As I've said before, my cat MONTY was just "put down" and I'm missing him, so I find myself watching cute cat compilation videos. However, I find many of them quite disturbing. Especially the ones that involve children and cats.
When my brother, Jim, was three years old he had a samoyed husky named, Kippy-Joe. I was just a baby but I'm told by Mom that he was a sweet, loyal, gentle dog. My brother was very, uh, um, rambunctious and one day he snuck up on Kippy-Joe while he was eating and the dog was startled and snapped at him, but then immediately hit the ground in submission when he realized it was Jim.
BUT, as far as my mother was concerned, Kippy-Joe was GONE. She realized it was just a natural response and wasn't angry with the dog, but she wasn't going to do anything that might remotely risk her children's safety. Kippy-Joe was shut in a shed and the next day brought to the SPCA. (Happy ending for Kippy-Joe though. He was adopted by a family that owned a farm.)
I had a single, Christian friend that hadn't been in contact with me for several months then I suddenly found a Birth Announcement in my mailbox and froze.
I thought, "Now I know WHY she's been out of touch with me." (Not married and pregnant and afraid of how I would react)
Well, I reacted pretty weird when I saw the photo of her new "baby" which was actually the new DOG she had just adopted. (I was relieved that it was just a dog but concerned she equated her dog with a baby.)
When we moved to a farm when I was seven years old in 1973 (Oops❗️🙊 Accidentally outed my age on the internet again), Mom laid down one solid rule for Jim and I (although she was staring right at me when she said it), "People Inside; Animals Outside!"
Then later when we moved to the city and I got a little Maltese Poodle I named Sweetie, I got a new rule:
"Furniture for People; Floors for Pets"
Even though I had Sweetie for 14 years (from being 10 years old to 24 years old) and she was my shadow and confident, she was my PET. Not a person.
When Mom was teaching me how to drive she asked me this question,
"What do you do if you're in busy traffic and a cat runs out in front of the car?"
"Uh. Swerve to avoid hitting the cat?"
(She said gently but firmly) "No Laura-Lee. You hit the cat because if you swerve with a bunch of cars around, you could cause an accident and a human life is worth a million times more than an animal life."
I had been a Christian for several years at that time and knew the Bible backed her up. God loves all his creatures BUT animals are here to SERVE us. A hard concept for people these days to grasp. (especially for cat owners)
Animals are not less loved by God and I will do a post about how God views all of His creation, from Animals to Plants, at a later time, but for now...
If you consider your pet your Baby, then you need to re-adjust your thinking and feelings.
Here's some practical advice on how to do that.
Prayer and doing a personal Bible study on animals is the best starting point but I also recommend you start spending time, a LOT of time, around Babies. (Perhaps offer to babysit for new parents or volunteer in the nursery) There is NO comparison between children and animals.
But, if you are one of those people who holds your kids (or grandkids) on equal footing with your pets (or worse, consider your pets BEFORE your kids), well, then...
... seek professional help. 🤨
The (sometimes uncomfortable) Truth
with Love
Always Laura-Lee
YouTube Clip of Babies and Cats
Oh, and one more thing. Never, ever, ever, ever...
...give your cat the keys to your car. They never follow the speed limit.
And DON'T let them use the phone either
.YouTube video, Ned the Cat dealing with Telemarketers
