I thought I knew everything there was to know about my furry BFF, but my knowledge just skyrocketed.
My 6-year-old son Lodi Dodi is both a domestic shorthair kitty and the love of my life. If you’re also a cat parent, you totally know what I mean. If you’re more of a dog person or just animal-adverse, though, I can imagine you might be rolling your eyes at my unabashed adoration for the little guy.
It seems that ancient Egyptians were on my side, seeing that they saw cats as sacred and mummified them in death. I don’t even want to think about how I’ll cope when Lodi passes on, but this graphic gave me some hope. While the average house-cat lives for 15 years, the record for oldest living pet kitty is over 38 years old! I’ll keep my fingers crossed that my cat is a record-breaker.
Most of these surprising cat facts brought a smile to my face, but the adoption category reminded me of the sad reality that many cats are euthanized due to shelters overpopulation. Despite 3.2 million cats entering shelters annually, people tend to purchase cats from pet stores or breeders.
I adopted my cat from a shelter this past year, and before being rescued and brought to the shelter, he lived in a feral cat colony where he lost half of an ear. Some people avoid cats with similar pasts because they’re scared that the animals will be dangerous or won’t be able to connect, and therefore decide to shop rather than adopt. These judgments about shelter cats can’t be further from the truth. Lodi is addicted to snuggling and adjusted into our family dynamic seamlessly, and this is true of so many adopted cats that I know.
If you’re looking for some beautiful companionship and don’t mind a side of fur, please consider heading to your local shelter.