Part of the Family
I had two strays that filled up all the empty spaces in my life. One came out of an ice storm in the early 80's and the other was found under a car at Johnson County Airport in December of 80. I lost the ice storm cat to feline leukemia and luckily had the other one over 19 years.
Rules for Non-Pet Owners Who Visit and Like to Complain About Our Pets:
1. They live here. You don't.
2. If you don't want their hair on your clothes, stay off the furniture.(That's why they call it "fur"niture.)
3. I like my pets a lot better than most people.
4. To you, it's an animal. To me, he/she is an adopted son/daughter who is short, hairy, walks on all fours and doesn't speak clearly. Dogs and cats are better than kids ...they eat less, don't ask for money all the time, are easier to train, usually come when called, never drive your car, don't hang out with drug-using friends, don't smoke or drink, don't worry about having to buy the latest fashions, don't wear my clothes, and don't need a gazillion dollars for college - and if they get pregnant, I can sell the children.