I Live With Cats So You Don’t Have To

Here are things I've had to get used to, and things you may need to think about before getting a cat.

The cats are my housemate’s (Dexter(boy) & Carrot(girl))

1. The noises

Whoever said cats are quiet and keep to themselves never met Dexter & Carrot.

The crying/whining: all hours of the day/night. They may want rubs, they may want food, they may just want the door opened. Dexter is the one who does this the most. I think it’s the anxiety, which is understandable. He has been with her since he was a kitten and is very jumpy and needs more attention due to her separation anxiety. She works, and she leaves to visit family, but even when she isn’t here…I am. And I make sure he gets rubs and food when she can’t feed him. He’s on a schedule but thinks we’ll forget things daily, so he makes sure we don’t…by crying at 2am as a head start/reminder for waaaay later.

The scratching: which is also bad if you don’t want your doors, or couches.

Note: get a scratch post, preferably one to put on the edge of your couch.

The hissing: pretty rare for our cats. They may do this when they’re tired of each other.

The running around late at night or after pooping: they like to play at 3am. Not a big deal till you hear something break.

The “in heat” cat is my nightmare. The noise is incredibly irritating

Hairball: I thought hearing a hair ball come up in a kids show was kinda gross, but quick and not too disgusting.

Boy was I wrong. It makes me want to detach my ears.

2. Speaking of hair

It’s everywhere. No matter how much you clean, pick out of your food or desperately lint roll away. It's. Not.Going. Anywhere.

I’ll point out that the two I live with are the furrier kinds,I suppose. They don’t get cuts or anything. So, maybe I’d be more open to a Sphynx cat, or an owner that does shaves them regularly or at all.

But, think about how much hair will get everywhere. Especially because cats will jump and hide in every nook & cranny. Seriously, I find them everywhere except for my bedroom which stays closed because of them (when it isn’t, they sneak in).

The hair is literally everywhere and disgusts me. I clean pretty often, but never enough and it really bothers me. I’ve ended up just staying in my room for most of the time I’m home because of it.

Be ready to pick hair out of your…nook and crannies.

Seriously, invest in a scraper thingy.

I don’t even want to eat at someone’s home that owns cats because what if they aren’t even as diligent with their cleaning as I am? Or what if they share their dishes with them? I’ve seen a lady give food with cat hair to a woman in a video. Yuck.

3. In heat, or just being rubbed on in general

If you’re not into being rubbed on, then don’t get a cat.

Sure, they like their own space. But, they also like yours at times (makes sense. Things need attention and need to be rubbed)

I’ve been minding my own business and felt something brush against my leg and jumped sooo many times. I’m not really into being rubbed against, but I do like that they tell you when they wanna be bothered. I typically give ‘em a few rubs till one of us gets tired of the other.

But, when Carrot is in heat…she’s persistent. She needs attention. She rubs on you and everything else more often than she usually does (which is very often)(her fave thing to rub on: shoes). It can be very very annoying because you can’t do much (well, apparently you can help her get off, but that’s not my thing) to make her stop, and you just wanna do other things.

We had another cat over and I found out that she was the same way, so there’s no hope for female felines (don’t tell Carrot I said that or she’ll never forgive me)(I just wanted to say “female felines”).

They can both be very insistent.

4. Their eyes…

They just seem to watch you. Everywhere. Their eyes are my least favorite features on them. They’re so creepy.

5. You want to love on them, but they hate you

I thought I’d like cats more because I like my space and cats are known for liking theirs. But, maybe ours are broken? They’re always in my space if I leave my room. And y’know what, that’s whatever. It’s their home too.

Just know that just because you want to rub them doesn’t mean they want to be rubbed. It’s called consent people.

Too bad they don’t know about that, or respect that much haha. They truly couldn’t care less if you wanted to be left alone.

They’ll let you know you’re annoying them by swatting you away, jumping out of your arms (which may harm you, but that’s your fault).

6. $$$$

You have to pay for the vet, toys they may or may not care for (our cats are really into boxes…so, maybe just buy those), new things after they scratch or break them, and lots of lint rollers & cleaning supplies.

Dexter has a habit of marking his territory on bags and he’s really good at doing it before we can get to him. At first he did it because of an infection (poor boy), but then he got all better. Now, he just does it to do it. Doesn’t matter if the litter box is so fresh you could e—never mind. Just know that your cat may just like ruining things for fun.

Or that you’ll buy a toy they won’t care for. Maybe they will though, so just try out different things. Ours like boxes, as stated, but every once and a while the laser will intrigue them. It’s quite hilarious seeing them fly up walls trying to catch a light.

Just make sure you also buy things that’ll scrape up their hair from rugs, or spray that’ll get up their smell.

And your cat may need lots of vet visits. Dexter did. Make sure you’re prepared to really take care of them, even when they’re sick. They aren’t toys.

7. Curiosity killed the…

They’re very open to getting harmed or getting in your stuff. Both of the cats here (and from what I have read about all cats) couldn’t care less about what you say, if a door is closed…they need to find out what’s on the other side. So, they scratch and beg to get in. If the door is open, you don’t have a say.

I try to keep my door closed because as soon as it isn’t, they’re in there.

Carrot likes to swat at things on high shelves to redecorate I guess, or maybe she just doesn’t know what it is and has to see for herself.

They’re like little kids. When they’re too quiet, you get suspicious.

Maybe curiosity won’t kill the cat, but it may just kill your stuff.

8. Danger to birds

Maybe they’ll help you get a fly out and you’ll feel grateful. But the second they bring in a bird all hurt (or y’know dead)…you’re gonna think to yourself “wow, this cute cat is actually a monster.” Don’t worry, I get why they catch birds and I know that animals in general don’t operate how we may where a certain animal is off limits or whatever. One cat here just likes to show off his skills to his owner, maybe even offer a gift. The other cat isn’t really interested in birds, so that’s cool.

Anyway, cats are a danger to birds. And it sucks. I like birds. Don’t want them dead because of an indoor cat went on a balcony and decided the bird looked like a fun challenge.

But, I guess they can help you with catching things. So, yay.

In conclusion, I’m not a cat fan. I’ve come to realize that I’m not big on having pets in general, but cats are my least favorite so far. Yet, I make sure Dexter and Carrot gets enough love and food because I they should. If you get a pet you better make sure you can provide it with what it needs. You have to feed and care for it. And make sure you really want it/can stay in one place for a bit before getting it because having to move it around could hurt the animal in different ways.

Thanks & peace.