What drives us cat people crazy...

[gitabooks]

As animal lovers we often find ourselves baffled by what others say, do, or don't know about animals. We don't understand that its only natural that someone who hasn't spent owners doting over their cat, dog, parrot, ect wouldn't know their specific personality and likes. Just like we might not know all 100 and something character names to our brother's favorite computer game (that's me

).

This is just a fun list, nothing really serious. I couldn't help but share some of the things that drive me crazy about "animal" people who don't know what they're talking about. And we all don't know everything, so don't be offended or anything. I'm learning something every day.   : )

I guess I could call these my PET Peeves.

"My Russian Blue"  -   It drives me crazy when people adopt a random stray cat that is blue and call it a "Russian Blue" like it is a pure-bred, perfectly selected, registered pure-bred from Russian when its really just a pretty stray cat found somewhere near their house. Russian Blue is a breed, not a color.

"Cats and Dogs are different breeds"   -   A breed is not a color or shape, and it is not a species. A cat is a species, not a breed. A breed is an animal selected for many generations to a consistent appearance (by humans) with-in a species. And a color or shape is a type, not a breed or species either.

"A Tiger Cat"   -   I don't know why this one bothers me so much, but when people describe their tabbies as "tiger colored" I'm just like "NOT THE OFFICIAL TERM" which is silly, but I'm a bit picky I guess. It would be called a Mackerel or Pin-stripe Tabby. Tiger is a species of large panthera from Asia.

"Freshly Scented Cat Litter"   -    This one makes sense because my family and I are allergic (highly sensitive) to strong, chemical scents. I think its funny that I would replace the smell of cat doo with a chemical that makes me cough and unable to breath (let alone sleep) in my room.

"Mitten paw"   -   not really annoying as much as confusing. Mittens are used to describe white paws in cats but it is also a term used by some to describe extra toes (polydactly) because it looks like a mitten instead of a glove. I want to say "it's polydactyl" but that's almost impossible to spell anyways, so maybe Mitten Paw is easier.   : )

"Anyone who suggests I bathe, collar, trim the nails of, walk on a harness, or brush the teeth of my insane cat"  -  some people can do these things with their cats, but there ain't no way that anyone is going to get me to attempt these things with Nym. They just don't know him like I do. He asks for some cuddles, to go in and out, to be praised for catching mice, to follow you on walks, for food, and to be acknowledged, but handling or playing with are strictly off limits, at least right now. And I even bottle raised him the silly guy.

Feel free to add you're own! Remember, all in fun and games (not arguments, arguments are for Nym and me).

 

[Kieka]

"Awww, he wants a belly rub" - Nope, he is trusting me enough NOT to touch that belly. It is a trap and you touch at your own risk. 

"Puss in Boot Eyes, so cute. I just want to cuddle him." - Yeah, no. That is really wild child super hyper or hunting mode eyes OR (recently learned) drugged kitty eyes. Whichever, move slowly so you don't startle him or become his prey yourself. Unless you want to offer a toy for him to play with. But cuddles? You will get scratched up if you even try that. 

"Oh, it's okay. I have a cat and they let me ____ all the time." My cat is not your cat. My cats are not all the same. One might be okay with you petting her back, the other will sink claws an inch in if you even dare touch his back. Cats are not the same and should be treated as individuals.

"All cats are jerks." Cats are smart and, yes I concede, some are jerks. But a lot of cats are just acting out because of boredom, to see what happens, or because it gets a reaction from you.

"Cats don't bond with people like dogs do" Rocket won't settle down for the night until I am in bed. If I am not home she needs to be near Link or Fury or sleeping, otherwise she starts to freak out. Link hates being alone in the house and will cry at the nearest door or window with a toy in his mouth to get my Mom back in the house to play with him. Fury will wait for my Mom to take his afternoon nap with her and will actively search her out if she's late.  

"Animals aren't smart" You're funny. I bet you believe that Columbus found America too. 

"Animal don't have feelings/emotions" Now you're just being silly. That's like saying someone speaking a foreign language is just speaking gibberish. Just because you don't understand it doesn't mean it doesn't mean anything. 

