Cats and dogs do seem to come from different planets; and helping their humans doesn’t seem to “be a thing” on Planet Cat.
When it comes to our closest animal friends—our pets—it seems like dogs have all the luck. We take them out for walks and on car rides, we let them jump into our canoes for nature outings and generally let them tag along with us anywhere they’re allowed to go. We even read bedtime stories about them to our children, tales about heroic dogs such as Old Yeller, Balto, Rin Tin Tin and Hachiko.
When it comes to house cats, however, I’m at a loss to think of a single book that casts one in a hero guise—this even though the Humane Society of the United States estimates that there are approximately 93.6 million owned cats in the country as opposed to 77.5 million owned dogs. So, since I’ve talked about the close connection we humans have to our pet dogs in this column, I feel it’s only fair that I give some “airtime” to the nation’s most numerous pet.
Although the sad fate of big cats in the wild is nothing to joke about, this tongue-in-cheek, 30 seconds of looking at the different “style” our cats would bring to the iconic “Timmy-fell-down-the-well” dog story is worth a smile. Like many of you, I happen to share my home with cats and dogs, and I’ve found both to be excellent companions. But I have to admit that felines and canines do seem to come from different planets, as the following video of “Cat Lassie” so succinctly portrays.
Here’s to finding your true places and natural habitats,
Candy
it might well be true for cats. god , it’s so funny! but ii did know in one case where a black cat kept meowing and meowing to her owner till the owner finally got up and followed her pet ( a stray she had adopted ) to find out what was the cat’s problem ( interrupting her social interaction with her visitor at that time ). the cat led her to her baby whose face was blue! so there.
a couple who adopted by foster male kitten had also one black cat that walked their only child each day for a whole block and waited for the child to come home from school. and this cat would attack any one who would touch that child when she was a little baby with the exception of her parents. and this female cat raised the couple’s dog.
cats like their bigger or medium size cousins are mostly solitary animals. so since that species are sufficient to stand on their own feet without any aid from their own kind, working together or obeying your commend is not natural. and whereas dogs are pack animals where one member better obeys its leader and works together as team or else! it’s the survival thing for them; but naturally we humans like to take what dogs do as for our own interests only.
and maybe that is why some family dogs attack other family members, guests and new baby because these intruders are seen as intruders to the pack. my cousin’s dog bites him if he feeds him late. his dog is the alpha dog of the pack.
You might check out “Cats to the Rescue: True Tales of Heroic Felines” by Marilyn Singer. Cats can also do some pretty amazing things, although the ones we have “owned” would most likely have behaved like the one in the hilarious video.
Carlyn,
I’m happy to hear that there actually is a book on heroic felines! I’m sure Cat Lassie, however, wasn’t in it!
Thanks for pointing us to it. — C.G.A.
Loved it! Especially the loud purring at the end!
What about “The Cat Who” series?
You’re right! I should have stipulated “children’s books.” I did come up with “Cat in the Hat,” although he was more of an anti-hero.
Thanks! –C.G.A.