We had cats when I was growing up and I do not recall one traumatic incident that would make me wary of cats. In fact, I think kittens are cute and cuddly but grown cats seem very devious to me. I know people keep cats as pets and sometimes to help in controlling mice. Somehow, a mouth that has had a mouse in it, turns me off!
"People that hate cats
will come back as mice
in the next life."
Faith Resnick
My brother and sister-in-law have cats and after being in their home, I accept their cats. Most of their cats are friendly and wander the house on quiet paws. The only time I hear them meow is when they are hungry.
Some of the antics of their cats are hilarious, some are cute, and some can be darn right lovable. Yet, I still do not want a cat for a pet.
My fear of cats came to me around 1962. I had been married a few months when I began to have nightmares about cats. A cat would leap on me and I could feel its claws in my flesh. Soon, another cat would jump up and before long, I felt myself suffocating with hundred of cats jumping at me. No matter how hard, or fast, I pulled the cats off, more cats would keep jumping on me. My arm would tire as I grabbed cats by the scruff of the neck and slung them away from me. I would awaken, shaken, my heart pounding and my body covered in sweat. It was a relief to realize it was only a dream.
It bothers me that cats wander the house silently in a world of their own. That they only want to be petted when they feel like being petted. That they seem to live in their own private space. That when they look at me with those slanted eyes, I can't tell what they are thinking. Do they see me as friend or foe? How their eyes glow in the dark. And how they can sink their claws into my arm without a second thought!
"When my cats aren't happy, I'm not happy.
Not because I care about their mood but
because I know they're just sitting there
thinking up ways to get even."
Percy Bysshe Shelley This morning on the news my not liking cats for pets was cinched. I realized why cats are not my favorite pet. A man had to call 911 because their pet cat held his family prisoner in a bedroom. The cat had attacked the baby when the child pulled its tail. The father kicked the cat away and the drama began. The cat began attacking the family and the only recourse was to lock themselves in the bedroom. Every time they tried to open the door the cat screeched and attacked the door. The frightened family called 911 for help. In the recording to the emergency number, the cat's high-pitched shriek can be heard.
The story has convinced me that I do not want cats around me. I have a feeling that a cat would know, or sense, my thoughts about not liking cats and who knows what evil plans he might have for me.
"Cats are mysterious kind
of folk. There is more
passing in their mind than
we are aware of."
Sir Walter Scott
Family photos of cats living in Massachusetts!
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