Friday, February 18, 2011

In praise of the buddy system

I love watching my cats.  To be perfectly honest there is nothing on cable even half as interesting as the way they interact with each other.    In this day and age, where it is the rare pet owner who can still let their cats go "out on tour" safely, I feel pretty sorry for any of the only kitties out there.
No faces to wash.  No one to play / snooze / snuggle with.  Noone of their own kind to communicate with.
Cats who are fostered together after being rescued will often become such good friends that the rescue tries to encourage kind hearts to adopt them both.  
Does that mean that the rescues are trying to fob off an extra cat on an unsuspecting soul?  Of course not!   They have simply spent enough time with kitties to appreciate that there are no mathematical formulas for love.  They have learned that two cats is not twice as much love ...  it is multiplied ever so many more times than that!
They also know that when a new kitty can bring along a friend, that the transition into the new home will be easier on everyone.   This can be a particularly good fit for a home where the humans have to go out to work / school / hockey / etc.  
You can practically hear the cats say ... "Gotta go out?  No sweat!  I'll just hang out with my best bud while you're gone!"
And of course .. if one already has a cat or two .. two new cats will be good company for each other while they are settling into the family circle with the others.  I was always glad that Oscar came into the picture at the same time that Dora did, because it was a while before my three mousecatteers would have anything to do with them, eh?
The good news is that there is no absolutely no shortage of adoptable buddies out there ( scroll down for their pics :)
Is this an exclusive list?  Not even close!   Cats are naturally social creatures and love the company of their own kind.   Every rescue that either fosters or provides play space for their kitties will have pals available to adopt, eh?
At the end of the day, there is nothing wrong with having a busy life.  Nor is there anything wrong about wanting an easy life.   Its just frosting on the cake that in most instances, doubling your fun doesn't mean doubling up the adoption fee.
By and large, people who enjoy teaching animals to roll over will find themselves happier with a dog.   Barbara Holland


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