Growing family
I'm a cat person. Cats are independent. Cats are clean. You can leave a dish of dry food out for a cat and she will only eat what she needs. Cats have great personalities (especially Siamese)! Cats and I have a good understanding of each other. I respect my cat's space and for the most part, she respects mine (she is Siamese, you know).
Last Christmas, my sister decided I needed a dog. I told her the only breed I wanted was a Papillon, knowing she would never find one at a price she was willing to pay. Don't you know that within two weeks she found one at a local shelter? My little Papillon was rescued from a puppy mill where she had been used as a breeder. She was so terrified of people that it took 3 long months of coaxing (and bribing with treats) before she would even let me touch her -- forget about petting her! But once she allowed me to start touching her, she became my constant companion. I can't get up from a chair without her following right beside me.
So, okay. I have a dog. A dog means no freedom. I must always hurry home from school to let her out. (Having lived in a cage for 3 years, she doesn't know to wait until she gets outside. She just goes wherever she happens to be. We're working on that.) A dog has to be fed at a certain time. But she was lonely. She tried to play with the cat, but the cat wasn't interested. So, I started thinking about maybe getting a second small dog as a playmate for my dog (to help my dog learn how to be a dog again). Again, I wasn't doing anything active to make this happen. I merely mentioned it to a couple friends, emphasizing that I was only thinking about it. Two days ago a friend shows up with a long-haired Chihuahua as a friend for my dog! Except for the size difference, they could be twins!
So now this cat person has one cat, two dogs, oh, and one Siberian dwarf hamster. My family is growing.
Last Christmas, my sister decided I needed a dog. I told her the only breed I wanted was a Papillon, knowing she would never find one at a price she was willing to pay. Don't you know that within two weeks she found one at a local shelter? My little Papillon was rescued from a puppy mill where she had been used as a breeder. She was so terrified of people that it took 3 long months of coaxing (and bribing with treats) before she would even let me touch her -- forget about petting her! But once she allowed me to start touching her, she became my constant companion. I can't get up from a chair without her following right beside me.
So, okay. I have a dog. A dog means no freedom. I must always hurry home from school to let her out. (Having lived in a cage for 3 years, she doesn't know to wait until she gets outside. She just goes wherever she happens to be. We're working on that.) A dog has to be fed at a certain time. But she was lonely. She tried to play with the cat, but the cat wasn't interested. So, I started thinking about maybe getting a second small dog as a playmate for my dog (to help my dog learn how to be a dog again). Again, I wasn't doing anything active to make this happen. I merely mentioned it to a couple friends, emphasizing that I was only thinking about it. Two days ago a friend shows up with a long-haired Chihuahua as a friend for my dog! Except for the size difference, they could be twins!
So now this cat person has one cat, two dogs, oh, and one Siberian dwarf hamster. My family is growing.