Where did your love for cats come from?

[missatoms]

I always had cats growing up and liked them but I considered myself a dog person, through and through. We would always have more than one cat and I took to a couple of them but it was not what I considered to be "love".

Then my kitten Max found his way into my life. He was suffering from an upper respiratory infection and had a severe corneal ulcer on his left eye. When I took him to the vet his stomach was so distended it felt like it would pop from all the worms and/or malnutrition. The vet thought he was going to lose his eye.

After some antibiotics and a lot of TLC he recovered fully and is maturing into a beautiful cat. He's only about 4 months old now but I can already see how big and strong he's going to be.

It wasn't until I saved a cat that I felt such deep love for them. Now I want to save every cat on earth! This isn't feasible for anyone, of course, but that's where my love for cats came from.

BTW, this is Max before:

And this is Max now..

 

[mom of 10 cats]

What a handsome guy he is!!!

My Max is a girl kitty! (We named her before we knew she was a girl, and the name stuck).

I have loved cats since I was a little girl. I can remember getting in trouble for petting stray cats and dogs. I was 7 when we got our first cat. I had just seen Disney's "The Three Lives of Thomasina", and named her Thomasina. I have had cats in my life ever since!

 

[auroraviva]

I was raised with them. My mom is a "cat person" and passed that on to me. (My dad was a "dog person", LOL, so I really just love all animals.)

BTW -- You almost can't till it's the same kitten in those two pictures! How wonderful of you to take care of him!

 

[blondiecat]

You have done a great job with Max. He is adorable

I would have to say that my love of cats came from when I was very little and a stray cat showed up on our doorstep. After awhile this cat had kittens and I say them come into the world, it was love at first site for all of these little bundles of fur

 

[sylent rayne]

I grew up with cats. My Mom had Little Bits and she was with us until I was about 11 or so. Wonderful little cat. My entire family loves all animals, I've just always felt closer to cats than dogs.

 

[pat]

I imagine I loved them before my first cat, I have vague memories of a spitfire of a tortie who used to bite me, who lived on my gram's farm around the age of 2 I got my first cat, a seal point Siamese when I was 2+, and have been hooked ever since. He was the perfect cat for a chatty little girl, complete to allowing me to dress him in baby clothes and put in my baby buggy once

He lived until 3 weeks before I went to college, and I miss him still.

Your fellow is adorable, you could see it even when he was so tiny and ill. How lucky he is to have had you to take him in and care for him.

 

[tuxedokitties]

What an adorable kitten! You've done a great job with him...he looks like a different kitty now.

I've been around cats (and dogs) all my life...my mom loves animals & passed it on to me. We had a huge grey cat named Xerxes when I was a baby who taught us how cats like to be handled. I love dogs too, but cats hold a special place in my heart - I'm not sure I can explain why, maybe it's their comforting purrs, or the fact that an "independent" creature chooses to love me & be my companion. Cats do what they want, and when they choose to come live with me it makes me feel special.

 

[dougbug]

i love all animals, small and large ones, but i guess my love for cats comes from my grandmother, she always had cats, people would drop them off at her house because they knew she would take care of them and she did.

 

[felicia's mom]

When growing up, my family always had a cat. My grandmother lived next door, and she had three cats.

 

[okeefecl]

My love of cats comes from when I was a child. My Dad was a dog person, but since we lived in a townhouse (with a teeny-tiny backyard), my parents decided to get a cat instead. They had a cat, Loppy I, when I was born, but he was hit by a car. When I was 2 1/2, my parents adopted Loppy II (although she was a girl, she looked just like Loppy I) from my Mom's aunt. I've loved cats ever since.

 

[sicycat]

Wow!! Poor little before Max! He looks fabulous now!

I always grew up around cats too. I never liked dogs though

I was afraid of them. To this day I still have nightmares about dogs biting me and chasing me

My love for cats has seriously deepened over the years. It's so strong now that its just insane. I love them ALL. I wish I could have tons of cats like some of you.

 

[rfox]

We always had cats but I never really had a thing for them, had never really bonded with one. My sister was big time into cats, a lot more than me. I had always considered myself more of a dog person. I remember our first cat Tiffany. Orange and white she was very petite. We had found her on the tracks by our house as a kitten.

