Redheaded Jill

I like animals. I love the idea of animals. When it comes to animals in reality… I’m a little meh. I prefer large dogs. I like ugly cats. (The smashed faced variety are my favorite.) I LOVE animals like cows and chickens who have pet potential but don’t require a lot of attention.

My Grandma used to have an indoor cat who was eventually taken in by my aunt and uncle. Then my brother got a kitten on a whim and she died after a rocking chair incident. : ( So I got a kitten on a whim and he was great fun till he started smelling HORRIBLE. His name was Barnaby and he became an indoor outdoor cat. Barnaby eventually moved to the neighbors house with their many female felines.

I am currently babysitting my sisters long haired high maintenance diva of a cat. She was so worried about what to do with it and I said, “Just leave her with me. No big deal.” I thought it would be temporary. My sister is a travel nurse and sometimes her extended stays allow pets and sometimes they don’t. (She got the cat when she had a traditional job at a hospital right out of nursing school.) Well, it’s been like… six months and Ann Purrrrkins is still here.

This cat sheds like crazy. She throws up frequently. She was a traumatized shelter cat and is extremely skittish. She has decided she likes me and now I can’t sit in my recliner and work (like right now) without her attacking.

There’s no worse feeling than getting out of the shower and using lotion to be rubbed up against by a cat and then your clean extremities are covered in a thin layer of cat hair. I even find cat hair in my contact lenses.

When my sister took a new work assignment I was so excited because it meant she’d take her cat. JUST KIDDING. The air bnb wouldn’t allow pets, so here I am… stuck with the creature till at least xmas.

Now, don’t mistake me. The cat eats well, is given lots of attention by myself and my other sister, and has the guest room practically to herself. I vacuum frequently and have one of those cat hair scraper things for my furniture.

This has showed me for good that if I have an indoor pet I can’t do much more than a hedgehog. Contained to one space. Minimal clean up. Low maintenance. That’s the life for me.

** all comments are my opinion, I have no ill will towards you or your choice of pet, be it indoor or outdoor **