Not a classical Virtue, but based on observing my young son with our aging family cat. Itās how I hope weāll care for all the earthās creatures.
āāāā
Sorry for the absence over the weekend. We lost our dear cat Isabel after several weeks of vet visits, a hospitalization last weekend, and a sudden turn for the worse on Thursday.
Watching my son comfort Isabel in her dying hours reminded me of this painting of Adrian and Pepper, the gentleness of spirit that connects boy and cat.
We adopted Isabel 14 years ago when she was just an oddball kitten. In those early days, she used to snarl like a dog as she tugged on toys. Back then both she and her sister Jasmine were small enough to fit in the palm of my hand at the same time, so as you can imagine her displays of fierceness and spunk were quite adorable.
Isabel was a constant presence in our house for so many years. It seems odd to lay down at night and not hear her greetings. As she approached from the foot of the bed, she was always anxious for permission to curl up beside me. She was the sweetest, gentlest cat Iāve ever known. We miss her terribly.
Youāre sitting at a cafe with your friend when suddenly a woman walks in with a toy poodle in her purse. The manager at the counter informs her āIām sorry, but we do not allow dogsā. She replies with a heavy sigh and a āSheās a service dog. She can come with meā. Not knowing much about service dog law, and worrying about getting sued for asking further questions, he sits this woman down at a booth. There, she promptly unzips her purse and places the dog on the booth seat next to her. When the womanās food comes out, the little dog begs and she feeds her bits off her plate. This dog is not public access trained, and proceeds to bark at those who walk by. This dog is a nuisance and causes many in the restaurant to complain. The manager cannot do anything but inform the unhappy customers that this is a service dog, so he canāt ask her to leave. In the end, itās the customers who end up leaving.
Now I walk in with my highly trained service dog pressed against my leg in a perfect heel position, and Iām quickly bombarded by the manager telling me āNo dogs! No dogs! We ALL know what happened last timeā. Confused, I tell him āThis is my medical alert and medical response service dog. Her right to accompany me is protected under federal law.ā With a sigh, he seats me at a table far away from others where my dog promptly tucks under my feet, out of sight. When my food arrives my dog is still tucked tightly under the table because she knows sheās not supposed to eat when sheās on duty. She stays there ignoring those who walk past for the remainder of my meal. When we leave, a woman by the door exclaims āWoah, I didnāt know there was a dog here!ā
See the difference?
Scenario number two occurs at a local grocery store when a man decides to bring his certified emotional support animal into the store with him. Upon entering he flashes a fancy ID card and certification papers. This dog is not as unruly as the first, but he still forges ahead of his handler, sniffs the food on display, and may seek attention from those who walk past. You find this dog adorable, and when he and his owner walk past you ask to pet him. The owner says yes and explains how all he had to do was go online, register his dog, and a few weeks later they sent him a vest, ID card, and certification papers.
Now I pull into the same grocery store. Iām in a rush to get an ingredient for a dish Iām making so I hurry into the store with my service dog next to me. Iām quickly stopped by a manager who demands to see my service dogās certification card. Remember, this is NOT required by law, and most real service dog teams donāt have them. After 15 minutes of trying to educate, pulling up the ADA website on my phone, back and forth bickering, and drawing more of a crowd than I want to describeā¦ Iām finally allowed in. I grab my ingredient, stand in line (where my service dog obediently moves between my legs to make space for those around me), and I get bombarded by people asking to pet my dog. I explain that sheās working, she has a very important job to do, and sheās not allowed to be pet while on duty. People walk away grumbling and complaining about how rude I was when other handlers like the man they met earlier allow their dog to be pet.
Moral of the story? Fake service dogs create real problems. The ones who are impacted the most are the true service dog handlers who rely on their dogs every day to help mitigate their disability. How would you feel if everywhere you went, you couldnāt make it 10 feet in the door because people were asking you questions? Imagine how much time that would take out of your already hectic day. Businesses lose customers because word gets out that there are unruly dogs in their store, customers become misinformed and start thinking some of these behaviors are okay, some people even start to believe the lies that anyone can just register their dog online and make him a service dog. The result? MORE fake service dogs. MORE real problems.
I will reblob this until I die because itās one of the few things that constantly genuinely infuriates me
I donāt understand why any cats like me. At least half my interactions with my roommateās cat is mild harassment (like poking him or trying to spook him, nothing cruel or painful of course, just messing with him), calling his name loudly and randomly and meowing at him when he doesnāt answer, that kind of thing. And yet he frickinā loves me. I pet him in ways youāre taught to never pet a cat and the whole time he purrs like a motorboat. It probably helps that heās a breed with that kind of temperament, but still.
All Iāve done with campus cat is give him food and sit and hang out by buildings with him, and now heāll rub up on me and come trotting over when I find him each night, and follow me to wherever I decide Iām going to sit. And after he eats heāll groom himself and sometimes ānapā a bit. I know itās probably just because Iām the food lady and I give him actual cat food, but I like to think he genuinely enjoys my company because he feels secure around me. As of today Iāve known this cat for two weeks.
Not sure who else to ask about this, so Iāll just throw it out there.
Does anyone have advice on what to do with a stray cat who decided Iām its friend now?
It lives on campus and hangs out in the same general area every evening, and sometimes people feed it chicken from their lunches and such. Iāve been taking it cat food for like ten days now and mostly Iāll just sit and hang out with it. If I get its attention from a ways away, it runs over, and then we go sit by a building while it eats. Now it asks for petting after finishing the food. One night it followed me all the way to my car, and if I go to another building it follows me. When I need to leave Iāve been going inside a building and leaving out the other side so it wonāt follow me, because I genuinely think this cat might try to go across the street with me.
I had a cat growing up, and my roommate currently has a cat, so itās not like Iām clueless on how to care for one. But Iām definitely a dog person. I like cats, but I donāt think I would go out and pick one to adopt, you know? I want to help this one, and itās very sweet, but I donāt know if Iām the right person, I guess. I donāt understand cats as well as dogs and I wouldnāt want to unfairly end up expecting that kind of a relationship out of it, if that makes sense. Although this does seem like the kind of cat I could harness train and take on walks through the woods.
I havenāt adopted an animal on my own before and the idea of committing to a cat that Iād have for at least the next decade kind of scares me. Iāve thought maybe Iāll foster it after we take it to the vet to be fixed (because at the very least Iād like to do that). But what if it doesnāt work out as an apartment cat? What if my roommateās cat canāt stand it? I canāt just dump it on campus again, can I? Is it better to just continue on as Iām doing things? Having a cat will limit where I can live for the rest of the time I have one. Plus thereās all the expenses. Iām literally the only other Bio grad student here right now that doesnāt have at least one cat, so none of them can take it in. Iāve asked.
Any advice? Is this something I could discuss with the vet? Thereās a shelter in town that Iām pretty sure is no-kill but itās not the greatest and I just want to do whatās best for the little thing.
PiraticOctopus 