Come on people, it's just a cat!

So, on Saturday Sam and I got a kitten. We have been planning to get one since before we got married, but we were going to wait at least a few more weeks (largely because we are going out of town in two weeks for a couple of days and don't want to leave a new kitten alone). But you know how it goes with kittens; they just call out to you and you can't leave without them.

We went to Newport to the rescue organization that camps out in front of the pet store every Saturday to "just look." We finally decided to get Dexter (his name was Baxter, but we changed it), but that wasn't the end...it was just the beginning. The people at this organization are dear people, but a little crazy when it comes to their cats.

Sam and I were required to sit through an hour-long pet parenting class - their name, not mine - where we learned that cats can die from almost anything, like seafood ("NO tuna!!"), cat food with grains, clay litter, and getting too many vaccines. You sit there long enough and you start to buy into everything. Now I realize each of these claims is founded. But lets get a little perspective here: many a cat has lived with clay litter, iams cat food (oceanfish flavor), and vaccines. Also, we apparently need to train the cat. You do this by giving it a reward of wet cat food when your cat does something you want it to do. Great. Dexter doesn't like wet cat food. Also, he had been home for all of three hours and we were already on the third type of cat litter. They all scare him (like he literally won't step in them) except the clay litter (which apparently is going to kill him). I don't think he cares. And neither do I because my carpet isn't a good litter either.

Also, you can't take just one. It will kill their little spirit if you take only one and they don't have another kitten to play with. I don't think Dexter got the memo that he's supposed to be sad and lonely without a feline playmate because he seems just fine to me.

The day was made a little longer because poor Dexter had an ear infection and was taken to the vet while we were learning how to parent him so we had to go pick him up there. Whew.

Long story short: I think people make their cat's neurotic. I love my cat, but lets just remember...he's just a cat. To quote the movie "Raining Cats and Dogs": "People, you can love your pets; just don't LOVE your pets."