My cats have always been members of my family, as is the case with the majority of my readers. We only consider them as "pets" in the generic sense, and as for "property," that is mostly a matter of law. Thankfully, laws have changed over the years, since the Noah's Ark tragedy in 1997. In that case, existing Iowa law in 1997 treated such crimes as misdemeanors unless the value of the property destroyed constitutes a felony. The ruling in the Noah's Ark case was that "stray cats" had limited monetary value, therefore the standards of felony destruction could not be applied.
Photo of Bubba, Credit: © Franny Syufy
Still, the concept of "owning" my cats has nothing to do with law, and everything to do with the responsibilities of my "ownership." I could no more refuse to take a sick cat to the veterinarian, than I could let a sick child suffer at home without treatment. Nor could I allow my cats to eat the feline equivalent of junk food on a daily basis. Yes, they get the equivalent of a box of popcorn on occasion, but it is in the form of bonita tuna flakes or kitty grass. And our floors are littered with catnip cigars and bananas. Believe me, my cats love being owned.
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Comments
Ahahaha .. that’s funny, I ALSO have the catnip cigars and bananas, Frosty LOVES them! Even the dog (Mack the Shih-tzu) tries to get in on the catnip act and steal them from his big sister. These two are my fur babies, as I wasn’t blessed with the human kind. Sometimes I feel that they own me, especially when the two of them sit looking at me while I am in the kitchen, I know what they want …. TREATS! They have me wrapped around their little paws, and that’s okay with me. Julie Andrea