get one of those cats that inspired the whole '9 lives' mythology. Grimilkin was such a cat. He would come home one or two times a year with abscessed cat bites ($90). He needed to be put out to have his teeth cleaned periodically ($120). He got struck by a car once ($250), ate a plastic bag ($600), required major dental work ($400), tooth pulled ($75), broken leg ($150), eye removal ($400), eye repair ($600). My other cat was also indoor/outdoor and never got into trouble, though Grimilkin lived to be 20 and outlived her by a couple of years, amazingly.

Yeah, when you have the chaos that is three small boys, another force for destruction just isn't very appealing. I got a third cat when the other two cats had grown up together more or less and were very established, and I would not do it again, as much as I loved that third cat. Both established cats started territorial spraying and didn't stop until the third cat passed away... AND we had moved twice. It was extremely frustrating and smelly, not to mentioned ruined a lot of things, including all the carpet in one place and a very expensive leather sofa.

[empresspatti.livejournal.com]

Read this post and comments with great interest and a lot of laughter. I guess I should confess that I'm deathly allergic to cats - to the point where I can't really hand at the homes of some of my oldest and dearest friends because - um, I have to breathe and I can't do it around cats. Plus - the trip to the hospital gasping is a drag.

All that being said - I truly get how a cat (or dog) really enriches a persons life. I love posts about peoples pets.

However, seeing it from the outside: Oy! I don't know that even if I wasn't allergic, I'd ever want an animal that craps in the house (box or not - ick, diapers were enough) and sprays, kills birds, wakes me up etc. It always seemed all the work and expense of children, but being stuck for decades with a two year old. AND don't even get me started on the barking issue. I've had more than one conversation with a neighbor. I really feel strongly that if you take on a pet, you are responsible for it well being forever, no excuses. They are too vulnerable to neglect, ever.

AND yet - every time I see a Caterday post - or talk to a friend with a long time pet, I wish that I could have had that experience without gasping for breath......

[botias.livejournal.com]

I know! It does seem like a toddler that never grows up. O.o Plus the kids can be trained to do housework.

They are very soft. There's something amazing about a little tiger you can pet. :) And they do provide valuable companionship for people.