Where Did Your Love of Cats Come From?????

whisky'sdad · Jan 28, 2010

We always had some sort of animal in the house, so my love of animals was instilled in me very young. I was taught how to respect them and love them.

Our family dog, Meigan, a maltese, was around for 14 years, from 1980 to August 1994. We actually got her when she was 2. I had always liked cats and dogs the same until Whisky came into my life in December 1994. It was with him that my affection for cats grew and grew! As the years flew by, I learned and learned more and more!

nekochan · Jan 29, 2010

That's a good question... I've always loved animals and I grew up with a dog my parents got before I was born (she passed away at almost 17 when I was almost 16...) When I was a kid I rescued quite a few strays (dogs and cats) and feral kittens but I was never allowed to keep them... My parents both like animals (actually my whole family like animals and most of my extended relatives own pets) but my mom never want "extra" animals. I also had a lot of small pets once I was old enough to take care of them myself although my mom did not like the idea of the rodents...
As a kid I did a lot of dog walking and pet-sitting for friends and neighbors. It wasn't until I was about 10 or 11 we finally got a cat from a friend of my sister who had rescued the cat. Sylvia only really liked my brother though, and she technically belonged to him. I started high school bottle-feeding a litter of feral kittens a friend had brought me (her neighbor found them and brought them to her, she brought them to me.) I couldn't keep any of them either because Sylvia HATED all other cats so I only had temporary fosters which had to be kept separate from Sylvia...
Actually come to think of it I never had a cat that truly belonged to me permanently until Church, and he was a feral kitten who was supposed to be a foster too... Before that I helped care for my brothers' cats (took them to the vet for him, medicated them, etc) and had a lot of fosters who were mostly stray rescues or feral kittens. This was mostly due to Sylvia so it was not until after she passed away that I was able to have more than one.

c1atsite · Jan 29, 2010

Originally Posted by Whisky'sDad

There are places that can fix that photo so it can be looked at properly.

There's a shop in Indiana that restore photos

Well I should say their main business is giclÃ[emoji]169[/emoji]es, but you can ask them if they can just restore without doing a giclÃ[emoji]169[/emoji]e. I emailed the owner a few months ago because I had a giclÃ[emoji]169[/emoji]e question and he was super nice.

The business name is Redipix. http://redipix.com/Restoration.html
http://redipix.com/Contact.html

I never went ahead with my project, but if I did, I would choose them because they were so nice and their website rocks

farleyv · Jan 29, 2010

I had a great grandmother who lived in the Adirondak Mountains of New York State. She was a hermit and kept all her farm animals in the house with her. Like the op, she carried a shotgun around to fend off strangers.

As I grew up I would ride my bike and see dead birds hit by cars. I would bring them home and bury them. Butterflies too. We had a cat, Limpy, when I was a kid. We didn't have much money and he became very ill. My mom, who was also a great animal lover, had to put him to sleep with a rag soaked with chloraphorme. Now, being older, I realize what an impossibly hard thing that was for her to do. But flies were landing on him and like me, she can't stand to see an animal suffer.

Later on, she fed about 25 barn cats when we lived nextdoor to a house that was for sale and no one was living there at the time..I live there now. My grand daughter, Mattie, now is carrying the torch too. She has a chicken named Perch, who will come in the house and sleep in her arms.

So, I come by it naturally. Whenever I take in a stray, I just quote Hank Williams Jr. and tell my husband, "it's a family tradition."

libby74 · Jan 29, 2010

ETA to Libby -- My Shasta lived to 21 also, and passed away on my tummy. Tough as the goodbye is, there is a sweetness to that that is indescribable.
__________________

Rapuzel47, you are so right. I wouldn't have had it any other way.
The story of Mimi's passing is strange---I'd been married for a couple of years and, at Mimi's age, there was no question of taking her with me, so she stayed with my parents. My Mom called me one Saturday morning to tell me that Mimi had died. I hurried over, only to find that Mimi was still alive. I carried her up from the basement to the kitchen; when Mom saw her in my arms she exclaimed, "Why are you carrying a dead cat around?" I said, "She isn't dead." I sat in a rocking chair and held her for almost 3 hours; it was obvious she was slipping away and I wasn't about to let her go alone.
I buried her in my folks' flower garden.

gemlady · Jan 29, 2010

I guess I get my love of cats from my Mom. When Dad proposed, he had been warned that doing so he would get a wife, daughter (sis), and a cat. He accepted the challenge and eventually Mom's cat became his.

