Same here. There's something about having a gaggle or two of cats that make rodents hesitant to take up residence. They provide companionship, they're fun to pet, and it's an entertaining hobby for my wife to show them (one of ours almost got her champion reward in a show today). And really, Coco, unless your horses pull a plow or take you to work, you don't really get any more use out of your horses than I do out of my cats. Maybe even less.
__________________
If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animated contest of freedom, go from us in peace. May your chains sit lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that you were our countrymen! - Samuel Adams
My horses *could* actually pull a plow... if I had a plow. They can certainly pull a wagon with stuff in it (food storage goodies from Macey's, let's say) or carry me places or the kids to school... They could also carry me to my mountain retreat... if I had a mountain retreat. They also keep my blood pressure down and make me happy and have no need for therapy.
__________________
Life is tough but it's tougher if you're stupid. -John Wayne
ah, that may very well be true mirk, but it wouldn't be because I hate cats.
just so you know, the reason I hate cats is because they hate me. any cat, any where that has claws, will scratch me. I loved cats as a child. But they never liked me. I was quite sad about it when I was little, always wanted to have a sweet cat to sit on my lap and love me. But it never happened.
Our first cat was a white manx. I was about 4. She got mean after I slammed her around in the backseat of our Plymouth Fury III a few times. Once we came home and she'd pulled down all the curtains from the front window. After that she went to live on a farm.
The next cat I found while at an early morning drill team practice. She was pale orange tabby sort of and she had kittens every time you turned around. We had her spayed and then she turned psycho. Sometimes she'd be just fine, purring away, next second she's got your hand in her mouth with this Mountain Lion look in her eyes... She had a daughter that was white with blue eyes. She was a really good cat and she had some of those white/blue eyed kitties, too. She wanted to mother everything. A neighbor across town had some orphan kittens, so we took one cuz she was nursing kittens at the time. I walked into the garage and held up the kitty and said, "Wanna' kitty?" She hopped over and grabbed it out of my hands and said, "Give me that!" and took it back to bed.
We got a blue heeler dog about this time and she killed a few cats. But, weird enough, if they were white with blue eyes, she wouldn't bother them.
We have one cat now that we pretend was the cat that "ran away" some time ago and miraculously came back... long story... her name's Emma. She has an M on her forehead and I asked cocokid#1, "What can we name her that starts with M?" He said, Emma. He was 4, but the name has stuck. She loves to bring half-dead birds to the back door of my parents' house with blood squirting out of their necks and all over the carport... gotta' love cats.
__________________
Life is tough but it's tougher if you're stupid. -John Wayne
Ours catches mice and birds and chases squirrels. Since most of our neighbors feed birds we have quite a critter problem.
When I first moved here the mice were many and bold -- going into the garden the mice ran up and down the tomato vines as I tried to pick 'maters. And the strawberry bed was a joke -- all I was doing was feeding the wildlife. So we got a cat.
It took a long time to win his trust -- nice cat but not fully accustomed to people. It's been interesting to see him gradually learn to sit on laps. At first when he wanted to be petted, he would put himself just barely in reach and take off at the slightest noise. Learning that we're ok has taken him a couple of years, but he was a great hunter right away, thank goodness.
When I was a kid we had a cat for several years. One night after all were abed except dad, he noticed our cat making a bit of a fuss and moving her kittens to another location. Dad checked to see if there was something wrong where the cats had been sleeping, and smelled smoke. After checking in the basement and finding nothing but a faint smell of smoke, he rang the fire station. They came and found a blaze just getting started in between the kitchen floor and the basement ceiling.
I'd say that that cat was quite useful to your family.
__________________
If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude than the animated contest of freedom, go from us in peace. May your chains sit lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that you were our countrymen! - Samuel Adams
