Regarding pets: Some things need to be said.
Y'all know that I have a cat. Two, actually. They're indoor/outdoor cats, because I'll be damned if I'm going to change a litterbox, more less have a dirty one in my house. I like cats. I like dogs. I don't understand the insistance that some make that you're a "dog person," or a "cat person," and ne'er the twain should meet.
Regarding normal residences:
More than two full-sized indoor dogs is a lot of damn dog. I'm going ot step on toes and say probably too much.
But 10 or more indoor cats? That's wayyyy beyond the pale.
20 or more outdoor cats is too many, too.
7 or more outdoor dogs, unless you have extra land and kennels, is way too many.
I've been running into this a fair bit, lately.
Labels: animal planet, public service message
posted by Matt G @ 10:11 PM
14 Comments:
it depends on how much time and effort you can devote to your animals. A constantly busy person shouldn't have any animals or at least low maintenance animals. A person with more time and energy to devote to pets could handle more than one. I agree however that at some point there is a limit. Too many pet owners seem to think their pets are warm blooded stuffed animals that don't need daily care and attention.
I would think the amount of game/vermin for the outdoor cats to control would be the determining factor, along with acreage, not an arbitrary number made up by us humans. I do agree that there's an upper limit, but I hesitate to say that it's this number or that.
My in-laws have dozens of cats on their 40 acres outside Durango. The cats keep the mice/rats/who-knows-what-else down. That's the whole reason people in that area have cats. Tons and tons of mice. Most of their neighbors have cats, and dogs. The cats take care of the vermin, the dogs keep the coyotes away from the cats (or at least, they try).
In a city, sure the number should be less, and there are other factors to consider. But, I'm basing my opinion on country-living, not city.
I'm not a cat lover. I like cats, they're okay. Nothing against 'em. Just never wanted to own one. I think the fact that they're self-sufficient to the point of not really needing to hang around us humans is why I don't really care about cats. They're fickle. I feel no bond with a cat.
Dogs are more my thing, but I don't care for more than one.
That's my two cents.
When the Baby Puppy grew up and became bigger than the Big Yeller Dawg, I realized we had one two many dawgs. The dilemma, once I was attached to all three, was which one to give away. Just can't do it.
Holly, I actually wasn't thinking of y'all's situation when I wrote that, then realized, and held fast.
To be honest, this post started about cats. We have some Crazy Cat Ladies here in town. But then I realized that I've been dealing with Crazee Dawg Owners, too. Then I realized that I have at least a couple of Crazee All Kinds Of Animal Owners here. We get all kinds. And they all create problems for their neighbors.
I guess that's really the point at which it goes too far-- when you're creating a problem.
It's interesting that you're commenting on that- the same thing(s) are occuring on the east coast too. They just had a lady with 170 cats in the paper...
1-2 dogs is it as far as I'm concerned...
Six, six indoor cats and you're past the line and into crazy cat lady territory. Two large dogs is enough.
One over-sized great Dane in a two bedroom, 650 square-foot apartment was too many dogs, IMHO. It was a very, very well behaved dog, never heard a sound from it, but I think the humans just lived in the bathroom or something.
LittleRed1
Matt, I didn't think you were writing about us. I just wanted to throw my 2 cents in. And speaking of 2 cents, how come ther's not one of those symbols on keyboards anymore?
Barkley isn't a dog, he's a fur covered bacon homing device.
@ Holly:
1: Who ever uses cents, anymore?
2: We needed the Caret [^] for using scientific notation, to show the national debt.
3. If you desperately need the cent symbol, press Alt+0162, to get ยข.
Depends on the people, depends on the animals involved. I have a friend with four dogs (the yard is not fenced, so yes they are "indoor") and two cats; her household is ferociously managed, and it winds up not feeling like too much for visitors, or presumably, them. (One of them is an Akita from the same kennel as my two; she makes our dogs look like utter heathens.)
That caveated, I think the limits of sanity are defined by a combination of how much cleaning and care you can keep up with, and the sheer management involved with keeping multiple territorial carnivores in the same area. Once you reach a number in which some or more are pariahs whose lives are effectively confined to single rooms, that is way too much.
That, and especially in the case of cats whether indoor or outdoor, the laws of epidemic will govern the situation. A friend of my mother's been sadly descending from "well-meaning cat lady" into "hoarder" and FIP is currently decimating her way-too-many cats. I'd been predicting such for years but apparently it's a total unforseeable tragic act of god and not the consequences of overcrowding.
Have a cat and a dog. In my opinion that is one too many cats. I love getting the cat people all up in arms.
Add the multiple outside dogs in unfenced environs when you know the neighbors have chickens and you get a much more volatile difference of opinion...the cats seem to have adopted my lawn and garden area as part of their territory now, and I fondly watch them pounce on and eat the grasshoppers. I have high hopes I won't need a mousetrap this winter.
Gee, Matt, I dunno if you'd be welcome at Castle Argghhh! At last count, I think John and Beth are at about 8 cats and 5 dogs. (not to mention the chickens, goats, horses, and guinea fowl. The Armorer is a retired heavily armed redleg, and loves teh kittehs, and also teh doggies.
Oh, in case yer not familiar, that's www.thedonovan.com. They have the best Gun Pr0n on the net.
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