Mom grew up on a farm where cats were viewed more as pest control, but still respected. In fact, the first paid baby sitter Mom ever knew was her dog. He would baby sit the cat's kittens while she hunted. When she returned, she would share her kill with the dog.

Mom had an aunt who loved cats and would take in strays who would live in an enclosure in her back yard. A couple of cats were personal pets and lived indoors. It's just that she lived in the city and didn't pack firepower.

I have inherited a lot of her photos and there are a lot of her cats. (Unfotunately, not the best quality photography.)

fifi1puss · Jan 29, 2010

I was afraid of all animals when I was little....even pigeons!

My Mom told me one time when we were walking down the street I saw a pigeon and screamed hysterically while trying to climb up her leg. I had always been afraid of dogs...still am a little...

But our first cat was a stray, I was 10. Smokey was only 2 weeks old and my sister had to bottle feed him. I was fascinated by him and as I watched him grow I feel in love with cats! Than when Smokey was a few years old we got Sydney, he was a stray also about 4-5 weeks old. He was MY cat.

He choose me.

As they say, the rest is history!

amberthe bobcat · Jan 29, 2010

I have loved cats all my life. We always had cats, even when I was a baby. As I grew, my love for cats got stronger. As a child, anytime we went to the zoo, the first animals I always wanted to see where the big cats. I love all animals, but cats have a very special place in my heart.

persi & alley · Jan 29, 2010

Originally Posted by Bellaandme

NO ONE in my family has ever claimed to be an animal lover. The only reason I was allowed to have a cat as a child was because it was a bday gift from my dad's boss. Through out my life I had heard stories of a crazy great-aunt that lived alone on a farm with 105 cats running around. She wasn't a people person and had a shotgun close by in case anybody tried to harm her babies. I course I knew there was never any relative like that in our family. My mom died 6 years ago and I packed up afew of her belonging to bring home with me. Last night I was missing her and decided to go through these things. I ran across something I had never seen before. It is a photo that is over 100 years old. A stern young woman is sitting on the front porch of a huge victorian house. All around her there are CATS and KITTENS playing. A cold chill went down my spine as I turned the photo over and saw my aunt's name on the back!! At least the story of her being a cat fanatic appears to be true. I really feel close to this girl on the porch and cannot stop smiling. It's so old and alittle sun-damaged but it has a special place in my apartment where everyone can see it!!!

Moving into a three story townhome (with no back yard) ended any thoughts I entertained on having dogs ever again. I had had cats in the past and they are the perfect pets for this environment. I love Persi more than any animal I have had in my life; I never knew how cool a longhaired male cat could be! Quick, hide this before Alley sees it.

rapunzel47 · Jan 29, 2010

Originally Posted by libby74

Rapuzel47, you are so right. I wouldn't have had it any other way.
The story of Mimi's passing is strange---I'd been married for a couple of years and, at Mimi's age, there was no question of taking her with me, so she stayed with my parents. My Mom called me one Saturday morning to tell me that Mimi had died. I hurried over, only to find that Mimi was still alive. I carried her up from the basement to the kitchen; when Mom saw her in my arms she exclaimed, "Why are you carrying a dead cat around?" I said, "She isn't dead." I sat in a rocking chair and held her for almost 3 hours; it was obvious she was slipping away and I wasn't about to let her go alone.
I buried her in my folks' flower garden.

