Do you ever stop and think -

[Deleted]

how weird it is to have furry animals living in your home?

Cats are particularly weird because they often just sit and STARE at you.  Waiting for something to happen.

Or weaving around in front of you, threatening to trip you over.

Or making you afraid to turn over in bed in case you wake them up.

Or maybe I'm at home too much, lol.

[Shirley U Geste]

how weird it is to have furry animals living in your home?

I try not to think of it.

Because in reality I am living in their home, and they keep me here just to be their housekeeper.  

[chapeaunoir]

I can't bear the thought of a house without animals of SOME sort in it - any sort of animal - bird, cat, dog, fish, lizards, doesn't matter. I made it for an entire year once with no pet and it was just so...lonely without a critter to care for.

Curious thing about cats - they were almost unheard of in ancient Rome, but worshiped in Egypt - in Alexandria cats basically ran the streets because they were considered little gods. Killing a cat was punishable by death. The Romans just couldn't figure out why anyone would have these 'little lions' inside because they seemed so dangerous with their unbiddable temperaments, claws and teeth, and doing horrible things like clawing their way up inside one's toga.

[blissfullymiserable]

The only critter in this house is a stray cricket. I so badly want a dog but I also want to travel and not have to worry about my little critter friend when I'm away

[Deleted]

May 17, 2015 0:36:49 GMT blissfullymiserable said:

The only critter in this house is a stray cricket. I so badly want a dog but I also want to travel and not have to worry about my little critter friend when I'm away

LOL.  I went on a day trip once a few hours away and found myself in a shop stroking a sheepskin rug and missing my cats.

[Deleted]

The first time I had to leave Chloe for a weekend, she was still pretty small so she stayed with my parents. I borrowed a cell phone to call and check on her, lol. I don't think it is weird to live with furry creatures but I do think it is weird that I had two different reptiles in my trash can tonight at work - a frog and a snake, both deliberately herded in there to save them from the cats.

[Deleted]

No pets inside this house either. (We used to have a white mouse named George, though he crossed the rainbow bridge about a year ago.) BUT we do have two ferrals that roam our land thinking they're the top dogs critters around here!  My daughter is going away to college in September.  She is the favorite human of these two felines.  They will all miss each other something terrible. 

[Deleted]

I always had pets until I got married, then we didn't have any for about 12 years. Got a dog that we wound up having to rehome due to her extreme guarding and food aggression but got another while we still had her and still have that one. She's 5 now. Funny thing is those 12 years we were pet free were the only mostly allergy free years I've ever had. Never knew I was allergic to dogs until I got one again. Been miserable ever since as far as allergies go but she's worth it. She's just a goof ball, wouldn't know what to do without her in the house.

But she doesn't like strangers or other pets so kenneling her to go on vacation isn't an option. DH is about at his limit as far as that goes and wants to send her to a kennel like it or not. I can't do it, how can I go have fun when I know she's miserable? Think next year I might look at renting a pet friendly house in FL or some where and take her with us. Not sure how she'd do at a strange house, especially when we were gone for a few hours, think she'd travel ok, she likes to ride in the car but that would be a very long ride for her.

I don't know but I have to figure out something so we can get a family vacation and she isn't some where she hates for 2 or 3 weeks.

[val2525]

Try a pet sitter, peek. You may have to 'test out' several before you find The One, but you'll find one. My dog had 3 over the years that he absolutely loved, and he could be unfriendly at times. And he had one that he hated (as did us humans, LOL). Guy was an obnoxious jerk.

[Deleted]

She has an extremely nervous bladder, no one can touch her except for us or she'll pee all over the place. Poor girls in the vet office have to clean every surface by the time she's done with her visit. When she's away from the house (other than the peeing) she isn't aggressive or anything with strangers just very shy, but at home she won't allow anyone in unless I let them in. Even people that have been here dozens of times have to be let in or she'll put them back on the porch. She will let my Mom come in when we are gone but she lives a bit too far away to have her come over several times a day and our dog doesn't like her dog (even though it's her sister) so letting her stay there isn't an option.

Think I've run through every scenario in my head and taking her with us is the only way we are going to be able to vacation. She hopefully has lots of years left with us and not vacation for another 10+ years isn't going to work. I NEED a vacation soon. I can skip taking a cruise until then if I absolutely have to (might cry but I can do it) but need some kind of get away to save my sanity LOL

[Deleted]

I didn't grow up with furry pets, so when I stop and think about it, it does seem a little weird. We've had cats on and off since I got married, but we got our first dog 10 years ago. The first evening she was here, my son said "Isn't this weird that there's this big animal just walking around in our house?".

