Off the Mark by Mark Parisi for June 10, 2014

..AND some respect!

I have been blessed to be the guardian of both dogs and cats in my lifetime, often having two of each together in the home, and can unequivocally state that each species shows extreme affection.

The ultimate gesture of cat love and devotion….a dead smelly thing is presented as a gift…I couldn’t live without them…the cats I mean…as far as the gifts,a Hallmark card would be enough…

Trouble is, if you move they make you feel guilty of wrecking the moment.

Check out today’s Rip Haywire comic! Cuddly felines are victimizing the town.

I think Winston Churchill’s quote is appropriate here. “I like pigs. Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. A pig looks you in the eye and considers you an equal.”

Right on target. People who don’t think cats show affection – don’t know cats – OR – they weren’t worthy of the affection in the first place.

It really varies by individual. But I think a lot of the perceived difference in affection amounts to which species is more laborious and obedient.

My wife and I had two cats that were rather affectionate. The odd thing was how they behaved like dogs when I went to get the mail. Regardless of where they were — even if they were out patrolling the front yard looking for stuff — if I came out the back door to go to the collective mailbox at the end of the street, they stopped what they were doing and fell in behind me. When I got to the mailbox, they either stood or sat by waiting for me to get everything; when I headed back to the house, they fell in behind me. When I got back to the house, they went back to whatever they were doing when I left. And I didn’t train them to do that; they did it of their own accord.

But Churchill loved his cat.

Anyone who thinks cats aren’t affectionate… well, has probably been judged undeserving.

Dog lovers don’t understand cat people and cat people don’t understand dog lovers!

My birds were very affectionate; Cuddles even frequently declared “I love you” and gave kisses (to guys she liked as well as to her mom).

Some dogs I know don’t show much affection. Yet some cats give off a wee bit too much.

My cat, Angel, never ceased to show affection, whether it was rubbing her face against my leg/face, laying down on whatever I was reading, or cuddling with me in bed.

I know a lady who as at least six cats, all rescues, she said. They are the friendliest bunch of felines you’ll ever meet. They will turn out—as a group—to greet you, a total stranger, when you come to her house. One of them even sits up like a dog.