Very poignant. Aren't you glad you were in a position to hurry over to your Mom's!

larussa · Jan 29, 2010

My story is a little strange. Growing up my Dad would never let us have pets altho I always asked for a puppy. I never did like cats back then to be very honest. Many, many years later while living in an apartment I really wanted a pet since I lived alone. A guy at work was looking to adopt a kitten and that's when I started thinking, gee I can almost see a kitten in here with me and I made up my mind to adopt one. I checked the shelters in the newspapers and called one that was out of town. There weren't many kittens around at that time since it was February. I also went to the store and bought a book all about cats since I knew next to nothing about them, friends also gave me advice. I went and bought a litter box, litter, food, bowls and toys and now I was ready to welcome a kitten.

I made an appt. with the woman who was fostering cats, she told me she had a black and white female which was what I had asked for. I went to see her and immediately fell in love with this tiny fluff of fur. Actually she was the only kitten there in this big cage. When the woman handed her to me my heart filled. Misty came home with me that day and we lived together for the next almost 16 years, until I had to let her go to renal failure.

Since I adopted that little kitten I found out the mysteries of living with a cat and am now crazy about them. Tho I still love dogs and most animals, I will always have a cat to share my home.

So to answer your question, my love for cats came from adopting one, that's all it took

mrblanche · Jan 29, 2010

Some of my earliest memories are of a cat named Suzie that my mother had before I was born, and who lived well into my teens, making her close to 20 years old. She had been a barn kitten on my grandfather's farm in Michigan, and my mom made her a pet. She was never spayed and never saw a vet in her whole life. She had 2 litters of kittens every summer until her last few years. One of those kittens was my first cat love; unfortunately, we went back to Denver and I suspect that kitten was killed by my grandfather, who kept his barn cat population down the only way he knew how.

Don't get me wrong; he was fond of the barn cats he kept, and he always had four or five of them. When he was milking his cows (he always kept a couple of milk cows), the cats would line up and he would squirt milk at them, and they would stand up and catch the squirt of milk!

We had a long string of kittens and cats as I grew up, but until my mother moved in with me after I graduated from college, she never believed in keeping a cat in at night. For that reason, none of our cats ever grew old, Denver traffic being what it was, even in the 1950's!

This isn't my grandfather, but this is what the scene was like:

alleygirl · Jan 29, 2010

I don't remember ever not having a cat. My mom loves cats and we always had 1 or 2 from the time I was a baby until now!

kittyl0ve4 · Jan 30, 2010

I don't really know where my love of cats came from. I was never allowed to have one, since I grew up living with my grandfather and he hates cats. My mom loves them too. But the only pets I was allowed to have were dogs and birds. My moms friends always had cats, and so did my friends, so whenever I was in a house that had cats I always wanted to play with the cats and hold them.

Now that I have three wonderful cats in my life, I can't imagine how I lived so long with out them. And I can picture my life without a cat!

libby74 · Jan 30, 2010

Aren't you glad you were in a position to hurry over to your Mom's!

I am indeed! Of course my Dad, having been raised on a farm, would have noticed Mom's mistake immediatley. I'm very thankful that I was able to be with Mimi at the end.

darkimager · Jan 30, 2010

The first time I fell in love with cats was when I was 4. My mother had been feeding a stray outside that she coaxed inside. The cat, who was a calico, that night - curled around my head and purred me to sleep. We called her pillows. She followed me around the house and for as long as we had her, purred me to sleep, curled around my head. What my mother didn't know was that she was pregnant when we brought her inside. All but one of the kittens passed away. He was black and white, and we named him Spike. Unfortuneatly, my Mother found that she was allergic to cats and we had to give them away

But from then on, I've always loved Cats.

rod · Jan 30, 2010

I've lived and loved cats all my life. Even in my cradle I slept among felines. My father was a cat lover, I know now that even though he was he did make many mistakes regarding cat-care. But I know I got that from him. My mother on the other hand learned to like cats form mu dad and now she lives alone with two white ones and a small dog. I know she loves them and takes very good care of them but they don't have as many liberty's as I permit mine to have, (almost more that what I permit myself to have around the house).

