Cats Keep You Engaged in Life

I've had a request to write more about cats, & on Saturday a friend advised me to go do volunteer work at an animal shelter so I don't become sedentary while looking for a job & going through this rather difficult financial period. While I appreciated the advice, I actually benefit from sort of living in an animal shelter. Being sedentary is never a concern here or for me unless I'm deeply depressed, which I'm not. I've been there, done that, but I'm not anywhere near that place within myself these days.

I said I sort of live in an animal shelter because of my 6 cats. Two were adopted from no-kill shelters where they were living in foster care when not in cages on show at Petsmart. One of these was adopted on purpose after the death of one of my beloved cats & the other drew me as we were in the store buying a pet feeder. Except in that one instance after Tiger's death, I've never sought a cat - they've all found me & all were in need. The last 2, sisters, were abused & then dumped at the beginning of November 2010.

Having 6 cats means I stay active cleaning litter boxes & feeding them daily, & cleaning up their little messes. It also means that I stay engaged in life daily even if I don't leave the house or directly interact with another human being. All cats have different needs, tastes, & personalities & the ones with me were sent to me for various reasons - theirs & mine. All but one of my cats would have a great deal of trouble adjusting if I had to re-home him or her. So I feel a deep responsibility for keeping a decent roof over their heads & providing for them. This is the biggest motivation for keeping my life & home together that I have. We tend to feel "bullet proof," like we can take all kinds of risks without consequences. And I've already said that I have trouble taking care of myself vs. taking care of others. The cats are a motivation to do the things I need to do no matter how uncomfortable, to improve my health & my situation in life. I understand that they depend entirely on me & that I'm not a limitless or unbreakable commodity & resource. None of us are, although most of us treat ourselves as if we are. So, in essence, my cats are my motivation "to get up in the morning," a common phrase for staying engaged & taking care of business. And they then reward me with their love & attention, their very presence, themselves, their spirits, souls. Cats are considered to be entirely self-contained but mine do share their deepest selves with me. With cats, you get in the measure that you give. I give them my deepest love, care, self & they give theirs in return. Dog lovers may be getting the same benefits. I grew up with a dog of my own most of my life & had the best dog as an adult while raising my kids. But once cats started happening to me & I learned their subtlety, began to appreciate them & their differences, I became a total "cat person." I still deeply love dogs, but can go without one in my home whereas I don't want to be without at least 3 cats ever. As I said before, I never aspired to having 6 cats, but they needed me & I discovered that I also need each of them. It's not the number, it's the individuals. Each one has a role in the household & in my life. Each completely graces my life.

Cats are truly service animals, although rarely recognized as such. Cats domesticated themselves thousands of years ago. I may get the name wrong but I believe the author is Cleo Simons. I read that in one of her books about cats & it really stuck with me. A race of small wild cats was brought in proximity to people as mousers because of the plague & rats, & the more sociable ones chose to live with humans. From them the domesticated cat evolved. That may not sound like conscious choice to you but it rang as truth within me when I read that they domesticated themselves, & it still does. Nothing in my experience with more cats than I can easily count has contradicted that. I won't go into all the services cats perform for people. They actually are able to "fly under the radar" because of their subtlety, so much of what they do remains a mystery & I need to leave it that way. But their purrs are very healing for humans, as is petting them. It's easy to find studies of lowered blood pressure & greater health in those who live with cats, & pets in general do so much for our wellbeing. As I've said before, you get back what you give, & they keep us engaged in life, vital & active. They're very calming. More tomorrow.