Over the years we kept getting more kittens and she was just a cat that was there. Some kittens mom brought back because they were too wild and some because we, as kids, would just bring home. We ended up having three cats, Tiffany included. She would come over when I called her and purr and rub her face on my hand. I remember her feeling frail and light to the touch (she being older).

It was before I graduated high school that I came home one day and all the cats were gone. My mom had brought them to the shelter because she didnt want to take care of them anymore. I kind of felt sad but that was about it. No more cats to look after! No more litterboxes to clean.

I often wonder what happened to Tiffany. To all our cats. Hairs aside, I now consider myself completely possessed by the feline charm. Its like they're the Borg. Resistance is futile!

I love my furbaby and even though my husband had a rough time accepting her and wanting to get her declawed (I knew it was wrong and *almost* said ok but then went online and reinforced my gut feeling

) he now loves her and since building the four foot scratch post, he now agrees he is glad I stopped him from declawing her.

 

[bren.1]

I had a cat when I was younger, he was really great. But my love for cats didn't really happen until I had my own. Tara ran up to me in a parking lot at a job I had years ago. She was my loving and faithful friend until I had to have her put to sleep 2 years ago. I still miss her sometimes. She was an amazing creature.

I now have 2 wonderful kitties, and I love them dearly. I have really come to appreciate the uniqueness of each cat, I think that is why I like them so much, they are individuals.

 

[purrfectcatlove]

How wonderfull your story is and it only took a sweet little kitten to make you a catlover .You have some very sweet kitties .

Well my story is a sad story . I was about 3 - 4 years old and we had a female cat , I adored her . She had kittens and I found the kittens in the Laundry room , they were all in a box and their throat were bleeding ( cut )

still crying over that . As a little girl seeing that it was awfull and a shock to me . I run to my Grandmother in tears (she raised me and my dad ) and told her that all the kittens were death in that box . She said really ? And walked with me to the Laundry room . My Grandmother said to me that she see a big dog comming in to the house and he must have killed all of them . I remember thinking to myself why did he not eat them and just bite them all by their throat and questoned my Grandmother but did not say anything to her . After all she would not lie , would she ? I also got a fear of big dogs from that time , but not any more now . The mother cat soon disapiert (sp) , maybe heartbrocken ? I don't know . Now I know that my dad did that each time any cats had kittens .Later on in life I told my dad when the cat has kittens give them to me and I find homes for them . And I always did . Later on I learnt about spaying cats and told them to spaye their female cats and in time they did . But since that time I always love cats and want to rescue all off them .

 

[jenng]

Honestly, before Spike I wasn't a fan of cats.

But when he fell asleep in my arms at 7.5 weeks, I instantly fell in love with him. And I think my whole attitude towards cats has changed since he came into my life. Before they were just cats... now they're little furry beings with their own thoughts and feelings, which should be taken into consideration. My heart aches when I see a stray or a kitty that needs attention or care. It all stemmed from bringing Spike home though - he turned me into a big softy.

 

[nighteyes]

My Mom was a cat lover. From the time I was a little girl, we always had a cat or two. I have always had a dog or cat or both that share my life.

 

[hissy]

I can't remember a time in my life when I didn't have cats. My father worked for the post office, and he was always bringing home strays that he found. My earliest recollection is of two big domestic long-hairs, both males, one pitch black the other Smokey gray. Their names were Smokey and Squeaky and instead of dolls or stuffed animals, I used to lug them around instead.

My father taught me to respect all animal life and as I grew up, our household always seemed to be teeming with kittens and cats. Back then, spay and neuter wasn't much of an issue and our mom cat Princess- a beautiful calico was the hot babe of the block! As I merged into adulthood, I would find strays or they would find me.

When Mike and I married it was an unspoken bond between us that we would help any stray or abused animal that crossed our paths. Mike has always loved German Shepherds, so we not only rescue abused cats but also abused German Shepherds. Mike is a very calm kitty-sitter and many's the night that finds him piled high with motherless kittens, sprawled across his chest, wrapped around his neck, laying on his lap. He has the patience of the saints about him, and when I am busy elsewhere, he thinks nothing of just letting the kits pile on him. I have also had the good fortune is assisting with the rescue of wild skunks and raccoons and even bats!

 

[superkitty]

MissAtoms, great story - Max has grown so beautiful and healthy under your care. And everyone's else stories.