 

[kittens mom]

Having a clerk at the check out start telling me what a jerk her cat is while I have a cart full of goodies for my cat.

Standing in line in a pet store when the dimwit behind me decides her doggy needs to meet everyone and lets the retractable leash go. Mind you the dog was snarling and barking and growling at everyone. I stepped back out of range and the woman instantly pulled her dog back then looked at the items in my hand and said Oh She's a cat owner in a tone that suggested I have a disease. No I just don't want any strange animals jumping on me. I really don't like dogs at all but as long as they're leashed and under control I'm not bothered by them being in a pet store.

 

[margd]

Many of my pet peeves have already been mentioned but one that really gets to me is:  "Cat's are sneaky."   Sez who?  Every cat is a unique being with his or her own personality traits and many are complete snuggle bunnies.  Others are shy and hide but this is not being sneaky.  You know who is sneaky?  Some human beings.  I don't know if cats even have it in them to be sneaky.  

 

[Kieka]

 
Having a clerk at the check out start telling me what a jerk her cat is while I have a cart full of goodies for my cat.

Standing in line in a pet store when the dimwit behind me decides her doggy needs to meet everyone and lets the retractable leash go. Mind you the dog was snarling and barking and growling at everyone. I stepped back out of range and the woman instantly pulled her dog back then looked at the items in my hand and said Oh She's a cat owner in a tone that suggested I have a disease. No I just don't want any strange animals jumping on me. I really don't like dogs at all but as long as they're leashed and under control I'm not bothered by them being in a pet store.

So there with you. I was walking around the local park when this woman came towards me with her little dog off leash. I keep an eye on the dog because

1) I don't want to walk in poop since they seem to just go wherever and I doubt the womans ability to pick it up since she can't bother with bringing a leash. I doubt she's hiding a poop bag.

2) I don't want to trip on the little dog. Hurting me or hurting the dog is not on my list of things to do.

3) its off leash and that's just stupid in public so my mind is randomly running in different directions (my brother has a pit-bull he can't take out in public anymore because an off leash idiot don't watch their dog. The dog was a good quarter mile ahead of the owner at a local park and a tiny dog decided to take on 100+ pound all muscle dog. Guess who lost?).

The woman sees me watching the dog and tells me not to worry; her dog won't bite me. The dog is smaller than my cat, trust me I can handle the pup. Why people think their dog can be off leash in public places is beyond me. I have seen very few dogs who are non-reactive, mellow and trained well enough to be off leash outside of dog parks and even then people bring unsocalized dogs in and ruin it for everyone else. 

 

[Primula]

Last summer at a tag sale one daft woman said it was ok to pet her little mutt. So I did & the bloody thing bit me.

 

[kittens mom]

 
So there with you. I was walking around the local park when this woman came towards me with her little dog off leash. I keep an eye on the dog because

1) I don't want to walk in poop since they seem to just go wherever and I doubt the womans ability to pick it up since she can't bother with bringing a leash. I doubt she's hiding a poop bag.

2) I don't want to trip on the little dog. Hurting me or hurting the dog is not on my list of things to do.

3) its off leash and that's just stupid in public so my mind is randomly running in different directions (my brother has a pit-bull he can't take out in public anymore because an off leash idiot don't watch their dog. The dog was a good quarter mile ahead of the owner at a local park and a tiny dog decided to take on 100+ pound all muscle dog. Guess who lost?).

The woman sees me watching the dog and tells me not to worry; her dog won't bite me. The dog is smaller than my cat, trust me I can handle the pup. Why people think their dog can be off leash in public places is beyond me. I have seen very few dogs who are non-reactive, mellow and trained well enough to be off leash outside of dog parks and even then people bring unsocalized dogs in and ruin it for everyone else. 

