Life Of A Cat Dad: Learning To Love

Mike is a cat and dog daddy. Here's his experience with our first cat Moto, from his perspective. Mike used to be a "not a cat person" until I introduced the feline way of life to him. Cat lovers - join forces!

​BECOMING A CAT DAD
When Michelle and I first got a place on our own, both still students in college, I was extremely hesitant as she started to mention getting a cat.  Always being a "dog person" since I was 9 years old with our dog Maddie and Michelle's dog Foxy, I never had any lasting or memorable relationships with cats.  My Aunt Sue was always the family pariah, known to have multiple cats at her house and trapping them on occasion. So one could say that my reluctant behavior to take in a cat could be attributed to the "not knowing" aspect of being a pet parent or "cat dad" in this case.

Michelle was working for Blue Buffalo at the time, as a food representative and would travel to the different locations to promote their food.  That was when she saw Moto, and our lives would change forever. I never thought I would be a person to say "I don't know what I would do without my cat", but once you are, there's no going back.  

One day, she was getting off of work early and asked me to come pick her up. She came out to the car, with no intention of getting in right away and looked into my eyes, with that a sort of "schoolgirl innocence" that I've come to know all too well.

"Do you want to see him?"  Michelle said. I went in and Moto, at that time he was Carmine, came up to us immediately.  As he was hugging us and rubbing on us, I knew that he was truly one of a kind.  To this day, I've never known an animal to be as compassionate and loving as he is with everyone he meets. I knew that Michelle wanted this cat and that nothing anyone could say (myself included) could come between her and Moto.

I remember Michelle calling me on the phone saying that she was frustrated because she didn't think the adoption agency was going to take her application seriously because she was still young and didn't own a home or have a full time job. Michelle spent many nights waiting on their calls to check her references and that's when it happened. I finally got my call, and she looked at me with wide eyes and anticipation, knowing that it could be possible to take home that adorable cat we saw in the window of the Pet Smart.

We took him home to our apartment, and bought him everything we thought he would need. He slowly but surely made himself at home. Michelle and I settled on the name Moto (short for Matsumoto), both being fans of Asian-themed shows and comics.  

LEARNING EVERYDAY
Learning to live with a cat was the hardest part for me to grasp. Losing your temper can be easy at first. I would be trying to play a game on my laptop or finish homework for college, and Moto would come along and lay on my laptop or notebook to give me those looks of desperation.  Wanting to play or get petted. That is something that I still find myself forced to do even now, seven years later; putting aside time to be with your pet. However busy your life may get, there's always time every day to show your friend that you love them.

If this is your first cat, or even your first pet, just remember that you are SHARING your life with another being now. They are NOT the background for YOUR life. You are both in this together. There are times when I could lay with Moto for hours, with our heads pressed against one another and I can truly say that he is one of my best friends; human and animal alike. Friendship knows no species, and love knows no bounds.
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Don't forget to participate in the Fox & Feline National Cat Day Contest on October 29.