[Deleted]

I think you may have hit on my problem, classring - I grew up with outside-only pets (except fish). So it's bizarre having this creature (or 4 creatures, in my case) walking all over the furniture.

[val2525]

Our pets were always indoor pets. I don't understand people who have pets and never let the pets inside. I understand some pets only being outside pets, like feral cats, the barnyard cats, etc. I even get it if you live on a farm.

I have a client who gave their outside only dogs up to the shelter here because the house they were moving to in FL didn't have a fenced in yard and the dogs were outside only. Dogs had a heated-A/C dog house, but were still 100% outside dogs. This was in the city, not out in the country or even on horse land (we have a big horse/farm area in the middle of the metro). In a regular subdivision. Dogs didn't even get walked or taken to the dog park, just the fenced back yard. They could afford to buy a house in FL, keep the one here (hasn't sold yet), but couldn't spring the extra $ to fence in part of their yard in FL? Why even have dogs?

[Deleted]

Val, I grew up on a small farm with lots of sheds for cats and dogs to shelter in, so they weren't deprived in that way. There were fences but none keeping them off the road (this is before the fence laws came in) but they had so many other directions to roam in that none of them ever got run over. Everyone's dogs just walked all over everybody else's properties and no one complained or worried.

Now I live on a teensy suburban block so the cats are indoor-outdoor. When it's hot or cold they have to be able to come inside because there's nowhere outside for shelter. If I got a dog I'd have to get the yard fenced and with the way the house is etc I'm not sure how it could be done without being really ugly. Plus I'd have to get a little dog and I like big ones better.

I understand your point, though. If I'd moved here with a dog I would have done what I could to keep it. I can't imagine giving up an animal ever.

[Deleted]

Our dogs were supposed to be farm animals, that would have been Dad's excuse, lol, but they were very much pets. Having no sheep or whatnot there was nothing farm-y for them to do. And now that I think about it, WE were all outside all day most days so they didn't lack for company. Dad's favourite dog over the years used to watch him come out the door and check out his clothes. If he was in town clothes she'd stay put and look disappointed, in work clothes she'd get excited and jump in the back of the truck to go with him to fix the fences or whatever.

But here's the difference in attitude: I once suggested we get a piglet. Dad said, "No, because you get too find of them and it's sad when you have to eat them."

[Deleted]

We had cats growing up. As an adult, when we bought our first house, we got dogs. Most of our dogs over the years have been large or giant breeds. We do have a beagle now who is so little. It cracks me up how small she is. She likes to lay on the arm of the couch and walk on the back of it. I think she picked it up from the cat.

TBH, I wouldn't know what to do without pets. We've always had at least two dogs. There was a time we had four. I don't travel and only take day trips. I think if we ever did, the "girls" would do just fine in a kennel for a weekend or so. I would love to get a lake house or small cabin. That way the girls could come with us. They're our family too and I don't think I would enjoy myself very much to go some place without them. I miss them when I'm at work.

Most of them have/had human names. Jack, Rusty, Sadie, Ava, and Emma. You should see some of the looks I get when talking about taking Ava for a walk or Emma outside to potty. I'm glad we don't have neighbors. They'd probably call the cops if they heard me say, "okay Emma, play time is over. Time to go in your cage, so mommy can go to the store." Which I say all.the.time.

[chapeaunoir]

Peek - quite a few hotels are pet friendly - you'd just have to make sure she didn't get upset and pee on things. We used to stay in a bunch of cabanas when we went to the Shakespeare Festival in Oregon - it was the perfect place if you had a dog as there was a large, comfortable yard for them to hang out in with you, and of course they could stay with you in your room.

A lot of pubs up north of Seattle where we live are dog friendly, too - but they have to sit under the table (if they won't, then you have to eat outside). Some aren't, but they have spots outside where your dog can sit, water bowls for them, etc.

We have a house-sitter/pet sitter, our good friend who comes over and cares for the two cats. I'm somewhat allergic to them and have pretty continual sinus problems in the winter - though this is a sinus problem area to begin with (low pressure area).

[Deleted]

May 16, 2015 23:20:12 GMT chapeaunoir said:

I can't bear the thought of a house without animals of SOME sort in it - any sort of animal - bird, cat, dog, fish, lizards, doesn't matter. I made it for an entire year once with no pet and it was just so...lonely without a critter to care for.

Me too. I grew up in a house full of animals and a house doesn't feel right without some kind of critter to me.

Within a month of getting my first apartment after college I adopted a kitten. Within 6 months of buying my first home I adopted my dog.
It does make traveling trickier. We have a few reliable pet-sitters now who can check on the cat. The dog usually gets to come with us, or goes to stay with family who thankfully adore him.