The woman in the pet store frustrated me. Her dog was on a short leash and it was lunging at everyone yapping and carrying on. She just sort of announced that her doggy wanted to see everyone and let the dog loose on about a 12 foot length. The other person with a dog stepped back. The store is right across the street from the VCA we use so my husband can watch them for a minute while I run in with my list. Every time I go in there's an uncomfortable situation via dog owner in store. I know they love their dogs. I don't. I polite as possible avoid all eye contact and head for the cat section and then scoot for the register. I stopped buying anything in pet smart that is on the bottom two shelves after seeing more than one dog hike it's leg and pee.

One thing to add. You are not socializing your dog by letting it think it can run up and jump on everyone. And just so it's fair I had an ex SIL hand me a cat she had just adopted , Well shove it on me and I ended up with my neck and chest all scratched up.

 

[Kieka]

 
 just so it's fair I had an ex SIL hand me a cat she had just adopted , Well shove it on me and I ended up with my neck and chest all scratched up.

Yeah. Some people in general forget that not everyone wants to meet and love on their animals or are poor judges of their pets reaction to stranger situations/people. 

 

[LTS3]

 
The woman in the pet store frustrated me. Her dog was on a short leash and it was lunging at everyone yapping and carrying on.

I hate those types of dog owners

A few years ago new residents moved into a unit down the hall. I don't kow if they had dogs when they moved in or got the dogs later. But they had two medium-ish dogs that were super AGGRESSIVE to everyone. I don't know what breed the dogs were. They looked like some kind of mixed-breed or mutt. The dogs had to wear muzzles just to be take out to be walked. And they lunged and growled and snapped at everyone. It happened to me a few times when I was heading to the trash room. I was a good 20 feet away down the hall. As soon as the dogs started lunging at me, I started backing up down the hall. The woman who was walking the dogs didn't say anything at all, not even scolding the dogs to behave or to tell them NO. She just stared blankly at me and literally dragged her still lunging growling dogs by the leash to the elevator. I complained to the property manager about the dogs being aggressive. I'm sure others complained as well. That woman, her SO / DH / BF, and the dogs eventally moved out. I bet the dogs' aggressive behavior was partly why.

 

[Norachan]

 
I hate those types of dog owners

A few years ago new residents moved into a unit down the hall. I don't kow if they had dogs when they moved in or got the dogs later. But they had two medium-ish dogs that were super AGGRESSIVE to everyone. I don't know what breed the dogs were. They looked like some kind of mixed-breed or mutt. The dogs had to wear muzzles just to be take out to be walked. And they lunged and growled and snapped at everyone. It happened to me a few times when I was heading to the trash room. I was a good 20 feet away down the hall. As soon as the dogs started lunging at me, I started backing up down the hall. The woman who was walking the dogs didn't say anything at all, not even scolding the dogs to behave or to tell them NO. She just stared blankly at me and literally dragged her still lunging growling dogs by the leash to the elevator. I complained to the property manager about the dogs being aggressive. I'm sure others complained as well. That woman, her SO / DH / BF, and the dogs eventally moved out. I bet the dogs' aggressive behavior was partly why.

I always feel so sorry for the dogs in those kind of situations. It's the owners fault for not taking the trouble to train and socialise them properly, but if the dogs ever do bite anyone it will be the dogs that have to pay the price.

I'm not much of a dog person myself, but my sister is a dog sitter/walker and she's a real whizz at training them. She regularly fosters problem dogs from her local shelter and gets them ready for adoption.

My pet peeves, when I tell people how many cats I have;

"You have how many cats? Can you tell them all apart? Do they all have names? How do you remember their names?"

It's funny that when I tell people I'm a teacher I never get asked,

"You have how many kids in the class? Can you tell then apart? How do you remember their names?"

