Friday, March 09, 2007


CATS, CATS, MORE CATS We are cat fanciers here. I fell in love with cats when I was very young and practiced walking silently as they do. I thought then, and still do today, that cats' movements are poetry.
My folks felt that a boy should have a dog. So they got one for me. Without thinking, they got a puppy. Now, if there is anything more clumsy than an eight week old puppy I cannot imagine what it might be. I could not believe how the graceful Cat would tolerate this clumsy ball of fur. I had visions of Cat eating it in front of me. So the cat adopt the pup. Susie (dog's name) became cat's ward. (Yes, with my tremendous ability at naming things, I had named him Cat.) Cat took over Susie's training. He had no patience with Susan going potty in the house. He would come and stare at me until I got up and took her for a walk. And Cat supervised the walks, too. He went along and when Susan did her business, I swear Cat would look approvingly at her. It was a snap to house train Susie. Cat also taught Susan that his food belonged to him, not her. Susan learned very early in life that fooling with the razors Cat had on her feet was not a wise thing to do.
They slept together and as the pup grew up he would have a fitful time if Cat was not available to cuddle against him. And they loved chasing around the house. Mom was not keen about this and wanted them both outside. She did not share my sense of humor and enjoyment in watching them run through the house and over her best furniture. (Mothers are strange sometimes, to a nine year old.) But they had no problem chasing outdoors. And although Cat tried so very hard to teach Susie how to leap four times her own height, Susie was a failure at this. The best she could muster was twice her own shoulder height. I'm sure Cat felt he failed miserably in this lesson, but he never suggested Susie was a failure. He'd simply leap down and the chase would be on again. With all this chasing going on, Mother told me that one of the neighbors was concerned that Susie was trying to kill Cat. She explained they were only playing, but I don't know if he believed her or not. I do know he would often watch them at play and eventually walk away shaking his head because we wouldn't stop the dog from chasing the cat.

16 comments:

TomCat said...

The cat should rule. Of course, I'm not prejudiced.

Catmoves said...

Hi tomcat. Of course you're not prejudiced. Anyone can see that looking over your pages. Oh, oh, better not mention your handle. And BTW, cats DO rule. Ask my dog.

Shrink Wrapped Scream said...

Boy, I enjoyed that! Yup, our ball of fur sure keeps the mutt in line, too. Great post!

Women on the Verge said...

I have the best of both worlds. While I adore cats, my husband likes dogs so in order to compromise we got 2 Maine Coon cats... their cattitude satisfies the cat fancier in me and their size satisfies the dog lover in him.

E

B.T.Bear (esq.) said...

Hey these dogs are just wondering what recipe to use....

Jhee jhee jhee..

:@}

Catmoves said...

B.T.Bear(esq.) Good morning. (or whatever) Bears like you should have a strict diet of cuddles and carrying around and laughing. This diet will give you a shiny coat and a wonderful outlook on life. If you can, find a human that really wants to have you sleep with them. It does wonders for your waist line.

Michelle said...

Cute story! We had a "neighbour" like Cat, when I was a teen. We called him "meowmeow" because he was very talkative.
When they first moved in my dad looked out the front window and saw meowmeow being killed by a collie dog! He had him by the head and was shaking him. Meowmeow was comletely limp. :-(

My dad and I dashed down the road screaming, but Meowmeow was fine. It turned out that the collie and Meowmeow were buddies that grew up together. The game of drag-and shake-the-cat was one of their favourites.

For years after that we'd watch them play .. and watch newer neighbours panic at the cat getting mauled. ;-)

Catmoves said...

I would have been in panic stations too, Michelle.
We had a cat at one time who loved grabbing our Aussie Shepherd's throat fur and hanging from it while the dog took him on a tour of the house and grounds.

Lady_T said...

I personally think cats are better ;)

Catmoves said...

I hear you Lady T.

Spellbound said...

I am staff for 6 cats, none of whom I invited willingly into my home. I do recall reluctantly accepting one cat into the garage for a brief tenancy on the premise that we would find her a home. Unfortunately, she happened to be pregnant, so I let her stay, just until the kittens could be placed. Cats have a certain homing instinct for a sucker and no matter how many cats I managed to place in good homes, there seemed to be two to replace the original within weeks. I finally resigned myself to leaping over surprise hairballs, the thankless chore of the litter box, keeping tape rollers in every drawer and my car, and never, never, putting my black coat down on a flat surface. My only rewards are cute cat tricks and the sweet comfort of a purring cat in my lap as soon as I sit down. It seems to be more than enough.

Catmoves said...

spellbound, I'm glad you learned you learned the fact of being staff. I know what you mean.
And I also learned NOT to walk around the house barefoot. A stale, gooby mass between one's toes is not a pleasant affirmation that cats live in the house.
"My only rewards are cute cat tricks and the sweet comfort of a purring cat in my lap as soon as I sit down."
You have spelled out the secret of cats. Their magic is the comfort they supply when they truly care about us.
My oldest cat has taken to writing about "things" in these pages. She seems to do it when I am having a nap. Her name is Schotzy, and she certainly is that.

Suldog said...

Even as a dog, I know that cats rule :-)

Thanks for visiting over at my place!

Catmoves said...

My pleasure suldog. You have a good site. I'll be back.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for writing this.

Catmoves said...

You're welcome Xenia. Stop by any time.