I think of my little darling fur balls as part of the family. It doesn't cross my mind that they could be anything less than family. And yet people find it strange. How could I?

The thought of "adopting" somebody into the family that isn't even human seems silly. And when I cuddle them I am somehow elevating them to human levels. Yet, interspecies relationships can be very powerful, and my cats all of their own levels of engagement based on their own individual personality. When you spend time with them it is only natural to react to them in such a way that you just naturally become friends.

Cats really aren't that difficult to befriend.

They like to be treated nicely, but then so do we. They enjoy spending time with you, and who wouldn't argue that we don't like spending time with the people that we love?

Cats Love Their People

If you haven't noticed, having a good relationship with your cat is built on love. When you adopt a cat you may think that it is a burden. If that is your opinion then you probably shouldn't own a cat. Because that is all you are doing, owning it, as if it is a possession. Cats look to you for care, and in many ways they see you as their mother. But they also see you as somebody that needs support as well.

A cat will remember when you are nice to it, and it will repay this in the future. Comforting you when you feel blue, or giving you little gifts. An indoor cat will do this by bringing you the things that it thinks you like. Things that it watches you use. If your cat is allowed to roam outdoors it will bring you gifts in the form of food. Dead wildlife. Because, who doesn't like to eat? You should avoid that, for both the sake of the wildlife and your cat's health.

But a cat will also remember mistreatment and it will treat you accordingly.

A Cat Family

We are a cat family. My step-sister and I both had cats growing up. And it was an opportunity to learn how to treat others with love and compassion that were depending on us. It wasn't a lesson our parent's tried to teach us, it was just part of growing up. And it helped shape who we both became.

With that said, it should not have come as a surprise to me when I received the invitations to my niece's baby shower. There was such a cute little card with a nice pink design on the front that it really brought a smile to my face. I am not sure if the rest of the guests realized that we were such a cat family, but after they received the invitation for the shower they certainly did.

I was honestly, pleasantly I may add, surprised that they actually sell cat themed baby shower invites! I know that you can practically find everything nowadays, but it still got me somehow. Mostly because I really didn't expect it and I can be pretty sentimental. While I am certain that there are other families like ours who could appreciate an invitation like that I can only imagine that we are few and far between. There are plenty of cat fanciers in the world, but a baby shower really, at least when I was a young adult, isn't an event that you would expect to focus on such a specific aspect of a person's life.

For me it was the, standard (which must have changed) gathering.

The aunts and your mother's friends gathered and "showered" you with gifts. That was the point of the shower after all. My sister is ten years younger than I am. She was still practically a baby when my father married my step-mom. I was fourteen if you need some reference. That said she is more in tune with what is modern and popular so I will trust her judgment here.

I guess what I am saying is, that more than anything a baby shower tailored to my personalized never came into my thoughts.

More than anything I am pleased to see that my niece is having a shower that she really wants to have. And she is letting everybody know exactly who she is. Their baby will have a wonderful opportunity to learn about other animals. And a chance to see that you don't need to be the same species to be able to love and to be loved.

For children, at least very small children, this never even comes into question.

It isn't until we get older that society tells us that we need to treat them somehow differently.

If you are a cat family you will never even come to the question that a cat can be a family member.

Studies Show Animals Improve Learning

There isn't a question that some people have more draw to other animals that others. But do they really encourage learning?

I found Bill Strickland's account of their daughter Natalie very much in tune with my own experiences. He wrote on Parents.com:

We often find her curled up in her bed or lying in a den of blankets in a quiet nook of the house, reading to one or more of her cats. She pets them as she reads, stops to show them pictures and ask them questions. She even reassures them during scary parts of the story.

THis doesn't come as a surprise to Mary Renck Jalongo, PhD, who works as a education professor at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. In her book "The World of Children and Their Companion Animals" she goes into great detail about the importance of these types of relationships and how they prepare our children for future relationships. It has long been suggested that animals help those with learning disabilities function better, enabling them to learn at a faster rate than their piers in the stage of their lives. Pet therapy initiatives like The Paws for Hope Pet-Assisted Therapy Program has been providing animal/patient contact to promote positive coping. his helps young patients overcome unfamiliar or even scary environments.