 

[tomcat60]

People saying dogs are more friendly

When the clerk looks at us when we are buying cat food and we have to tell them we feed 3 cats

 

[kittens mom]

 
I hate those types of dog owners

A few years ago new residents moved into a unit down the hall. I don't kow if they had dogs when they moved in or got the dogs later. But they had two medium-ish dogs that were super AGGRESSIVE to everyone. I don't know what breed the dogs were. They looked like some kind of mixed-breed or mutt. The dogs had to wear muzzles just to be take out to be walked. And they lunged and growled and snapped at everyone. It happened to me a few times when I was heading to the trash room. I was a good 20 feet away down the hall. As soon as the dogs started lunging at me, I started backing up down the hall. The woman who was walking the dogs didn't say anything at all, not even scolding the dogs to behave or to tell them NO. She just stared blankly at me and literally dragged her still lunging growling dogs by the leash to the elevator. I complained to the property manager about the dogs being aggressive. I'm sure others complained as well. That woman, her SO / DH / BF, and the dogs eventally moved out. I bet the dogs' aggressive behavior was partly why.

Even the best behaved pet can get scared and bite.

 
People saying dogs are more friendly

When the clerk looks at us when we are buying cat food and we have to tell them we feed 3 cats

I had a clerk telling the person in front of me that they couldn't heat their home last winter because their dog needed surgery and it took all their money. and then...telling me I sure spend a lot of money on cats.  Or the ever shrinking variety in cat food while the dog goodies and toys take up 9/10 of the pet aisle.  Our local wally has remodeled and almost made cat supplies an afterthought.

 

[sweetonyx]

I live in a country where cats are rarely pets, and most people who have cats only use them for pest control. I have had a few cats while living here and have heard all of the following:

Cats are scary/mean/annoying.

You should just get a chihuahua instead, they are nicer, and just as small. (seriously, I have never met a nice chihuahua!)

And my favorite that I hear most often:
Do you feed it? You should not, it won't hunt mice if you do!

 

[moorspede]

I was taking my cat to the vet for her shot one day and accidentally got off the bus a few stops early. I was trying to navigate my way around a crowd of people when I heard someone say "there's the cat lady" in am aggressive way. I turned around and couldn't stop myself from laughing. It was a teenager in a tuxedo (it was Saturday morning) under an awning which stated "Dancing School". Needless to say, he wasn't impressed. 

 

[LTS3]

 
Even the best behaved pet can get scared and bite.

I'm sure the dogs were well behaved at home with their owners but once they were taken out to be walked, they were aggressive and the woman (it was always the woman walking the dogs) never tried to control her dogs in any way

The sweet elderly golden retriever who lives next door to those dogs was too afraid to walk past their door because they would be snarling barking and trying to get through the door at her. She had to be picked up and carried to get to the elevator and back.

 

[gitabooks]

 
"Awww, he wants a belly rub" - Nope, he is trusting me enough NOT to touch that belly. It is a trap and you touch at your own risk. 

"Puss in Boot Eyes, so cute. I just want to cuddle him." - Yeah, no. That is really wild child super hyper or hunting mode eyes OR (recently learned) drugged kitty eyes. Whichever, move slowly so you don't startle him or become his prey yourself. Unless you want to offer a toy for him to play with. But cuddles? You will get scratched up if you even try that. 

"Oh, it's okay. I have a cat and they let me ____ all the time." My cat is not your cat. My cats are not all the same. One might be okay with you petting her back, the other will sink claws an inch in if you even dare touch his back. Cats are not the same and should be treated as individuals.

"All cats are jerks." Cats are smart and, yes I concede, some are jerks. But a lot of cats are just acting out because of boredom, to see what happens, or because it gets a reaction from you.

"Cats don't bond with people like dogs do" Rocket won't settle down for the night until I am in bed. If I am not home she needs to be near Link or Fury or sleeping, otherwise she starts to freak out. Link hates being alone in the house and will cry at the nearest door or window with a toy in his mouth to get my Mom back in the house to play with him. Fury will wait for my Mom to take his afternoon nap with her and will actively search her out if she's late.  

"Animals aren't smart" You're funny. I bet you believe that Columbus found America too. 

"Animal don't have feelings/emotions" Now you're just being silly. That's like saying someone speaking a foreign language is just speaking gibberish. Just because you don't understand it doesn't mean it doesn't mean anything. 

