What makes pet cats so special? Cats have beauty and grace. So have dogs and horses. Pet cats are soft to touch. So are rabbits. Cats are easy to care for. So are birds and turtles and goldfish. Kittens are cuddly. But so are puppies.
Then what is so special about a cat? Here is the answer. A cat cannot be conquered. They can never be completely tamed.
Suppose you call your kitty. She may come to you, walking on her velvet paws. But it is only because she wants to, not because of your command.
A cat cannot be bossed. Have you ever heard of a cat herding sheep or carrying messages or picking up the newspaper at the front door? Have you ever heard of a police cat, a watch cat, a sled cat? Of course not.
True, cats learn many things. It is easier for them to open a door latch themselves than to wait for you to do it. They can be trained to jump through hoops-but they do it when they want to, not when you want them to.
A cat can live with a family for years and years. Yet she will always remain independent.
Just as no two people are exactly the same, no two cats are exactly alike. Some seem more stubborn than others. Put her in a certain chair and say, "Stay there!" She jumps off the chair in one giant leap. In the next leap she is in the one chair you want to keep her out of!
Perhaps you think your cat wants to go out. You open the door and call her. What does she do? She stays right where she is. You give up and close the door. Then what does she do? She scratches at the door and demands to go out!
Suppose it is a hot day and you know your cat would like a drink of cool water. You place the dish of water in front of her.
She ignores it. A few minutes later you hear noises from the bathroom. There she is, licking drops from the bathtub faucet.
You might think, "I can't figure this cat out at all." But she is not doing all these things to annoy you. It is the nature of a cat to be independent.
Some pet cats seem to "talk" whenever they can. They seem to have special sounds for "Hey, dinner's late" or "How snuggly your lap is" or "M-m-m, food's great around here!"
What makes pet cats such fun to watch? Pull a string slowly across the floor. She stalks it, pounces on it, wrestles with it and cuffs it with her paw. Drop a marble. She pauses a minute. Then, with one leap, she has it! She is the hunter after her prey. She has been practicing this since she was a kitten. No one had to teach her how. She has always known.
Which is braver, a cat or a dog? That is one argument that can go on and on. But one thing is obvious. The cat is no coward. Have you ever seen a dog three times bigger than a cat being chased away by puss's screams, claws and teeth? Let thunder rumble and lightning flash. Which is the first one to run under the bed or jump into the nearest lap? The dog! The cat will listen quietly to the rumble or doze sleepily-not a bit bothered.
What things do bother a cat? Dirt bothers her. That is why a she spends so much time washing herself with her busy pink tongue. She does not seem to feel comfortable unless she is spotless.
Change bothers cats, too. That is why so many of them hate to drive in cars. They let you know-long and loud-how unhappy they are.
A new food, or even a new dish, will make pet cats suspicious. And just try to rearrange the furniture. Your cat will look around and sniff as if to say, "This can't be my dear old house!"
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