crazy cat lady?

I wasn't quite sure where to put this so thought I'd put it here as this area looked as good as any. Wondering if you all have had this experience. I'm a bit hurt actually. I have 3 kitties, and I know I can't have anymore as we live in a very small house with 3 cats,1 dog, 1 hubby and two teen boys. We're full but happy. Anyway, when I got my first cat, my friends thought that was way awesome. When I got my second kitty they thought it was quite nice but isn't that a handful? We got our 3rd baby, which really needed a home. Well, I think some of my friends think I'm going batty. I've had some raised eyebrows and 2 of my good friends (not cat people mind you) asked me if I was going to be a horder bascially, they kind of joked and put it nicely but I think they were serious and they kind of warned me. I know they were joking but somehow it hurt my feelings as these were good friends and they should know me. Is this just some kind of assumption people make about cat people? I'm am not a horder of anything really so I'm puzzled as to why someone would say that. Would people say that if you had 3 dogs? Somehow, I don't think they would. Well, I'm just blowing off steam. Three cats are a blast and we have a lot of fun. Thanks for listening.

My friend kinda thinks that way about my 8 cats.
She just had her 5th kid.

So one day recently we were having dinner and she said something about my "8 cats" and I said
"Hey, I collect cats, you collect kids!!"

She and her daughter that was with us thought that was just hilarious and it ended there.

Bill and I share a 3-bedroom house with 3 cats and two large dogs. What's the big deal?

My parents share their 5-bedroom house with 5 dogs, my brother and his wife, three teenaged grandkids and my nephew's gf. Personally, I'd throw out everyone but the dogs.

It is very tempting to get a third cat- as long as the love & care is provided, it doesn't seem like such a big deal. I would do it if I owned a house- it would be too much for a renter...
I once saw this segment on one of those Detroit Animal Cops shows, a guy had 259 cats in ONE house!!! My count may be off by one or two. I kid you not. It was sooooo gross. They were all living in the worst conditions , it was incomprehensible.. It took the crew at least 2 days to trap the cats in the house.
Has anyone seen that show?

3 cats? They are seriously saying that with only 3 cats in the house? Man, they obviously just don't know cats!

Originally Posted by Grapegal45

2 of my good friends (not cat people mind you)

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duh!

There was a big story about a cat horder here in MN, or maybe it was WI, anyway, fairly local and new story, not too long ago and it was truly awful....sad, sad, sad. I felt so sad for all the cats, many died but I also felt sad for the owners as they obviously were sick and had many problems. Anyway, I guess I was a abit taken aback by my friends comments, I mean, 3 kitties just isn't that many, really. I just love watching the sleeping pile of kitties on the bed. It's just too sweet. I must add though, my cat loving friends think it's awesome! We love to share our kitty stories.

Hehe they should try coming here with our 8 cats and 4 dogs, in a fairly small house, but HEY we are happy. Don't let those friends get to you and why not get a 4th?

Originally Posted by Grapegal45

Is this just some kind of assumption people make about cat people? I'm am not a horder of anything really so I'm puzzled as to why someone would say that. Would people say that if you had 3 dogs? Somehow, I don't think they would. Well, I'm just blowing off steam. Three cats are a blast and we have a lot of fun.

Thanks for listening.

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Hi Grapegal45,

Well I would suppose this is the assumption of every non-cat loving people think about cat lovers, that having >2 cats is "hoarding"- because they think that either cats smell, their poop smell, icky pets to have. That doesn't hold true for people who have dogs. From my experience, of course.

Non-cat loving people get the surprise of their lives when they visit my room and discover that my cats are healthy, very clean, and don't smell AT ALL!! They couldn't believe that my cats were once living off the streets.

Animal hoarding is a mental illness, I don't think you qualify as one! As long as you are able to care for your cats, you don't have this illness. Here are some people who are animal hoarders: http://www.rotten.com/library/sidesh...imal-hoarding/

Sincerely-
Steph

Originally Posted by Jalapeno

Well I would suppose this is the assumption of every non-cat loving people think about cat lovers, that ... their poop smell

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Ok that edited quote looks a bit funny.. just for clerification your talking about the cats poop not the cat lovers.

I just wanted to say.. some cats poop DOES smell! Buddy has had some of the worst stinky poo I have ever smelled from any living creature in the last few days after we got him home. Hopefully its caused by a change in his diet or worms. If its worms hopefully his last dose of medicine will clear that up...if not I am going to have to look into changing his diet and quick! I never thought I would have to shut myself into this room because of such a big smell coming from such a small animal. It was all I could do to go scoop his box without gagging, but I am sure he appreciated it just as much as I did after some of the looks he gave me in his vain attempts to bury it.