Love it! Especially the "Puss in Boot Eyes" because that is what our Nym does right before he lunges for you. Not pleading for attention, this is an all out warning that crazy cat is being released.   : )

 
Having a clerk at the check out start telling me what a jerk her cat is while I have a cart full of goodies for my cat.

Standing in line in a pet store when the dimwit behind me decides her doggy needs to meet everyone and lets the retractable leash go. Mind you the dog was snarling and barking and growling at everyone. I stepped back out of range and the woman instantly pulled her dog back then looked at the items in my hand and said Oh She's a cat owner in a tone that suggested I have a disease. No I just don't want any strange animals jumping on me. I really don't like dogs at all but as long as they're leashed and under control I'm not bothered by them being in a pet store.

People seem to think cat people can't like dogs. I love all animals, both cats and dogs. At the shelter I walk a dog, then put it away and pet a cat, then go and give water to a dog, then change the litter box of a cat. Its interchangeable.  

 
Many of my pet peeves have already been mentioned but one that really gets to me is:  "Cat's are sneaky."   Sez who?  Every cat is a unique being with his or her own personality traits and many are complete snuggle bunnies.  Others are shy and hide but this is not being sneaky.  You know who is sneaky?  Some human beings.  I don't know if cats even have it in them to be sneaky.  

Would it be mean to say that some cats are little, adorable dummies?

   They couldn't be sneaky if they wanted to. It can seem pretty sneaky when they do the most adorable thing to get you to stay and pet them longer, but that's just intelligence in the works.   : )

 
So there with you. I was walking around the local park when this woman came towards me with her little dog off leash. I keep an eye on the dog because

1) I don't want to walk in poop since they seem to just go wherever and I doubt the womans ability to pick it up since she can't bother with bringing a leash. I doubt she's hiding a poop bag.

2) I don't want to trip on the little dog. Hurting me or hurting the dog is not on my list of things to do.

3) its off leash and that's just stupid in public so my mind is randomly running in different directions (my brother has a pit-bull he can't take out in public anymore because an off leash idiot don't watch their dog. The dog was a good quarter mile ahead of the owner at a local park and a tiny dog decided to take on 100+ pound all muscle dog. Guess who lost?).

The woman sees me watching the dog and tells me not to worry; her dog won't bite me. The dog is smaller than my cat, trust me I can handle the pup. Why people think their dog can be off leash in public places is beyond me. I have seen very few dogs who are non-reactive, mellow and trained well enough to be off leash outside of dog parks and even then people bring unsocalized dogs in and ruin it for everyone else. 

That's a hard one. People always want to trust their dog, they feel its betraying them not too. In my opinion it is far better for the dog to know its limits, since this protects it not only from stress but also from getting in trouble with the law. Our 1-year-old Aussie mix is very suspicious and protective, so we are always careful around him with strangers, but our little maltese mix would love anyone to pieces, so as long as the person likes dogs we let her greet them without stopping her. Knowing your dog has to do with a lot more than just trusting them.

Last summer at a tag sale one daft woman said it was ok to pet her little mutt. So I did & the bloody thing bit me.

At least we cat people warn others that our cats aren't always complete angels. Its the thing with cats, they get in trouble far less for bites then dogs.

 
The woman in the pet store frustrated me. Her dog was on a short leash and it was lunging at everyone yapping and carrying on. She just sort of announced that her doggy wanted to see everyone and let the dog loose on about a 12 foot length. The other person with a dog stepped back. The store is right across the street from the VCA we use so my husband can watch them for a minute while I run in with my list. Every time I go in there's an uncomfortable situation via dog owner in store. I know they love their dogs. I don't. I polite as possible avoid all eye contact and head for the cat section and then scoot for the register. I stopped buying anything in pet smart that is on the bottom two shelves after seeing more than one dog hike it's leg and pee.

One thing to add. You are not socializing your dog by letting it think it can run up and jump on everyone. And just so it's fair I had an ex SIL hand me a cat she had just adopted , Well shove it on me and I ended up with my neck and chest all scratched up.

At the shelter where I work, you can't let dogs meet all the people, especially rambunctious, big dogs around children. Trust me, it can be a challenge, but it is our job to stop them from doing anything that makes others uncomfortable.