Some of the benefits from such therapies is incredible. They include:

• Reduced anxiety
• Reduced blood pressure
• Improved concentration
• Acceptance of hospital environments
  • Allowing them to feel at home and settle in for long hospital stays

After all that animals can do for us, I still find it hard that people can't understand somebodies attachment to a true member of the family.

Can you?

The cat hotel, aka a cattery. It is sort of like a kennel for a dog. I have honestly had mixed results with this sort of thing.

In general I have had very positive results. And I will explain.

The place I have tried in the past was full of people who were both knowledgable and very caring. I had no problem with them as a whole. The cattery was very clean, smelled nice and was bright and comfortable. It was more like a cat luxury hotel. Every time they were there they came home as happy little fluff balls with a couple extra Oz. on their ribs.

I was never worried that they were going to be mobbed by the other cats since the cats won't be able to interact. If I had the choice between having a friend take them or leaving them in a cattery I would choose the cattery. The reason is because it feels so much safer to leave them there. When left with friends or at my parents they will hid the whole time. At a cattery they can choose what they want to do, stay in bed or come out, eat and interact.

Interaction isn't required but they will supervise the cats and make sure that nothing happens.

But, and I do not blame the cattery per se, in the last visit my kitty got a kennel-cough from one of the other animals. It was painful for us both.

Because of the risk of infection I have re-thought my cat's stay in the cattery at least for now.

I think people underestimate their judgement. And please, don't get me wrong, I am not elevating myself here when I saw this. Anybody can fall into this trap. I think that the main thing to realize is that when we go out and buy a cat (adoption is something else altogether) we are driven by our emotions. It is hard to be resonable when you have a cute little kitten sitting in front of you with those big eyes. You want to take it home and give it those cuddles it o rightly deserves.

But this can also blind us and cause us to over look the possible signs that the breeder isn't as reputable as they should be.

If somethig doesn't feel right I would avoid buying the cat/kitten and try and decide what was bothering me. We once almost bought a purebred (adult) cat from a breeder. She was adorable, and she won my heart over almost at once. She had her papers so for us everything was a done deal. Had we actually looked what we would have learned before we went to look at her was that she was victm to a bad breeder, one who had a horrible industry reputation. He bred kittens with FIP and coronavirus.

Before took her home though my dad started to smell the setup and began questioning the breeder. He was a no-nonsense type of person so he didn't like that. He must have thought that my father was going to be trouble and backed out. I was devistated and cried on the car ride home.

We did some research and found that many people had gotten sick animals, some of which died shortly after being bought and introduced to their new family.

It was - and still is - sad that breeders like him are allowed to opporate, they put out sick animals and that hurts everyone. They do this to make some money, they shirk any attempt at doing things the "right" way and when we purchase from them we are supporting backyard breeders who care for little more than money.

Most of the animals that they breed are not actually breeders. Let me explain; they are pets that have been put to work and exploited, they were never meant to brred, but because they have a certain set of genes they are exploited.

Papers are an issue for a lot of these backyard breeders. Most cats sold as pets (that have not been spay/neuter) cannot be used to breed. A reputable breeder will put this in the contract you sign when you purchase from them. Since the breeder issues papers any would be backyard breeders are out of luck. They cannot demonstrate proof, so they are unable to register their cats or form a cattery, and they can't register their kittens which means when you ask for them they are unable to present them. The mechanisum that keeps the whole ball rolling is that many people don't care. And by purchasing from someone who has a history of not doing things the right way you will all too often run into somebody that has sick animals.

If you sign a contract with somebody like this that says you are entitled to a refund, do you think you will recieve it in the event that you cat becomes ill?

After that my father started to take breeder research very seriously. And because of that we found a fantastic breeder, she did things the right way and we sent her many customers over the years. She retired before I was able to get my first "own" cat but since we had so much contact with her throughout the years she helped me find another breeder. This is where I realized just how valuable her help was.

If I had to summarize, I would say this:

• Avoid unethical breeders whenever possible;
• Research the potential breeders;
• Be very careful.

Please do not automatically trust the breeders that you talk to. While honesty can be faked, if you take the time you will be able to spot the good ones from the bad. A cat can live a long time. And it is a big commitment. You don't want to skip proper research, because the risk is just too great.

While it is not perfect, good breeders often have a waiting list. This might not be true if they are new, but at the very least most kittens will be reserved by 8 weeks of age. If they tell you that they have more kittens than they have homes (this means that they have stock) and should be very concerning.