Crazy Cat Lady

Crazy Cat Lady

by Michael

Cat and Lady - photo copyright Stockxpert

Cat and Lady - photo copyright Stockxpert

You don't have to be a crazy cat lady to live with more than one cat. And you don't have to be "crazy, old, lonely or smelly" either! There is a bit of a stereotypical image of a lonely old lady in a messy home with lots of cats. This might come from the not too infrequent stories of cat hoarders who seem more often to be women.

Of course the stereotype is completely incorrect but there is a little bit of underlying truth.


To the ladies who care for cats and who visit this site. You are anything but crazy.


Women are more likely to like cats because, the argument goes that they are more likely to be independent minded and less of a pack animal. This mirrors the character of our feline companions. While men are more likely to be pack animals (think team sports as an example) and the pack animal is effectively a dog! So men prefer dogs (in very broad brush terms). And dogs obediently obey the alpha dog (the man provided he behaves as an alpha dog)

And I am treading very gently here to avoid the risk of upsetting the fantastic lady contributors to this site. But I like to write about this subject on occasion because it looks at us as well as the cat.

The fact (is it fact? not sure) that more women prefer cats might also be supported by the argument that women are more predisposed towards caring roles (is that fair?) and cats need our devoted care!

It also might be that women are in very general terms more in touch with nature or more concerned about it on the basis that men are more likely to use nature to achieve personal goals rather than work within it. The slash and burn male against the nurturing female.

Of course these are generalisations and I am one example of a man who loves cats and keeps more than one. And so is Finn Frode in Denmark. There are millions of others.

That said, when you go to a cat show you can see the exact percentage of women to men who are involved in the cat fancy, the sharp end of the cat world. I haven't conducted a survey but I would say it is about 80% women to 20% men (as a bit of a guess).

What prompted me to write this was a story about a United States army specialist (Army Spc. Nathan Davis) who won a prize for a short piece he wrote about his two cats. He is the archetypal army team player in his combat uniform and he has two rescue cats that he adores. Wonderful.

The world is a bit too fast in pigeon holing events and people. If there are old, crazy cat ladies out there it is completely natural and to be expected. Sometimes the idea of the crazy cat lady is used I feel by people who have a tendency towards misogyny.

Women live longer than men. They don't won't to start a new relationship when the husband dies. They like cats. Cats keep them company and vice-versa. What it wrong with that? And I am sure that they are completely sane. It is the world that is crazy not the little old lady.

From Crazy Cat Lady to Cat News

Link to the article that gave me the idea for this post

Comments for
Crazy Cat Lady

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Dec 30, 2009 from one to the other
by: kathy

Last night when I was watching TV I made the comment that there wasnt any cats by me. "So how could I be a cat lady if there arent any cats by me"!!! Almost immediatly two cats came running over by me. I knew old Lia wouldnt let me down. And his new companion, the Savannah, follows him everywhere, so she came also. I knew in my heart I was a real Cat Lady.


Dec 24, 2009 Crazy and happy to be so
by: Ruth aka Kattaddorra

I think we crazy cat people tend to gravitate to each other.I don't have any friends or contacts who aren't crazy about cats too.
Look at this site of Michaels, how we've all found our way to it and stuck around and love reading about cats of any breed,shape,size and colour.
I do have other hobbies as I'm sure others do too,my main one being genealogy, but I've not had much time for it over the past year.
I had a life before I found out declawing still happens in the USA !
But even relatives I've found through my family history have supported our cause, most of them have cats too.
I wish every other crazy cat person a very happy Christmas and a peaceful 2010 AND I hope and pray that will be the year declawing is BANNED !


Dec 23, 2009 Crazy cat people
by: Finn Frode, Denmark

I regularly go to cat shows and let's admit it - there are some weird types hanging out there. Well, come to think of it, some of them probably think of me as a bit weird too... 😉
I think people, who are interested in one particular thing - be it a hobby or a good cause or whatever - to other people often will come across as rather singleminded. And of course you are, if that thing is all that interests you in life and all you can talk about.
So if you don't want to be seen as crazy, try not overwhelming other people with your particular fancy - unless they too are into it.
But for sure, we are all a bunch of crazy cat people - and that's all right with me.


Dec 21, 2009 Crazy Cat Lady Checking In!
by: Gail (Boston, MA USA)

OK, I'm a "crazy cat lady" myself too. I must be, since the neighbors say so. They say it with a flourish and a crooked grin since they know who to come to when they have questions about caring for animals in general, or in particular, the ferals and strays we have roaming.

Through the years, I have found more men coming forward declaring their undying love for their feline companions too. Guess that makes them "crazy cat men!" We ladies admire that quality in a man, LOL!

Michael, you are anything but crazy. Your site is a wealth of information and we all look forward to your blog every day!


Dec 21, 2009 Put my name down too
by: Barbara

Although "crazy cat lady" is often said in an offensive way I can think of a lot worse things to be called than a cat lady,in fact I like it and if I happen to be a bit crazy, so what I'm in good company, though I was a bit mad when someone on an internet site said women who keep cats always have their houses and cardigans smelling of cat's pee". Fancy assuming we wear cardigans LOL.

I think that some men think it's sissy to admit to loving cats, though I know an old chap who lives alone with his cat and doesn't mind admitting he loves her, and my late husband John was never scared to admit his love of cats and that was one of the things that attracted me to him in the first place.

Cats are adorable creatures and they make you want to care for them so why fight it?


Dec 21, 2009 Great comment
by: Michael

I'm a crazy cat man. Nice comment Ruth. The phrase crazy cat lady is prejudicial in my view. For me it means the person is likely to be anything but crazy.


Dec 21, 2009 I'm not crazy, just a tad eccentric lol
by: Ruth aka Kattadorra

I just have to put my two pennorth in.
I think nowadays men are more likely to admit they love cats,yes, even the manly men !
But take my late dad for example,in the 1950s/60s he said he hated cats but we knew it wasn't true because he and many of the other men used to feed and make a fuss of the cats where he worked.
It was a huge train building place and before the days of cats being routinely neutered,many people used to dump kittens there.Sometimes the men would take them there themselves and even the mother cats too as there were never enough homes.
Our dad bred Alsations because it was a manly size of dog. Men didn't cry those days in public either or hug like some do now.
But I think nowadays we women admire men more because they admit to loving cats and they admit to having emotions. So will we eventually have crazy cat men as well as crazy cat ladies ? lol
I like crazy people, sane ones are boring !


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