We just need to get out more...

House cat, house dog, house, house, house...why not just cat or just dog. There is always that familiar moniker of "house" or "outdoor" put before the type of companion. I ask why? Do you do that with your human children. "Yes, Martha, we decided to have a little boy and he's going to be a house-child. We are going to have his finger-nails pulled out and feed him dry food that will make him lethargic and crap funny. He'll be a perfect compliment to our out-door child that lives in a tent on the back yard." You'd be put in prison if you tried to do that but that's what you do to your pets. How about a little more balance to life. Why confine your companions to such a narrow life? How about if you just let us be companions? Let us come with you wherever it is you might be. Let us see the world.

This was originally supposed to be about cats. Cats really get stuck with this "indoor/outdoor" thing. Why is that? Cats have this "evil overlord" reputation and I think it's because they just don't get out enough. And when they get out, you put them in a box, toss them in the backseat and wonder why they freak out. Hell, if my only view of the outside world was from within the confines of a plastic box I'd howl too. Heck, if my only experiences in riding in the car were from within a box, to and from the vet...well, I can't imagine. Dogs get out more and I have to wonder why? We jump into the car at the first opportunity because we know that it is the way you get to the most amazing places: there is the grocery store parking lot, the gas station and its amazing smells, the wonderous park or the fantasmagorical road trip. OMG, road trips are mine and Zara's favorite thing in the world if for just one reason: french fries! John and Russell always share their french fries on road trips. They are the single most amazing snack ever and I have no idea what's in them. (I am drooling as I type.) But I digress, dogs love the car because we know how fantastic that ride can be. Cats hate the car because, well, they have tainted expectations: the box, the vet, the box, back home. It's like a scene from OZ...without Christopher Miloni. Blech!

Now follow the logic. You don't bring your cat in the car because of how they behave. They freak out because of what the car means to them. Their expectations are built around how you've always taken them in the car. Don't you see how it's not the cat that is the problem? It's you. Once again, it's your behavior that is the problem, not your companion's. Cesar Milan says it well, "I rehabilitate animals, I train people." As a cat lover (I know you're out there somewhere, reading this in a Starbucks.) wouldn't you like a cat that was just a little more...dog-like? Someone to run errands with or enjoy a picnic in the park? Well, get them out of the house more. Make the car ride the great experience that it should be: less prison cell and more hanging your head out the window. Less vet and more grocery store or gas station. And if you're apprehensive about the car try taking them outside. Just plain ol' outside. Pick up a cat harness and leash and go for a walk each day. Dog owners do this every single day. Why don't cat owners? Honestly, why don't cat owners take their companions out of the house? "Cats just don't walk on leashes." Really? You're going to fall back on stereotyping? One cat, off it's lithium, goes bonkers in a car and suddenly cats can't ride in cars. Now none of them even get the opportunity to learn to love the car. Cats climb trees and kill birds so none of get to put on a harness and go for walks. Have you people ever seen Zara go after a squirrel? OMG, have you ever seen her at the dog park?!?! It doesn't stop John and Russell from walking and working with her.

I suppose what I'm trying to get across is quit limiting your companions lives. That new kitten you're getting can be such a great animal if you will just give it/he/she a chance. Take 'em outside and in the car. Let them experience the world so they can accompany you on your journeys through life. That is what we're here for people. We're companions...even cats. Let us accompany you.