Our love for cats is very recent. Both my husband and I come from (two different) cultures where pets just aren't done, at most thought of as things. My parents had dogs when I was young, but they were not treated well.

Couple of years ago, hubby and I had been discussing a pet of some kind to keep me company - hubby vetoed a dog, but had agreed on ONE cat.

June 25, 2002 I decided to visit our local shelter just to look, and fell in love with a wild little orange baby. Then I wanted a playmate for my little kitty. And so on. This past year has been an amazing learning experience about these fantastic little beings. We are so in love with our little treasures; they have catnapped our hearts. The sheer sappiness of my post says it all.

The little guy that started it all:

 

[glentheman20]

MissAtoms, you've done a great job with Max! He looks very healthy and happy. I love hearing all your stories about how you fell in love with cats. Like most people, I got involved with cats later in life.

In my case, it began last June. I was working as a web designer for a couple. It was a very, very small company and I was actually working in their house. Well, the first day I came for my interview their male black cat, Midnight, came right up to me and weaved around my ankles. They also had a calico cat, Racheal, who was sitting down in another room staring at me.

As the days went on, Midnight would greet me at the door, jump up on my desk, stick his butt in my face, and let me pet him. He wasn't a lap cat (if you put him in your lap he rebounded out, like a compressed spring), but you could hold him like a baby and pet him for hours. His favorite thing was a cheek scratch; the second I put my hands on his cheeks he sank to the floor, purring away. All this time Racheal would sit in her corner.

After about two months, Racheal finally wandered over to the "work" area. My boss was even surprised, saying "Hey, Racheal's finally coming over to say hi." She rubbed against me, but when I pet her she kind of jumped. She was VERY skittish. She spent the rest of that day hiding behind a couch (but at least she was in the same room as us and Midnight). In the following days, she would stay nearby. I would pet her, and her tail would swish wildly. I didn't know what that meant at the time! One day, she came into the work area and suddenly jumped on my lap, much to everyone's surprise (she's very picky about her people). I was petting her as usual, and her tail started swishing, and she finally bit me. I was shocked! Well, as strange as it sounds, it was this event that finally got me hooked on cats. I really wanted to understand why she did that, so I looked it up on the internet. Well, I found a whole bunch of info, and quickly learned about overstimulation and the signs to look out for.

There was one specific incident that seemed to be the defining moment that she bonded to me. I was doing my work, and she jumped onto the desk for some lovin'. After a few pets, I got back to work. She sat there, on the side of my monitor, not even a foot away from my face, and just STARED at me. I knew by this point not to stare back, so I just continued doing my thing. After 10 minutes, my boss laughed and asked how I could work with a cat glaring at me. She stared at me for another 10 minutes and then curled up and went to sleep! I don't know what that was all about, but I can only guess that she was evaluating me, and in the end decided I was good people. From that day on, she would jump on my lap, get her 5 minutes of lovin' (she loved lap time, but not for a long time), and then go to sleep on my desk. Oh, she was 14 years old at the time, so she did a lot of sleeping. I would take my jacket off and let her sleep on it. Towards the end of my stint working there, they referred to her as my cat

Oh, Midnight still came around, but as Racheal claimed my area as her territory, he went back to wrecking their house.

Racheal has since passed on, but I'll never forget her. We just clicked for some reason. When I stopped working there, I started to want a cat of my own to take care of. I looked forward to seeing a cat everyday! Then, when September rolled around, Snowball came into my life, but that's whole 'nother story

 

[ttmom]

Max is so sweet! I'm so glad someone nice found him!

We had a boy kitty named Daffodil because we got him from my friend and she thought he was a girl and thus named him. We called him Daffy most of the time though.

When my parents got married my Dad was a dog person and my Mom was a cat person (she once had almost 30 cats while growing up). My Dad gave my Mom a cat as a wedding present and she gave him a dog. It wasn't long before my Dad realized he loved all animals, but my Mom is still a cat person (she likes dogs, just not as much as the kitties).

When I was born they had a big marmalade Tom named Felix. He and I bonded almost immediately (they have some kooky pictures of me harrassing poor Felix when he was bigger than I was). Since then, I've been a yeller cat person.

Now, since seeing Zoey and the other blues on the site, I've decided that I'd like my next cat to be a blue or a Maine Coon (Toes is part Maine Coon).