All good relationships need work or they deteriorate. That goes for marriages, parent-child relationships, friendships, and pet-human relationships. Cats are mistakenly thought of as low maintenance pets, but nothing could be further from the truth.
Anyone who truly enjoys living with a cat knows this. And those who have a cat but don’t pay much attention to them are cheating themselves out of something special. Even worse, neglecting a cat can even be cruel. Imagine a friendly, outgoing cat like me living with a human who thought I was “just a cat,” and left me alone to entertain myself. I would be miserable! I might even develop some really bad habits, or get sick. Depression can lead to physical illness.
The reason people think dogs require more attention is because they need things like walks, and they are aggressive about asking for affection. Cats are quieter, and don’t necessarily require exercise outside (although going out on a leash or having a catio or cat run would be highly appreciated!). Plus, we have litter boxes and don’t need to go outside to relieve ourselves. But just because we aren’t in your face, asking for love, it doesn’t mean we don’t need it.
Cats need time every day for affection and recreation. Maybe not on the level I do, with my dedicated photo studio and trips to the pet store. But like any living being, we need emotional, mental, and physical stimulation to function at our best and be happy. Happy cats are less likely to act out and get into trouble. They may even sleep a bit less because they’re not bored. And they will be healthier in the long run.
How is your relationship with your cat? And how do you think you could make it even better? Let me know in the comments.
Other posts you’ll enjoy:
- The Top 10 Ways to Have a Better Relationship With Your Cat
- How to Bond With Your Cat – 8 Tips
- How to Motivate Your Human
I read the title and thought, “There’s no doubt about that.” 🙂
My cats are my everything. Probably not good from a. Human standpoint but humans have hurt me. Cats never intentionally hurt me. Their love is pure and unconditional. I have a great relationship with my girls. Honestly Summer, I could spend more time playing with them. Just being honest
And we humans need to remind ourselves that we may have a happy “low maintenance” cat, but as the kitty ages it may require more care – daily meds, for instance, that take time (and $$) and may not be happily accepted by the kitty. But like human family members, we have to be ready to make these adjustments ourselves for these beloved “pets”.
Our humas love all kitties and most all critters too and we’re lucky to have all the attention we desire too.
Another furabuluss post Summer!
An a timely topick….. BellaSita Mum has been reeviewin her purrformance takin care of mee. Shee meowed to mee 2 weekssss ago shee had not been a GRATE Meowmy fore much of this yeer due to her health an Depression. Shee asked mee if mee wanted to go to a mew home….
Mee thott an thott an mee wantss to stay…this iss THE best home mee efurr had!! An even if wee have sum ruff timess mee knowss shee lovess mee.
Shee allso meowd shee has nevurr met a ‘low’ maintenance Kitty, mew mew mew…..
Wee play allmost efurry nite an mee chasess Firefly (lazer toy)!!! An mee Chirpie on a stick an other stick toyss…
An shee makess sure mee has guud foodabullss an snax.
Thanx fore your post!
***purrss*** BellaDharma an ((huggiess)) BellaSita Mum
You’re so right! Mudpie and I are pretty inseparable – especially now that I’m home all the time – but I have a feeling she might say I could still be doing better!
No, cats are definitely not low maintenance pets. Our humans can attest to that!
Great post Summer. Very true that every cat needs at least some love and affection daily. I feel like caring for my 11 is a full time job- but, one I love. XO
I hate to think about “neglected” pets but I know there are
plenty of them. It would be nice if people didn’t take in an
animal if they don’t want to care for them – too bad there
can’t be a law against it.
We know cats need love and playtime every day. We could never ignore our cats, nor would we want to!
Anyone who knows me KNOWS I’m not low maintenance, at all. Looks like Saffron isn’t, either. We’re cats. We deserve to be waited on paw and paw AND we also deserve to be loved and played with and spoken nicely to and all that stuff.
I mean, WOULD PEEPS IGNORE THEIR KIDS? I think not. MOUSES!
Cats do need a lot of attention. Eric was a lazy cat but loved to play fetch. Flynn just loved to play. I can’t even begin to imagine how many hours we spent walking around the fields together. I just had to ask, “Does anyone want to go walkies?” and there would be a mad dash for the garden gate.
That’s true, Summer. Us cats need attention and stimulation to keep us happy and healthy.
Well, I am 18 years old and pretty set in my ways, but mom and dad do make sure to get in some play time with me, though I’m not sure it’s for my benefit or theirs. I have my ‘nip toy, various & assorted shoelaces, yarn & string. Mostly I just want to be left alone to nap the day away, but our bedtime routine includes some hearty playing on my mat. They’ve been talking recently about maybe fostering another kitty, thinking my interaction with him/her might bring some, uh, excitement to my existence. Most likely, though, I’d probably treat said companion much the way I do mom and dad most times- like they’re not even there (unless I want attention).
I was living in the wild when mum’s sister found me when I came into her yard.
I was skinny and had lots of fur missing from the stress of being outside.
Because mum likes black cats, she took me in. I love being indoors and an only cat (now)
We have a great relationship and really like being close to each other.
I love my daily brushing sessions in addition to petting and scritches 🙂
I am a lucky cat!!!
Purrs, Julie