Cat Etiquette for Non-Owners

No, Joyce, you are not bad. In fact, you are very much enlightened. Anyone who would demand that you choose between them and your furby is not worth sharing your life, because they would try to dominate you, not share with you.

I've had similar experiences and have always chosen the animal. In hindsight, it was a gift since I found out from mutual friends that the selfish individual moved on and made someone else's life hell. No, Joyce, you chose wisely. BRAVO!

I've had more than one man say "It's me or the cats" and I've always chosen the cats. Am I bad?

Furby has got to be voted the most adorable kitten on the planet. I too agree with everything said. When I was at the vets on Monday with my new Savannah Kitten I freaked out at the way the tech was holding her to try and weigh her. I just told her I dont like the way your holding my kitten and grabbed her away from her. I insisted on holding her for the shot and almost in a full blown anxiety attack by the time we got done. My cats are my BABIES. Even my older son (35 yrs) has excepted Lia as his little brother. Especially with the expensive bed he bought Lia for christmas he is Lias best friend.

Joyce, you sure are the brave one! I bet all your furkids get along too, or else they'd have mommie to scold them.

After the birds passed, my brother went to a shelter requesting the craziest cat they had - an unadoptable feline. When asked why, he told them about the Alsatian in the house. Although they were hesitant, they finally gave in since this one skinny, wiry cat was considered "unadoptable" because of his wild ways.

What a shock when the cat 1st spotted the dog. He actually pooped on my brother's shoulder! We laughed hysterically. Need I say that those 2 became fast friends. The cat would smack the dog when he walked by to intice him to play and the dog would walk around the house with the cat's front half body hanging from his mouth. All you could see was the tail and rear legs - making my other sister in law screech bloody murder when she 1st saw it! Cheap entertainment, I tell you. When the dog passed, the cat mourned for 2 solid weeks by going room-to-room howling pitifully. After 2 weeks, he stopped howling, but even now - years later, sometimes he still goes looking for his friend and cries.

Furby is boss over 3 dogs. I have pics of him using them as pillows. My bulldog Dreyfuss loves him to death.

Rudoph, You are a brave soul to have your cats along with a bird, LOL! Does life get interesting sometimes or do they all behave themselves?

We had a cockatiel, parakeet and a German Shepherd once...what a party that was! The birds were in the house 1st and the cage was always open. When the dog came home at 8 weeks of age, he went up to both birds when they were walking across the floor. All he wanted to do was sniff them to see what they were, but they were having none of it! 1st the parakeet bit the dog on the tip of his nose, then the cockatiel screeched bloody murder at the dog when he bumbled over to sniff! OMG! It was hilarious! From that point through adulthood, the dog NEVER bothered the birds and when they flew near him, or walked toward him, he'd run the other way!

u said it so well! takin care of ur pets (in my case 7 cats) is the most important thing!! thats why i have them all signed up 2 PET ASSURE www.petassure.com so that they can get the best care possible!

I still can't believe one cat can give me so many looks. He doesn't just change day to day. He changes picture to picture. I think that's why I take so many of him. Help me, I'm in love with a cat! He is so spoiled!

As a bachelor and living "Single" at home along with my housekeeper, i wonder what would life be in my house-hold without "Mittoo" the parakeet and "Matahari" and "Matata", the traditional Persian cats. Non-Pet owners would definitely find indulgences in pets as either a eccentric hobby of the wealthy or companionship of the lonely, little realising what they are missing by not owning a pet. Long before "MEDICAL SCIENCE" has positively proved that pet owners lead less stressed lives compared to Non-pet owners, this unpublished fact was experienced by a majority of pet owners. Whenever i return home after a "STRESSED DAYS WORK OR BUSINESS", the interaction with my parakeet and cats soothes all my troubles away, be they financial losses or "office politics". My advice to "NON-PETOWNERS", "Its never too late in life to own a pet".

Joyce, you said it all! I love the house rules list. We love our animals, even when they are strays and ferals. Our furkids are our kids - take 'em or leave 'em. Even those with busy schedules take time out for their furkids - the more the merrier!

Some time ago, I recall an animal companions died and I called into work for bereavement. I simply said a family member passed away and there were no questions asked. When asked about it later, I simply said it was just too distressing and didn't want to talk about it. The offer of buying flowers was refused and I asked that donations go to a local animal shelter as that is what my family member would want. Hey, why not? These are our kids and they are just as important to us as your human kids are to the rest of humanity.

Good show, Joyce!

I have to agree with you Joyce. I wish more people feel the same way about cats and dogs as you do. I know I couldn't live without my babies, they're what makes the world go around. I talk to my animals as if they are people and I've had many people say that I'm crazy and it's not normal to love a animal that much, but who cares. Anyway I love what you said.

Everyone I know is accused of being strange in one way or another. If it wasn't for cats it would be for some other reason. I have a whole site going on around Furby. What's worse is he has to come up with his own stories before I can write them. Now tell me THAT's not strange. He also has to lay in my lap while I write his stories.

Thanks for this Joyce. When I think about it people do think of me as a bit odd building this site and keeping cats. I am almost seen as some sort of eccentric. Obviously not everyone thinks like that but I do sort of feel it is almost the norm.

There is an underlying misunderstanding I think about nature and animals (and therefore cats) which comes across when I talk to people.

Cats are still a mystery to many people so this tends to encourage people to kid us.

So thanks for encouraging people to show cat etiquette.