I am a cat person.
Which, in all honesty, is a little bit hard for even me to understand because I didn't grow up with a cat. My dad is allergic to practically everything, but especially cats. So we rarely ever had cats in the house. Sure, we had a cat that once took shelter in our garage and then stuck around for awhile because we would feed it. And then it had kittens that we gave away to neighbors, and then mama cat left. Both sets of my grandparents had cats, so that was always an enjoyable experience when I got to visit them.
When I was seven years old, we moved into a bigger house and when I was eight, we got a dog. A fluffy black lab-golden retriever mix that we all spoiled to death. Including letting it on the furniture even though it often made Dad miserable. But it was a pet, something all three of us kids were excited to have growing up. I remember being slightly disappointed at the time that it wasn't a kitten, but a playful puppy was just as wonderful.
Because that's how us cat people are. Cats are lovely, and dogs are great too. But ask a dog person what they think about cats and you'll get an entirely different reaction.
When I left for college I was subjected to two years in a dorm, which meant no pets at all unless I wanted to get a fish tank. And I knew I was the type of person that if I had any sort of pet that didn't greet me at the door or sit on my computer while I write papers, I would end up neglecting it. So a fish definitely is not for me.
For most of the time I've lived off-campus, until recently, my roommates have had cats. It was so great having playful little creatures that were simultaneously adorable and nuisances.
I can't tell you exactly why I prefer cats over dogs. But I do have a few reasons. Cats can be more calming. Even though dogs are always happy and excited and more than willing to accept your unending attention, whilst a cat might ignore you for days and slice your wrists for attempting to pet it, when a cat is fully loving and accepting of you, it will just lay there and purr contentedly. There's nothing greater than having a warm, purring kitty curled up next to you. It's definitely worth all of the other little annoyances that come with such an uneven-tempered furball.
Someday, hopefully in the near future, I'll be once again living in a place that lets me have a cat or a few. While the "crazy cat lady" stereotype isn't part of my plan, a cat definitely is.
And, if the rest of the people in my life prefer, I'll even be okay with getting a dog too.