bellaandme · Jan 30, 2010

As soon as I moved out of the house I had a mulit-cat family. I got the keys to my first apartment at 19 and went out and started adopting cats!!! Had a bed and a TV and five cats sleeping with me. It was heaven on earth. Home sweet home. I bought a cute little dining room table and five place mats so the cats would have a nice place to eat. It was beneath them to eat on the floor (pun intended). The first time my sister came over and saw that the cats ate on the table and my guests had to eat on the floor she was appalled. And I never invited her back. For those of you who were blessed to have grown up with cats, I envy you. They are such healing creatures. I could have used some of that healing in my chaotic childhood.

catnurse22 · Jan 30, 2010

My family has always been animals lovers. My mom in particular is the cat person. Dad is more of a dog guy (though I caught him many a time snuggling with a kitty when I was a kid). We've had cats ever since I was born. It's just always been a part of our life. My grandmother on my dad's side has always been a cat lover too. We moved in with her when I was 8 and she had 6 kitties, so that's probably when it really started. She had a litter of 4 kittens she found at her camphouse right before we moved in so I watched them all grow up and tortured them all. They were all such great cats. They let me dress them in baby doll clothes and do whatever I pleased. Spanky, Amos, Callie, and Maggie. She only has Maggie now and she was just diagnosed with CRF,

.

mystik spiral · Jan 31, 2010

I'm taking online classes to earn my 2nd degree, and am currently taking a writing class. Here is the expository essay I turned in (got 95 out of 100!

)

Are you a cat person or a dog person? This is the million dollar question among the pet lovers of our society. I knew one bird person many years ago, and of course there are always those few who choose animal companions like ferrets, rabbits or hamsters. When it comes to our favorite pets, though, Americaâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s top two choices are cats and dogs, and for the most part, we are fiercely loyal to our favorite.

I never thought I was a cat person; we always had dogs when I was a kid. Granted, they were for the most part miniature poodles, since that was the only breed my Dad wasnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t allergic to. I can recall professing my objection to cats on more than one occasion. Like many dog people, I considered cats to be aloof, self-centered, and generally completely useless. Plus, they made me sneeze (allergies run in the family). So why am I now putting forth the argument that cats are superior to dogs in the great pet debate?

I live in a condo with no yard and I missed having a pet. Needless to say, Iâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]d had my fill of small yappy dogs in my life, and besides, I donâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t have the heart to keep a dog cooped up all day long. So I crossed over to the feline side and came to the conclusion that people who say they donâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t like cats just donâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t really â€œgetâ€ them. Cats are the perfect companion for those of us who have on-the-go lifestyles, and they really are better than dogs for many reasons.

First of all, cats donâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t drool on you. They donâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t jump on you and try to knock you down when you get home after a long day at work. They donâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t require your assistance in bathing, and while some people believe litter boxes are nasty and foul, letâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]s face it: would you rather scoop poop out of a 12-inch by 18-inch box or your entire back yard? Finally, reflecting back on the busy lifestyle, cats are pretty independent and self-sufficient. You can leave them for a few days and theyâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]ll fend for themselves quite nicely.

Of course, cats are not for everyone, but I do contend that they are misunderstood little creatures who have been slapped with a bad reputation. What may come across as aloof is actually independence; cats can and do take care of themselves. What seems to be self-importance is really pride. If youâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]ve ever seen a cat fall off a table or chair, then act as though they did exactly what they meant to do, you know the pride of which I speak.

The main reason I have fallen in love with cats, though, is that they make you earn their love and respect. Unlike dogs, who will give their life for you if you pat them on the head, cats make you work for it, which makes the bond between human and animal that much stronger. At the risk of outing myself as one of those stereotypical â€œcrazy cat ladiesâ€, I have realized, acknowledged, and embraced my love for the cats of this world.

Where Did Your Love of Cats Come From?????

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