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I’ve never liked cats. I find them to be obnoxious, arrogant, and down-right evil. If you’ve had a bad day at work, a cat’s first response is "good, you are here. Feed me. Now."
A dog, on the other hand, cares about you and does his utmost to please you. Come home from a bad day and the dog says "oh, boy! You are home! Let’s play! Let me give you a kiss! I love you!"
It is very true that a dog is man’s best friend.
I must admit, recent events are starting to change my mind, however. We recently acquired a 4-week-old orange fluff ball off CraigsList. The person who had the kittens said that the mother had abandoned them.
By the looks of the kitten, I would say she was right.
The little guy was nothing but skin and bones. He was so emaciated that he could barely communicate his hunger. His eyes were dull and sad.
When we got him home, my wife made up her special mixture of artificial kitten milk, soaked kitten kibble, and baby rice. The little youngster dug right in. Food was flying everywhere.
After a week, he now had a belly again and a spring in his step. Also, much to my chagrin, he has wormed his way into my heart.
Boy, that is hard to say. "I am starting to like cats." The words would have been like vinegar before.
Almost like saying "Jerry Brown is a good governor and a fiscal conservative."
Well, let’s not go that far.
My wife decided to call the little guy Mango since he is a tiger-striped orange tabby. We got into a minor argument over the color of a mango since I asserted that mangos were green. I even went to the store and bought one to show her.
"See, its green!" I was momentarily triumphant. "Cut it open" she ordered. Sure enough, the core was a deep, bright orange that mocked me from the kitchen counter where I had cut it. "Mango it is" I sheepishly surrendered.
Mango has been a very odd experience for me. Trish was not around the house for a couple days this week so I had to take him to work. Odd as that sounds, our company allows and even encourages staff to bring pets to work.
This forced Mango upon me all through the day and into the evening. I had to feed him, get him to go potty, and clean up his messes. And, of course, play with him and allow him to curl up in my lap for much-needed naps.
This process has now changed my mind about cats. Or, more exactly, about this one cat. I look forward to seeing him and playing with the little bugger.
I am very happy that we found him on Craig’s List.
The odd thing about it was that it took so long to find him. In the past, we’ve picked up a cat at a pet store for 10 bucks or from a kid in front of a grocery store for free.
Today, you rarely see the kitten-give-away. In fact, its rather difficult to find kittens at all.
We had gone to a couple of the big pet stores when rescue organizations are doing adoption days. But, these people want about $120 for kittens that are not very young. $120!
I have very mixed feelings about rescues. I know they love animals and prevent many needless deaths but there are some strange things as well.
One rescue presented us with a two-page single-spaced "adoption application" that had to be filled out before we could be considered.
One pleasant rescue lady asked us if we intended our new pet to be an indoor or outdoor pet. When we told her that we live in the country and the cat would hunt outside (killing varmints) and also living inside, her face darkened as she told us "cats should not be outside. We don’t allow our cats to go to homes like that."
Really? Ever looked at a cat? They have claws. And teeth. Eyes set forward like most predators.
Cats are killers and God intended them to be that way.
Mankind benefits from this because rodent populations are controlled.
Our little Mango will never be declawed. He will be a dangerous hunter and kill many rats and mice. He will also curl up in our laps and purr for hours on end.
He will also be loved by this former cat hater.
Steve Lunetta is a resident of Santa Clarita and has Mango sitting in his lap right now. He can be reached at slunetta63@yahoo.com.
