Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Cats...or...Dogs?

I have heard it said that Women and Cats will do as they please...

And men and dogs should just get used to the idea.

(By the way, the cat is my aunt's Munchkin Cat and the dog is my pupper helpin with the laundry. Yes, those are underwear on her head and NO I didn't put them there. She did that herself.)

I've always liked cats better. Never been much of a dog person. I envy cats. They are independent. You can be gone for a couple of days and as long as you leave them some food and the lid is up on the toilet, they'll be fine. I mean, they will be glad to see you when you come home...but it's more like "Hey, nice to see you. Have a good trip?" glad rather than the attitude a DOG has when you leave it for more than 15 minutes. That is more like "OH MY GOODNESS, I THOUGHT I WAS GOING TO DIE WITHOUT YOU WHY DID YOU LEAVE ME ALONE I CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT YOU" glad.
A dog ties you down bigtime. I didn't realize quite how much until we got Little Bit. Can't be gone over night unless we take her or get a dog-sitter. Can't be gone for longer than five hours unless we want to clean up the doodle.

But what you get in return is total and complete unconditional love. Of course, she has her moments. I was on the computer the other night and wasn't paying attention to her adequately. So she smartly chewed the heck out of my right shoe. And I have no money to buy more. So I wear a chewed sandal. And look like a dork. A Dork who has a mutt that loves her, I guess.

We got her from a shelter. She was beaten. But she is such a wonderful dog. She knows the command "Stay". I've raved about her before in other posts. But she is a WOMAN'S dog. Anything resembling a male is soundly ignored, barked or snarled at. My son can only now after three months pet her without her cowering into an inch thin patty on the floor.

And I had a revelation today. About dogs. But I'll get to that in a minute.

First, I have a question. How many times can a dog be beat and still come back for more? How many times can she be abandoned, hurt and mistreated before she lays down and gives up? Not being a dog person, I don't know the answer to this. And it may be different for every dog...some I've seen grow vicious from fear. Some dogs can be beat every day of their life and still wag their tail and slobber all over when they see a person. They think "Oh! Maybe this time! Maybe this person will be kind to me! Maybe this one will love me for who I am! Maybe this one will hug me and keep me warm and safe! Oh Please, Oh Please, Pick Me! Pick Me! Pick Me!" Wag, wag, bounce, wiggle, slobber, lick.

It has been said that those who are like you, repel you.
And I think that is why...I've never cared for dogs much.

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