Oh and about the hoarding.. dont give it a second thought. We live in a small apartment and have 3 cats (soon to be two because Elmer has reached his time) and even in our little apt, they all have spots to feel comfy in and enjoy their lives. If you had 30 cats, then I could see how someone could label you a collector. All cat lovers have big hearts and there is room and love for many unique precious little personality filled furballs, why limit yourself to just one.

Good luck with them all! If you start eating cat food on crackers.. THEN worry.

Me and Robert share a two bedroom house with 8 cats and well the 5 dogs have been moved outdoors.

Tryn to find a home for one Blue heeler female puppy. Well gotta do avet care on one and if the mange keeps coming back I will have to be forced to give him up. Tryn to get the 5 dogs down to 2 dogs. After that no more large breed dogs.


AShley

I guess I could be a horder ....NOT! I have 4 dogs and 2 cats and 1 crazy man to take care of. Hey wait a minute....Maybe I am the one that is crazy Nahhhhhhh. I just love the furry babies and I know my limitations as to how many babies I can feed and take care of.

Try to not let what uneducated(as in doesn't know cats) people think get you down.

ten cats, a dog and two horses here. Your friends would probably think I am crazy as well.
Enjoy your life!

I am labelled a bit crazy here because Bosnians do not have cats in the house. But once all my friends (and my landlord) realised that with proper care and training they do not smell or tear everything up everyone loved Dushka, my first one. It was not so difficult to ask permission to have a second, Ellie, and I was going to leave it at that (especially with all the trouble and expense I knew I am going to have one day exporting them from here back to the EU), but as you all know, Persil arrived unexpectedly into my life one day and has stayed. Some people make remarks, but not my real friends, and certainly not anyone who has been to my house.

I am the crazy cat lady among my friends, and proud of it. I have several converts to being cat lovers rom cat haters. Even a freind that still hates them (lifelong horrible allergies) will only shoo them out of his yard now instead of shooting at them with a BB gun.

Crazy cat lady here

Back when my mom was first diagnosed with cancer, I got Shelby, which was my 2nd cat. Less than a year after that, I got Frank, my third cat. My mom said, "Robin, you need to hurry up and get married again......you're becoming a crazy cat lady!" I said, "Well, I get more love and satisfaction from my cats than I ever did from my husband......so I think I'll stick with the cats!"

I had to get rid of Frank though and I still miss him terribly. He was a Maine Coon mix and just gorgeous. But he had this weird quirk where he refused to use a litterbox that another cat had used. Since I couldn't get my other cats to understand that Frank needed his own box.....he would constantly pee and poop on the floor. I sent him to live with someone where he would be the only cat and could have his own litterbox.

Then I took in a very pregnant Abby who had Thomas and Cooper.....and now I'm up to 5 cats. I'm 40 years old......still single......and have 5 cats. I guess my mom would really think I was a crazy cat lady now! But you know what.....I'm happy.....my cats are happy......and that's all that matters.

Well after reading all these posts on this topic I can say that from my experience none of you even comes close to qualifying for Crazy Cat Lady status. I lived with a Crazy Cat Lady once, and believe me, it was not a very pleasant experience. I have adored cats all of my life, but after living for a year with this woman I left there not even wanting to SEE a cat for a long time. (Of course, I got over that!) I tried hard at first to do something about the cats - to talk her into spaying and neutering, for starters, and I even paid for some to get spayed and neutered myself, but she wouldn't let me do them all and I couldn't just catnap them and take them to the vet....they were not mine. So they kept having kittens....and kittens...and in-breeding, and the kittens were deformed sometimes....I took some to the vet when they got sick, but I couldn't keep it up because I didn't make enough money. There were over 25 cats, some of them feral, and all swarmed and tried to get into the house every time you opened the door. I bought cat food, yet they never had enough to eat. They pooped all over the house and she didn't clean it up. I know the only reason I stayed so long is that my job kept me so busy I was only home long enough to sleep a few hours and change clothes, sometimes not even that. Anyway, if anyone calls you such a thing, please don't ever let it hurt your feelings. They don't know what they are talking about!

3 cats is NOT a lot. Consider yourself blessed. I feel sorry for your catless friends. They don't know what they're missing!

I like this post!!!

14 cats and 2 dogs here plus a small feral colony outside. I have questioned myself on whether I am a hoarder or not and have invited folks from the humane society out to my house to check me out. I passed the test.

A hoarder doesn't have the ability to care for the animals and thinks they are doing the animal a favor by keeping them. I've been in hoarders homes and they are enough to make you gag. If you have the ability to take care of them physically and emotionally, then you are OK. Some folks can't care for a single animal and shouldn't have them at all. Others have room to take in many. You sure don't sound like a hoarder to me!