Everything is fair in love and war, my dear hooman!
With love comes sacrifice! Every cat parent is aware of this fact and is willing to take up the challenges that are a part and parcel of living with felines. Unlike the naïve and gullible dogs, who tend to obey every command, cats are proud and a tad bit egoistic, but they never fail to surprise us. They are too cute to ignore and too majestic to hate. Those who own cats are well versed with what they have to deal with and can pass every test that they are put into by their felines. It is indeed true, that love makes one go beyond boundaries, and who is to question the undying love that we have for cats!!
Here is a comprehensive list of sacrifices that every cat owner has to make in order to keep their felines happy:
1) Sleep? What is that?
It is a commonly known fact that cats go crazy during odd hours of the night. You may be exhausted after a long day at work, and all you would want to do is jump into the bed and fall asleep. But that might not happen, because your furry buddy is about to go hyper and jump around the house! Wild cats are known to be nocturnal, primarily due to their hunting instincts. Domestic cats have the same level of alertness at night, making them run around the house in the darkness. If you are slightly lucky, you might get away with it. Else, there is nothing that can stop your cat from pouncing on your head and trying to wake you up with a soft paw on your cheek!!
2) There is no way you will have your privacy hooman, not even in the bathroom!
Felines love their personal space, and they hate it when something or someone intrudes it. But they think it is their right to intervene in our space because they have ownership over us. Rightly so! They will even follow you to the bathroom when you are busy doing your business. They will stare at you, roll around in your boxers, and climb the pipes and drawers, only to throw things on the floor. They feel safe when they are around you, and not left outside the closed bathroom door. It is therefore foolish on your part if you expect your privacy to be respected by your cat because that is never going to happen, dear hooman!
Also, you will have to sacrifice your holiday for your pet!
3) You need to keep me engaged hooman, so cater to my curiosity!
Every cat owner must be mentally prepared to sacrifice one thing for sure: MONEY!
Because your cat is going to keep losing interest in every new toy that you purchase, and will need a fresh toy after some time. The saying ‘Curiosity killed the cat’ is indeed apt, and every cat parent knows how burdening it can get to try and meet the demands of their curious kitty. From furr balls and soft toys to spongy teethers and scratchboards, your cat is bound to lose interest in one particular toy very quickly and would want you to get new set of things to keep its highly curious and exploring nature engaged. Failing to do so will result in an imminent scratch attack!!
4) Furniture and décor? Oh, please hooman, let me scratch that!!
All a cat ever needs is ownership over you and its territory. They will mark their area by leaving both a visual mark as well as spraying their scent from the glands on their paws. They just need a comfortable surface to tear down, and your expensive sofa set or the legs of the dining table are perfect locations. Their need to flex and stretch their amazing body, or to clean their paws and claws always ends up damaging the posh décor items in the house. Thus, every cat owner should be mentally prepared to keep calm at the sight of a torn sofa, or a torn blanket or shawl, because your feline has decided to get its way with it, and one really can’t do anything about it.
5) You are mine, hooman, and I shall mark you and your clothes to signify it!
It might be a pain in the head for cat owners to deal with excess fur and hair everywhere in the house. But it is more annoying for them to find cat hair on their favorite dresses and clothes. A cat owner can never really escape the problem of hair and fur. The cat will jump around and run everywhere, leaving a trail of the fur, on furniture, beds, and clothes. It is indeed a hassle for owners to keep on cleaning their items, only to find them covered in hair and fur yet again. Therefore, every cat parent should be mentally prepared to sacrifice their desire to have clean dresses or a clean house, as their dear furry buddy will never ever let that happen!
6) You will always find the tabletop clean, coz I will drop everything!
May it is stationery items or food, your cat will make sure that it clears the table by dropping everything on the floor. If you sit on your table with your laptop and wish to start working, beware hooman. You are about to be attacked by your cat within 5 minutes of this adventure, and it will make sure that you are unable to work or finish your food. Felines love to climb, and things on the table are just the right motive for them to jump. From delicious pizza and a can of Pepsi to your precious laptop and files from work, nothing is going to survive the task of staying safe on the top of the table. Mr. Cat is going to knock it right off the surface!
As mentioned earlier, love requires a lot of sacrifices, especially in a bond between humans and cats, where only humans have to make compromises. It is futile to expect the same from felines. How can we? After all, it is always the servants who live under the mercy of the king, and one cannot question their authority. Dear Hooman, you are trapped for eternity, for you will have to serve your majestic furry buddies till death do you apart!!