An Itty Bitty Rant

I can not fathom people who treat animals in any way other than companions.  Granted, one must be careful around wild animals.  But domesticated animals, dogs, cats, etc.  I just don't get it.  People who dump kittens on the side of the road.  Ones who dump two unspayed females out because the woman got pregnant.  We didn't find out about that one until the kittens were born.  In fact, one of the kittens ended up breaking his hip and even though we really couldn't afford it, Christopher became my first cat as an adult (my first husband let me have gerbils but no cats).  He lived to be 16 and died of kidney failure.  I've rescued a number of other cats since then, and every single one of them, if they weren't already, was neutered or spayed.  Yes, Tims and Princesses in my house... no Toms & Queens.

I just wish that people who did abandoned or otherwise hurt animals could be subjected to the same treatment they gave the animals.  Then maybe they'd understand why so many people think it's cruel.  Okay... done ranting for the day.

Oberon or Kitten??

While we've been calling the 15 pound, 3 year old 'kitten' Oberon, he still hasn't really responded to it.  I was beginning to think that he was deaf.  Seriously, no response from this cat no matter what you called him.  Not on Mommy Brown's Table™, not trying to get him to come in, not trying to get him to get out of the sink so you can wash your hands, and so on and so on and, well you see the dilemma.  Oddly enough, for the last few nights I've been able to get him to come dashing in (there being no other way to get inside other than using his Amazing SuperSonic Powers™) by calling "Kitten!  Come on in Kitten!" and such.  ::shakes head::  After three years, we may have finally hit on a name he will respond to, rather than being the Cat with the Identity Crisis™.

He has also taken to sleeping with my husband.  Very sweetly.  Enough so that you tend to look around for a camera.  Yes, Kodak moments.  ::suppresses laughter::  Mind you, while Kitten is doing this, my husband is petting him and saying things like, "I don't want cats." "I don't like cats." "You are nuisance." "I don't like you much, I don't know why you're here." and "You know I never wanted any cats at all." (I had five cats when we got married, he had one).  But my husband sounds just like my Daddy used to sound.  He would be all grumpy sounding, going on about how the cats weren't worth feeding, they never did any work around the house, they couldn't fetch slippers etc... but then you'd catch him petting the cats saying, "You know I don' t like you very much, right?"  And the cats keep on purring.

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