Are you a cat person or a dog person?
Throughout my life, from the time I was a little boy, any pets we had were dogs. My Dad always had one at home. Usually, they were of the Heinz 57 variety. None of them were pure breds. But as Dad used to say, “Mutts make the best ones.”
Even after I grew up and went out on my own, I had a dog. The best of all the dogs, though, was Scamp. He was a border collie, a breed known for being way up there on the smartness scale.
Although Scamp was very smart, he didn’t do any tricks. He led a dog’s life. I adopted him from the Toronto Humane Society when he was about a year old. There was evidence that he had been abused. At first, when I tried to pet his back, he would turn and snarl at me. I believe he had been kicked and was very sensitive there. After a time, Scamp came to trust me and no longer snarled. There were also some scars on his head where there were small areas of missing fur. It almost looked like pellet wounds of some kind.
When I finally had to have Scamp put down after having him for thirteen years, I was devastated. I vowed then and there to never own a dog again. And I haven’t.
Then Minnie came into my life. Minnie belongs to a breed of cat called Maine Coons. They have very distinctive markings like the little tufts at her ears.
Minnie has been with MY Jane since she was a kitten. Jane named her Minnie because of the “M” on her forehead. Now, I ask you, how can you not like this face?
Minnie is Queen of the house. We live here with her to be at her beck and call, which we do. She sleeps when she wants and where she wants. She will meow at the back door to be let out and when you open the door for her, she sometimes flips up her tail and, with a look of disdain, turns back inside leaving you holding an open door and feeling somewhat sheepish. But we continue holding the door for her.
In the winter, we have a DVD that was made specifically for bored cats. It has a sound track of chirping birds and videos of hamsters, squirrels and chipmunks moving around. Minnie will meow persistently and actually lead us to the TV so we will turn that DVD on for her.
Nowadays, when she is out in the back yard, she will approach the door and meow loudly. When we open the door, assuming she wants in, she runs and jumps onto our patio table and sits there. We have come to learn that this means Minnie wants a picnic. She wants us to place some Temptation cat treats on top of the table so she can have them there. Do we do what she wants? You betcha.
One of Minnie’s favourite places is on the garden chairs at the back of our yard. She will curl up there and stay there most of the day. Unless, of course, you have work to do out there, in which case she will get down and decide she she should roll around in the flower bed in which you’re working.
After being around Minnie, I no longer think of myself as a dog person. I really like cats too. I think I’m just a pet person.
Life Unfolding 