Dogs and Cats

Today my sweet little cat died.  She was 16 so I suppose I should be happy that she lived a good long life. Her health and mobility came to an end a couple of days ago.  I was expecting her not to last too much longer.  You know the saying that some people like their pets better than their kids.  I'm not going to go there...

The first thing Army daughter wanted to do was rush out and get me a new cat.  No.  It's not that I don't want another cat.  I don't want any more house cats.  If we get any more cats they will go out in the barn.  Now we still have a cat that stays in the house at night but is outside all day.  As I said, that cat is the last of the inside cats.  Perhaps it's because I don't want to buy any more cat litter.  Or I don't want any more cats thinking they get a larger share of my bed than I do.

I love animals.  I've always had some sort of pet, whether it was a dog or a cat or both.  I even had a goat that thought she was a dog.  She hung out with the dogs and slept in the doghouse at night.  She used to throw herself at the window because she wanted to come in with the other animals. 

I try to teach the grand kids that if you have animals you are responsible for their welfare.  They depend on us to take care of them.  That's why before we eat breakfast or dinner the dogs, cats, chickens, and sheep will all be fed.  They can't get their own meal so we are responsible for taking care of this for them.  And they eat before we do.

Many years ago, about three moves before my friend moved to Oklahoma she lived across the street from me.  One day her dogs got out and were roaming the neighborhood as a pack.  They came into my yard and tried getting into the pasture to go after my sheep.  I shot one of her dogs.  The rest ran off.  I will defend my animals from predator animals.

We almost lost Yip-yip today, too.  That would have made a bad day even worse.  Yip-yip was next door playing in their backyard.  She heard a noise in the front, and being Yip-yip had to investigate.  She came roaring out of the back and right into the path of two stray pit bull dogs.  One of the dogs chased her back into the backyard.  The neighbor's grandson was out back and he started yelling for his grandparents.  He then picked up a metal pole and started hitting the pit bull.  The grandpa came out with his gun but instead of shooting the dogs shot near them.  The grandson was able to get Yip-yip and put her into their house.  The grandpa took another shot, intentionally missing the dogs.  They ran off. 

I went over when I heard the commotion.  I saw the two dogs.  I'd never seen them before.  Neither had the neighbor.  He didn't want to shoot the dogs just in case they were from the neighborhood.  I told him that if I was the one shooting that I would have shot to kill, not shot to run off.  They were lucky that the dogs didn't go after the grandson.  Yip-yip was ok.  They didn't do anything other than get a bite out of her stupid little winter coat that she wears.  I love that stupid winter coat.  It saved her life.

This evening I got a phone call from the neighborhood drunk.  He was calling because he trapped the two pit bulls in his dog kennel.  I told him what happened and he tried to convince me that they were nice dogs.  They didn't go after his puppy.  That's great, but don't keep your puppy in the kennel with those two dogs.  No, his puppy was in the house.  He wanted to know what I think he should do with the dogs. 

I told him if I saw them again they'd be dead.  He didn't want to call the pound because they'd just be put to sleep.  Then call the pit bull rescue for the no-kill shelter.  Just get them out of here or I will.