The adventures of owning a cat.

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It hasn’t been long since my family and I made one of the best decisions and adopted our newest member. Our cat is a red tabby, mostly known by their gorgeous color and rebelliousness.

Living along with these little domestic tigers can mean a lot of things to people, one of the most difficult mysteries to decipher in the animal kingdom is the mind of a cat, as its independent behaviors, body language and emotional empathy are all a secret.

You are about to read my unfiltered experience of what it is like to own a cat.

Mood swings

They can go from being a cat that cuddles and sits on laps to a very independent cat, spending most of its time outside and not wanting too much human interaction.

What I’ve learned is that when it comes to giving love and affection to cats you need to be patient and expect the unexpectable from it.

Your cat can be all lovey dovey and give you all the signals to pet them, they are purring and rubbing on you, letting you know how wonderful you are, and then, in the blink of an eye they are sinking their teeth into your hand. It is normal, sometimes it may be because you overpet them, but the more time you spend with your cat, you get to know the difference between a love bite, a playful bite, an anger bite and a “I’m hungry” bite.

Endless Chats

I’ve learned that cats in general but mostly red tabbies are really vocal cats. Compared to the cats I’ve met and had, my cat seems to be louder and more outgoing, especially at night or when it rains. He whines and complains as if it were our fault he got out and obviously, we have to open the main door for him to get in ‘cause climbing through the window he came out in the first place is not that big of an entrance.

He also acts like a baby around my mother, he makes the most spoiled meowings I’ve heard. I’m 100% sure he understands everything we say, and when he can’t see her or we take too long serving his food, his meowing seems to intensify in an indescribable volume.

My favorite meowing is the one he makes when he acts like the victim, in a really low and hurt like tone, meaning he wants to be petted or a kiss on the top of his head.

The judgement

Even though you don’t expect it, your cat will judge you. When cats accept their humans as part of their cat family they see us as cats. Just very giant sloppy slow cats.They mostly judge us for not having their capabilities, but still care for us even though they lower our esteem through their gaze. Very strange little animals.

Sleeping beauties

Forget about setting an alarm to wake up, your cat will do you the favour. You’ll get to wake up at random hours in the morning just because your cat wants to play, Yes! to play, at 3am, because somehow when you wanted to play with them at an appropriate hour of the day they were too tired to do so. It’s unbelievable how they sleep all day long and still feel tired.

Their appetite

Prepare to spend most of your savings in cat food, they devour it. My cat seems to never get full, he loves having snacks, mostly creamy foods, like cream cheese, mayonnaise, butter, cream and frosting, he even likes cake. He hunts for lizards and eats their tails. We have tried giving him less food because he is getting chubby. I love that he’s getting chubby, but I care more about his health. I don’t think he does because he has learned how to open the food cabinet and eat all the cat food pouches.

Curiosity

Most cats want to know absolutely everything you’re doing. Perhaps it is because of their restless nature or because they like to know their surroundings, their abilities to hunt lizards or any other animal that is within reach can also play a role. In any case, they are very dynamic and intrepid creatures, so don’t get surprised when suddenly they throw or break shiny stuff.

What triggers my cat to submit in the curious state are strings, any kind of strings, mostly the ones attached to my bracelets or shoe laces.

If you are considering getting a new cat or kitten, choose the right time and perhaps consider if you have the abilities and patience to do so. Cats need to be taken care of even though it doesn’t look like it, without even realizing you’ll end up cat proofing your entire house. In the end your cat will show you how much they love and care about you, and you’ll realize ADOPTING a cat is one of the best decisions you’ve ever made. So try it, at least once in your life.