 
I always feel so sorry for the dogs in those kind of situations. It's the owners fault for not taking the trouble to train and socialise them properly, but if the dogs ever do bite anyone it will be the dogs that have to pay the price.

I'm not much of a dog person myself, but my sister is a dog sitter/walker and she's a real whizz at training them. She regularly fosters problem dogs from her local shelter and gets them ready for adoption.

My pet peeves, when I tell people how many cats I have;

"You have how many cats? Can you tell them all apart? Do they all have names? How do you remember their names?"

It's funny that when I tell people I'm a teacher I never get asked,

"You have how many kids in the class? Can you tell then apart? How do you remember their names?"

Yep, I've got 75 chickens and know all their names. People don't even ask me that really because I don't think they believe I can. I take pride in knowing all my pets.   : )

 
People saying dogs are more friendly

When the clerk looks at us when we are buying cat food and we have to tell them we feed 3 cats

All animals are individuals. However, I will say that dogs, being social, give far more obvious body language about their thoughts than cats, who communicate more rarely with one another in the wild. On the other hand, cat owners learn to read their cat like a book, so it doesn't really matter. They are incredibly friendly too, and can show it openly or in more subtle ways like a blink.

I live in a country where cats are rarely pets, and most people who have cats only use them for pest control. I have had a few cats while living here and have heard all of the following:

Cats are scary/mean/annoying.

You should just get a chihuahua instead, they are nicer, and just as small. (seriously, I have never met a nice chihuahua!)

And my favorite that I hear most often:
Do you feed it? You should not, it won't hunt mice if you do!

Hahaha!!! It won't hunt mice! That's like saying a fat dog won't chase a squirrel. Trust me, they love it. They may not always eat the mice, but they want to chase them. They'll spend all night doing it, catch a mouse, bring it too you and beg for food. It's what they do. Our 4-week-old orphan kitten caught and killed his first mouse without a seconds hesitation.

 
I was taking my cat to the vet for her shot one day and accidentally got off the bus a few stops early. I was trying to navigate my way around a crowd of people when I heard someone say "there's the cat lady" in am aggressive way. I turned around and couldn't stop myself from laughing. It was a teenager in a tuxedo (it was Saturday morning) under an awning which stated "Dancing School". Needless to say, he wasn't impressed. 

With just one cat? Wow, he needs to meet me then. Sometimes we have all 7 of our dogs in one vehicle. Or when I'm walking and have my 7 chickens following behind me. I'm more of a crazy chicken lady, I just am crazy about cats.   : )

 

[misty8723]

Something that happened quite a while ago when I was buying cat food and talking to the cashier about trying to find something my cat would eat. The guy behind me piped up and said "just put in down, when she get's hungry, she'll eat it."  Um...you obviously DON'T know cats and I'm not starving mine just to prove a point.

 

[sweetonyx]

Something that happened quite a while ago when I was buying cat food and talking to the cashier about trying to find something my cat would eat. The guy behind me piped up and said "just put in down, when she get's hungry, she'll eat it."  Um...you obviously DON'T know cats and I'm not starving mine just to prove a point.

I hate that as well! I had the pickiest eater, seriously she would only eat seafood wishes, she wouldn't even eat hamburger meat when my mother would offer it to her.

 

[Norachan]

With just one cat? Wow, he needs to meet me then. Sometimes we have all 7 of our dogs in one vehicle. Or when I'm walking and have my 7 chickens following behind me. I'm more of a crazy chicken lady, I just am crazy about cats.   : )

I would love to see some pictures of that!

 

[ginny]

What really bothers me is the term "crazy cat lady" especially when this term is used by cat haters, but just in general too.  It's as if we have been written off by society as a bunch of nut jobs who are mislabeled crazy simply because we like cats and have them as pets.   Not all societies feel this way, thank goodness, but here in the US it is sadly so.  I can't find a more eloquent way of expressing my thoughts on this than "Kitten-lady" did on youtube, if I may link to it below: