We rarely cover Christopher Walken, although the man is a national treasure. He’s just not controversial at all – he seems like a nice guy, everyone loves him, he loves to dance, and as we can see from this Parade cover, he loves cats. He’s promoting a family film called Nine Lives, where he plays a magical pet shop owner. Kevin Spacey and Jennifer Garner are in the movie too. Weird. Anyway, this whole interview is charming, mostly because he talks about CATS! You can read the full Parade piece here, and here are some highlights:
On being a teenage lion tamer: [Sheba, his lioness in a one-ring circus on upstate New York] “was very sweet. She’d walk around and bump up against you leg, just like a nice old cat. I’d wave my whip and she would sit up on her back legs and roll over and do stuff. When we weren’t performing, I used to hang out with her and pet her.”
But now he’s against zoos & circuses: “As I get older, I’m very much against zoos and, frankly, animals in captivity. Especially big, wild animals. I wish there wasn’t any such thing as ‘animal acts.’ I wish there wasn’t any such thing as zoos.”
His kitty, The Cat: Walken adopted his own feral black-and-white “tuxedo cat” after she showed up on his porch one day—with her babies. “Now I have this basically wild cat that likes to be outside, but she’s friendly. When it gets cold, she comes in.” He calls her simply “the Cat.” And he and Georgianne, who have no children, have always considered their cats as their kids. “I think a lot of people are like that with their pets.”
He’s the son of a German immigrant & a Scottish immigrant: “I had a wonderful childhood. Everything: food, house. But my parents didn’t. My parents really did have a hard time where they came from, and they came here and they made this great life. That’s what America is, always and still. I believe people should be able to go and make their lives as they wish. America certainly has always been that for a lot of people. As a kid, I grew up with all sorts of people, different kinds of people. To me, that’s the way it ought to be. Of course, we live in a time of dangerous things. There’s got to be a way around that without making it difficult for everybody.”
On his longtime love of cats: “My cats are extremely well taken care of. Frankly, if there’s such a thing as reincarnation, it would be wonderful to come back as my cat. I’m not sure you could do better than that.”
But what happened to The Cat’s kittens? Did the Walkens give the kittens away? Or did he bring the kittens inside and now The Cat is the only one who prefers being outside? So many questions. I actually love that he calls his cat The Cat. I did that with my dog too – my (late) puppy had a real name, but I mostly just called him “Puppy” or “Black Dog.” I’m thinking about getting another animal – from a shelter – and I do think I’ll get a cat this time.
Photos courtesy of Parade.
I am happily owned by Daisy, Violet, and Hecate. They are having brunch as I write this. Yay Walken!
I’m the private nurse and feeder of two cats. They don’t pay well, but I’m allowed to live with them and sometimes, they give permittion so I can sit in their favorite chair.
I absolutlely love and adore my cat. My Facebook page is a record of her adorableness. I can’t image life without at cat.
I also happen to be owned by two cats, Ló and Liz, and they are absolutely the most amazing creatures in the world. Once you go cat, you never go back!
“Once you go cat, you never go back!”. Truer words have never been said!
Sorry for the loss of your dog, Kaiser, but I definitely recommend adopting (two, then they have a friend) cats from the shelter!
I have three rescue cats (2 brothers and a sister – a package deal) but sadly one of the boys (Boo) is terminally ill and not long for this world. I am ultra-sad as he is my favourite. Right now the girl is asleep in her cat bed and snoring her head off!!
On another note my mother had a cat called Dog and another cat called Little One. I am grateful her penchant for weird names didn’t include her human children!
@Secret Squirrel; “I am grateful her penchant for weird names didn’t include her human children.”
Ah. Quite.
🙂
Love the name dog!!
Poor boo, I suppose all you can do is make sure he’s comfortable.
Yeah its a good job she chose a sensible name Secretsquirrel was always one of my faves 😉
@Secret squirrel: I’m sorry about Boo. I can feel your pain, because one of my cats (Peter) might not be around much longer as well. He is old (18) and ill, but he is still comfortable. But it’s hard to know he is going to die.
Secret Squirrel, so so sorry about your Boo. It is so hard. We have 5 rescue cats and they are our children and the light of our lives. Love your comment about your girl in her bed snoring! Our oldest, a calico, snores like a drunken sailor. She lays on the top of the sofa when we are watching tv and we constantly have to turn up the volume to drown out her snoring.
Cats are wonderful, magical creatures. And the unconditional love they give when they are loved is so special.
@ greenmonster
Thank you, and my heartfelt sympathies for your Peter. Eighteen is a very good age for a cat. Boo is 14 but to me it feels like he is still just a half-grown kitten.
@ Aussie girl
I am doing my best to keep him comfortable, but it is a battle I am starting to lose. I know each vet visit could be his last.
@ Is_boston & Shelly
I suit my name. My avatar is actually a picture of me on my first day of school!
@RedOnTheHead
Millie had her nose removed after developing cancer about 18 months ago, but that did nothing to reduce her snoring! Her brother Keats is also a massive snorer! Boo is the quietest one asleep but loudest one awake!
@Secret squirrel and @greenmonster
Sorry about your furbabies. I know, it’s rough.
One of my favorite quotes, because it’s true (adopted, rescued or bought—soooooo against buying, though):
“It’s inevitable when you buy the pet. You’re supposed to know it in the pet shop. It’s going to end badly. You are purchasing a small tragedy,” – George Carlin.
🙂 🙁
@secret squirrel and @linalamont
thank you
That quote is so, so true. It breaks my heart just thinking about letting Peter go. But I will forever be thankful that I could share those years with him, because he is so amazingly cool.
I have Harry, Chicken, and Maeby. They rule the house and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Harry is curled up under the comforter at my feet as I type this.
Since we are sharing names.
I had a dog named “Girl” once
Now we have a Blanche Dean, Junior and John-John
Our cats name is Kitty.
So either you get something super cute and weird or you get a totally generic name with us.
@Psu: it was/is quite similar in my family. Itis /was either plain and simple or weird. Peter comes from Later-Peter (I’m german, so it’s actually Spaeter-Peter), because he is so slow and relaxed. He is never in a hurry to get anywhere.
The other one, Piri, got her name from an old movie about an hungarian girl named Piroshka, who falls in love with a german student. That character was so sweet, giving and had such a good heart, that I thought the name would be perfect for my cat.
All my cats have super girly names. Eloise, Beatrix (Beezus) and Jessamine. My two sweet angel Persians were Malachai and Sadie. I probably will never have children, but I really enjoy names, so I like that I get to pick names for my furbabies.
My uncle used to sometimes call my aunt “Kitty” as a nickname. Whenever he did- their cat alway poked her head up, obviously thinking he meant her… Dunno about elsewhere, but US cats tend to all respond to Kitty!
My sister’s cat’s name is Chicken!!! Highlarious…
This is awesome. I’m considering adopting a friend’s cat named Zelda and you guys are inspiring me!!!
happily owned by my two coonies 🙂
Cats should be kept inside where they’ll be safe. The song birds also thank you.
Christopher Walken holding a cat. The day is made.
+1
love that he is a “crazy cat lady” – this makes the world so much better!
I am beaming. 🙂
Other Crazy Cat Guys — Rickey Gervaise, and Sean Connery.
Also, John Cleese.
Yes!!! He once told my brother a story about one of his. My brother said Cleese’s eyes looked melty talking about the cat.
My boyfriend! His office is covered in pictures of our three cats.
And Charlie Hunnam.
I’m enjoying learning that all these actors are crazy cat people like me. There’s something special about a man who loves cats. 😀
Made well. 😻
MEOW.
They look so alike.
I know, perfect! So sweet.
there’s this short lived anime thing way back when called Pet Shop of Horrors, i always thought Walken or Willem Dafoe would be good for a live action version of the petshop owner… lo and behold!
it’s like the pet gods are listening… and even throws in a bonus: Cat hug pics!
Oh, how cute!
Same, Chris. I have three cat kids and I’m quite happy with them and not having actual human children.
me too.
What a cute story!
Rescued is my favorite breed.
yup. Rescues are amazing.
Our two old rescues — Maine Coon and Norwegian Forest Cat — were foundlings. Maine in my cousin’s back garden, nearly dead at 10 weeks, our fab vet got her through it and she’s 14 now; the other dumped in a warehouse. Fantastic buddies, and everyone who stays with Mr L and I — even serious dog people — are astonished. They are chatty, doglike, super loyal, personality packed like movie DOGS. It’s strange and cool.
Prior to them, a huge long tall intuitive, brave, loyal, kindly Norwegian rescue so cool, he got his wings flying with me all the time on Lufthansa (the Seigfried and Roy tiger cabin flights, then on w me if the night flight was less than 30% full). Iberia Air flight attendants told me he had the “eyes of god;” a Japanese businessman and his wife offered to buy him from me in Munich airport and a cute French Jeweler I met in another airport would visit for years to hang out with us. That cat’s best friend was a Bernese Mtn Dog, whose Bavarian owners ran stables and a clothing firm and built him a dog chalet, where my cat would go hang out. THe dog would show up at my house w a mouse for my cat. BFF. Cats will surprise you every time.
Our other rescue — a tough one-eared tomcat who decided to move in after roughing it for at least a year — was like a reincarnated 18th century gentleman. Can’t explain it. He fell in love with a friend of mine and would climb into lap, throw his arms around her neck, and rest his head on her shoulder, and just stay that way. She was allergic but in love and allowed it! He died two years ago from an undetected heart problem. Super-tough, super jock hard-as$ Mr L still gets tears in his eyes,
Lovely story, Liberty. Lula, Queen of All She Surveys, approves. 🙂
🙂 Lula!!! Queen Lula. Love it.
Our Maine Coon is the queen of her kingdom! But the Weegie is more like a big eager clumsy chatty friendly puppy. She sounds like horses when she runs through the house and up and down through the halls and stairways — you swear you are about to be kidnapped by desperadoes. But she is LOYAL, purely doglike, a sort of bodyguard.
Both are in love with Mr L. Whereas, he and the tomcat (Pretty Boy) were totally guy-friends, hung out, would have smoked cigars together over fine Scotch basically. He has their photos on a couple of his bookcases in his offices, and had their portratits done for me. 🙂 The Queen is his screensaver.
The dogs all go bananas for Mr. bluhare. I’m OK; the giver of treats and taker of walks, but he’s home all the time and I’m not. So there’s no way I’m ever going to top him in the Dog Popularity Survey.
But Lula’s my buddy. (and, yes she had a brother named Sailor!) She’s like your cats; friendly and goofy but Lula has the world’s first color sensing shedder, and sheds fur colored exactly the opposite of what you’re wearing. It’s uncanny. She’s 17 years old and wants you to know she doesn’t look or act a day over 10. 🙂
Lula is so Hollywood! must be using the finest kitty beauty creams! Salmon, all the rage.
My giant black and white Weegie Lilly sheds mostly thick white curls. Our 14-hr-old Maine is the Brown Mackerel coloring, getting a bit more grey/creme in her face but still looks so kitten-y somehow….sheds invisible feathers, basically. The best little buddies.
I pretty much have the same story about how my cat Kevin and I came to be. He showed up as a litter in the garage but the mother moved them, but he came back and never left. He was a wee bit fearal at the start but after 9 years he’s a big old softy. He has been every where on my travels with me, even induring a 9-10 hour, rough boat trip to Tasmania and then back again a year later. I love ( and sometimes hate because I can’t move) curling up in bed with my 2 &1/2 year old son and Kevin, my favourite boys.
I love love love your cat’s name! I’m owned by a Bengal that I rescued from two cokeheads. She’s not very demonstrative but every morning she wakes up with me and we cuddle under the covers. I’m currently owned by my brother’s cat who insists on curling up in my lap whilst in the bathroom. Animals are the ultimate stress relievers!
I love how you introduce yourself as the owned one. This is very true when it comes to cat, we will never own them.
Actually you just made me think of a dog my sister gave my father that she insisted on calling moo. My dad lived oppersite a park and the dog was very good at getting out. My poor father would have to walk up, down the street and around the park yelling out “Moo!!”.
Aw, what a sweet story about your dad! He must have sounded insane, lol!
I went thru a period where I named my cats after Roman Emperors. Tiberious ran away after a year but Caligula lives on with my mom.
My boy Eli, who’s gone now, was a twenty pounder. He also loved to climb in one’s lap in the bathroom. He would be careful not to scratch. I called him Mister Man or Manny.
I once had a turtle named Octavius.
Octavius Vandergelder.
@Mayamae, one of my girls does that too! She LOVES to sit on people’s laps on the potty. You’d better close the door if you don’t want a lap full of cat!
My other kitty gets super lovey when I turn on the shower. She’s all over me, rubbing my legs and standing on her hind legs to get closer to my face. I don’t know why, but it’s her thing!
Also, lol at “Moo.”
awwwww Kevin!!!!!
And whirldly, I love your cat’s name, too!
Sadezilla – seriously? Lol! My giant bear-size 20-lb Weegie tomcat rescue used to be furiously worried whenever i took a bath — he would fix front paws on the edge of the tub and sit like that and peer over scowling, red-nosed and red-haired with fury and worry, making worried chat until I got out — he would be so relieved he would almost collapse in purrs and his nose and ears would go back to normal pale pink. Showers, he’d jump right in. I would close the door, he would merely stand up and use his mammoth paws to open the door by the handle or knob and march in. Like having a big Danish bodyguard for years.
@Liberty, she doesn’t get in the shower with me. After I turn on the shower and am getting undressed, she turns on the charm. Today after I got out she was the same way!
The morning after the Maine coon who lives here arrived, I got in the shower and she got right in with me. I didn’t realize until I stepped backwards onto wet cat. Now, she waits until I have finished then jumps in and rolls around in the wet tub.
Aw, we have water-cats, ladies! And your Maine coon rolling in the tub in bliss, lilacflowers! so cute. They are natural clowns but in a splendid way.
I would guess he has more than one cat. Maybe the Cat showing up with kittens was his entry into being owned by cats.
We do that. At one point, we had Old Cat, Young Cat, Old Dog and Young Dog. Both the Olds are now, sadly, deceased. I do miss ’em. They all had proper names but we just called them the Olds and the Youngs. I wouldn’t say Young Cat is like my child. More like the bossy mate I had at school who could find fault with pretty much anything. Young Cat likes to turn his nose up. Unless you’re offering something fishy.
each comes with a little suitcase of personality, don’t they?
Our oldest cat, the Maine Coon, beams at people in this smiling angel-eyed way, even at the vet. Everyone falls apart cooing and kissing her and carrying her about. Then they bring her food and toys, and brush her. Then she gives us a sidelong look that says, “Worked again.”
My old Weegie air-flynig rescue let the two little 4 yr old twin girl neighbors come by and dress him up, or he would join them for their game of lying long and straight and then rolling down a hill. Anything they wanted. While giving me a meaningful, “I shall expect treats for this” look.
They do! Young Cat is aloof. He’ll allow children to mess him about. He’ll sit on your lap. But always with an air of utter indifference. Open a can of pilchards, though, and he’ll claw his way up your leg to beg for a bowlful.
Liberty, what great stories! I’ve never come across a Norwegian or a Maine Coon at a rescue, but if I did, I don’t know if I’d be able to resist!
I share the same story. My cat just showed up at my door in 2002, gifted us with a litter and never left. Never felt the need to give her a name. But since I’m french she’s “le chat “. I had to put a name on papers for plane trips though.
Why isn’t she “la chatte”?
I had to laugh at that, crude though it is….
@Eden75
Trust me, I wouldn’t have said that in English, here. Thought I could slip it by in French. No offense meant to kitty. Loooooove cats, dogs, pretty much most animals. 🙂
@Lina, none taken here 😉 Just a laugh early in the morning.
I’m so jealous!!! Why does this never happen to me? Why don’t I wake up with a litter of babies on my patio? Now I’m all squee.
Because you have responsible neighbors. 🙂
As if I needed another reason to like this man…
My cat booboo was a stray and now is a spoiled rotten brat and I love her. She “allows” me to hug on her and pet only when she chooses. And she demands I stand next to her while she eats like I’m her maid! And I do. 😸
Too funny! One of my parents’ cats is like that. And my sister’s cat refuses to use the litter box unless a human accompanies her downstairs.
My old shrink once referred to my dog as my child. It wasn’t hyperbole! Got her (the dog, not the shrink) at a shelter almost 12 years old and she’s the best. #adoptdontshop
Lol, it would be funny though if you did pick your shrink up at the shrink pound. All those unwanted psychologists dumped after the first few sessions and the novelty wore off.
My husband would die a thousand times from happiness if a momma cat and her babies showed up at our front door and never left. We do have a cat, but she likes me best 🙂 He just wants more. Sadly, my cat does not get along well with others because of her prior living arrangements.
God I love cats. That is all.
My cat Milly just wandered out of the woods one day and she’s been mine ever since. My other cat Eomer belonged to some bad owners so I took over when they moved. They are now best friends and clean each other all the time. I feel like my heart could burst when I see them do that!
My cat is my child. He is correct.
I was a cat person until I got my first boxer. Now I’m a boxer person. That said, I still share my home with two cats, and we have a sweet stray named Catio who lives on our patio (catio).
adorable. I love him. Seems like a truly nice and genuine person. Impressed by how he expressed nicely the importance of embracing different people and not becoming a closed society.
What is it about cat faces that is so amusing? They really are the best and just looking at one, makes me smile. Their personalities crack me up. My kids all grew up with cats and now in return, they each have a cat they are very attached to. My daughter has always said that her cat has helped her get through the tough times in her life.
When my boys were little, I was visiting my Mother, and buckling my kids in the backseat of the car, when a black cat jumped in the car and sat right between them. My Mom told me, she was a stray and a lot of the neighbors were feeding her. The boys were thrilled! Took her home, and the boys named her Catwoman, but we never called her anything but Kitty! That was years ago. I have two dogs now, but still miss Kitty…..
Currently owned by two rescues, Girl Kyiddie and Tyne Daly! Recently fostered Vert (short for pervert) and sadly had to put down our oldest kyiddie bear- Governor Catterson. Walken for president 🙌🏼
Vouch! Love Walken anyway, and reading that he’s a crazy cat lady, along with fellow feline followers, made my day!
He’s a cool guy. So is the kitty.
There’s something awesome about guys who are “cat people”.
My greyhound is totally my kid. I defy anyone to tell me that he doesn’t know we are his parents.
I rescued a cat that had been burned while hiding near a car engine. She hissed and didn’t like being touched, but I had just lost my dog and I knew no other dog could replace him. I wasn’t capable of loving another animal that much again, so I figured this was perfect. No one else was going to adopt her.
I think it took about two days for the conversion from dog lover to cat lady to take place. I just had to learn HER preferences: pet only her face, don’t pick her up, keep still when she wants to lay on me, etc. I lost her to a rare cancer after 1 1/2 years but she changed me completely. I can’t imagine ever owning a dog again. I love dogs, they’re great, but I’m a proud cat lady now!
Isn’t it wonderful how animals find us? I was cat-neutral (always favored dogs) until a tiny kitty showed up. Later, a young female cat showed up. Before we could get her spayed, one litter of kittens followed in weeks. I helped her feed them, as she was so young herself. It was such a fun, rewarding experience. I still have two dogs, and now just let things play out in terms of future pets.
So many needy animals have crossed my path the past few years and have turned out to help me far more than I’ve helped them. I had a lot of personal loss in a short time last year, and those animals were a purpose and a great comfort to me.
Aw, I’m the total opposite. I was born a cat-lady. My childhood bedroom had cat wallpaper border in it; I wrote stories in school about cats. Cats, cats, cats!
Then I fell in love with a white boxer, my soul dog, a few years ago, and I’ve never looked back. I still have my two cats (and a stray who took up residence on our patio a few months ago), but we all just kind of coexist. My heart is my dog.
I think its very true, if you are childless, you treat your pets like your children. I have a tuxedo cat too, she was one of a five litter, the only surving one, the others were killed on the road, ran away etc, but I have her nine years in october, and she is spoilt rotten, but I love her so much, and if she is outside for more than an hour, i am calling to make sure she is ok, my mom laughs at me for being so overprotective, but I start to worry. I call her Shiloh, as in shy, because she was the shy one of the litter,with a little turned out nose. I think cats and animals in general are extremely smart, and I dont think I could ever live without animals, I also have my brother two dogs and a donkey, you never are lonely, thats for sure!
Did anyone see the trailer for this movie? It is such a puzzlement- Kevin Spacey as a cat? Jennifer Gardner as his ex-wife?? Christopher Walken??? I love the article and the cat love, but that trailer is beyond weird!!
Yeah, for each of them I thought — what happened to their careers? I think Walken is so good, it doesn’t matter, but for the other two?
Sitting at the vet’s the other day with my giant dog, a teddy bear Pyr, surrounded by pets old and young (with owners of same age ranges), it became clear once again that one common thing that seems to break down walls is pets. Having and caring for cats or dogs seems to bring out the better parts in most of us.
We sat around chatting about every pet in that waiting room, and how they came to be that person’s “child” or “grandchild”. It was wonderful.
Yep, my pets are my kids.
Yes this. I have two cat overlords. This story and these comments make me want to find them and hug them but they likely won’t appreciate that. I was just traveling for two weeks and came back yesterday. They snuggled me during the night as I slept, I will have to be satisfied with that for now.
LOVE that he says this, though let’s be honest – if a woman actor (with no children) said this, there’d be much snickering and concern trolling. Wish that everyone could just be honest like Walken, and receive the same applause in response.
Never thought of him a cat person but it is a really great side to him!
My cats are not like my kids because they’re way less maintenance than kids. And the cats enjoy quiet time. 😁
My “dog person” husband just brought home our third cat a few days ago. It’s orange and about 5 weeks old. We still haven’t named it.
I just caught it staring intently at a book my daughter was reading to it.
I wish we could share photos here! 😩
Isa: you should name the cat after the book or author!!!
I feel exactly the same way…. My two cats are my “kids” and they are treated like gold. I often think I’d like to be reincarnated as a house cat to a good owner LOL My opinion on zoos and circuses have also evolved over the years.
Until now, I didn’t know he was part Scottish. Now I love him even more!
Love it! And just like people with human children I use the same excuses at work.
” I need to leave early so I can pick up my cat”
“I’m late because I had to clean up cat vomit”
“My cat has a drs appointment”
Proud parent of a cat.
I once had to explain a delay delivering a job to a client because of a matter of life and death. I had to rescue a little field mouse who had wandered into the office through a hole in the crawl space wall and was suddenly the target of two predatory feline assistants. Mousy had taken shelter behind a pile of stuff so it took a while to get to him and then convince him I was a vegetarian and no threat, “just get into the bag and I’ll escort you to safety”. The cats are always baffled when I do this. But I’m the natural obstacle they must get past if they want to murder someone.
The real fun is when they bring live birds in and let them loose to fly around. One fledgling was such a fast walker he was amazingly hard for me to capture, but I finally succeeded and took him outside the catproofed fence where his worried parents were waiting to continue the training. The little birdie figured out quickly that mastering flight was pretty crucial, so I think he made it past the neighbor cats. He had just hopped into the wrong yard…
Junior Cat at the moment is much more interested in playing tag with rodents than hurting them. She carries them around gently, releases them, gives them a head start, and then chases them for a repeat inside and outside (back and forth through the cat door). One mousy came straight to me for help, he was easy to capture.
My aunt was cooking breakfast in her kitchen one morning when she saw the cat come through the pet door, struggling with something, then run with her prize upstairs to the bedroom. Moments later, she heard my uncle screaming and she ran upstairs to find him under the bed while a red-tailed hawk swooped around the room with the cat jumping after it.
oh my god! seriously!?!? wow.
My Weegie co-pilot in German days kept bringing injured or old cats, hedgehogs, rabbits to my door for treatment — not carrying them, but herding them. He’d herd them to his outdoor water dish on the back terrace, then get me and sit next to his foundling with this LOOK: fix this. He’d then herd any cat to his own food dish, and help me or me/vet nurse each one back to health. Once he rounded up the escaped floppy ear bunnies of our little neighbors and herded the animals into their yard near their pen. I think he learned it from his Bernese dog pal. I had to find homes for five strays he brought back, but the chicken stayed and hung out and walked around with him for two years. Animals. Always amazing.
There are so many great stories on this thread! Animals are truly the best! I’m a ride-or-die cat person, but I like dogs too. I’ve never had the opportunity to have a dog as I live by myself and work long hours. My dream is to have a cat and a dog who are best friends one day 😆😻
I was madly in love with my first cat, a sweet Siamese. She was my first baby and slept nested in my hair every night. She was 4 when she went out one day and disappeared. I was 6 months pregnant and spent the last few months of my pregnancy in mourning. Now I have a daughter named after a cat.
Its terrible when a cat just takes of and disappears, I had a stray cat that came to me, I had him for two years, then one day he took of and never came back, you just wonder did something happen to them or did they find a new home, you just dont know thats whats sad about it.
I laughed! I cried! It was better than… Nope. Nothing is better than CATS.
We adopted from the shelter. He is probably a Maine Coon mix and was dumped there unceremoniously by his previous owners. He used to be called Nermal, like Garfield’s uber pretty cat nemesis. We changed that to a more adult version, he is Ser Norman now. Goes by his native name “makes birds fly away laughing”, “slayer of spiders” and is usually called “Hey Katze!” When I talk to him.
LOVE Christopher Walken, he’s just unpretentiously himself and a great actor too. I’ve come to agree with him about zoos, etc., except I’d extend that to pets as well. I want all beings to be free, and free from harm. (I’m a dreamer lol)
Freddie Mercury was a huge cat fan, too. I’ve always had cats, as many as five at a time. For years I was the roommate with the opposing thumbs to two old lady cats, Sophie and Janet. They died within a year of each other, at the ages of 17 and 19, and I was so heartbroken I didn’t want to ever have another pet. After a couple years of that, I decided to get another cat, and this time, after a lifetime of rescues, I decided I wanted a really cool cat. I narrowed it down to Ragdoll or Maine Coon, and there was no Ragdoll breeder close to me. I’m not a fan of shipping cats, so I became the mother of a Maine Coon, who may be the weirdest cat on earth, but he’s my baby, he is always in the same room I’m in, and he rules the house. Simon is, amazingly, 9 years old now. I’ll be 74 next month, and one of my huge fears is that he’ll outlive me and someone will take him to a shelter. I’ve been very vocal about this, but you never know.
I get my kitten fix from all the strays in my apartment complex. People move in, adopt a cat, then move out and leave the cat behind. They don’t have bad lives, everyone in the complex feeds them, if they need a vet there is always someone to take them, and it’s Florida so cold weather is not a problem. The local humane society will, if you trap the cat, neuter it, but then they return it to the complex and release it. That doesn’t seem very humane to me. But there is always some cat with a litter around, and the kittens are adorable and make me squee. I don’t adopt them because I am retired and money is tight, but I do keep a bag of kibble for them, and love to watch them. So does Simon, he sits at the window and carries on long conversations with them.
I love dogs too, but cats are my true loves. I can’t imagine a life without cats.
Maine coons are by nature weird and wonderful. I’m glad your Simon gives you such comfort and joy. May you be together for a long, long time and may your family and friends heed your wishes for him.
If nothing else is going right in the world, the fact that this man exists makes a lot of it better.
Yes.
Well, Terry was the most beloved dog that ever existed. He was terribly, endlessly loved by my entire family (I couldn’t say who loved him the most). He was brave and fearless but sweet and loving. I remember everything about him to this day. Even though he died of natural causes 27 human years ago, l still love him. He was/is soooo loved 💖 that as l typed this, l can’t help but cry of sadness because he is gone now but of happiness also because he came into our lives.
Its very hard to loose pets, but its great to have all those lovely memories to look back on. I will always have pets to my dying day, because they give so much unconditional love not matter what.
my Bf is a Total Cat person which I’m not ( I’m a dog mom through and through) however his kittehs totally vibed with m from the first day ( which he was very shocked by, but they are into my smell and my everything they get super licky with me and such) so we are now peoples together Nova is a Girl, super bitchy, steals my water nearly exclusively, stays antagonizing Scruffy ( Chubby minipin yorkie mix, super childish) Egghead is a dog in Cat form, very cuddly, follows me everywhere, got him a catnip plant so we can be stoned in the yard together, he loves when I let him have free cause my bf is too nervous to let them but he pretty much chills in the patio with me sunning out, very vocal we go back and forth en meows a lot, he seems at this point more bonded with Scruffy and our (probably) 2 y.o new very chill still afraid is a dream Mojito (so named after https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3jmUGrE2yI)
I knew there was more to liking than just his acting…he’s a cat dad!!
Love the cats, but he needs more cowbell.
I got a fever! And the only prescription… is more cowbell!
One of SNL’s best skits ever!
Wait. Kaiser. Your puppy died? The one who would go after all the gophers in your complex? I’m so sorry, boo 😢
Aww I love that we’re all sharing pet stories. Pets are the best 🙂
I moved in with a friend whose cousin owned a farm. We discussed getting a cat and this cousin had a bunch of barn kittens and invited us to come and pick one. I wanted a tuxedo cat and one wandered right up to me.
I named him Puma (after the shoe company, because 21 years old) and ten years on he’s still the most lovable little guy. Pretty much believes that humans exist solely to pet him, so he’s very outgoing and sweet and has never bitten anyone or anything (except when puppies get a little too rough with him). He actually yells at you if you pet him before he’s finished being pet (whcih is never). Avowed dog people always make an exception for Puma lol
Awwww I totally get him, cats are wonderful creatures and also I have two of them at home that consider my babies!
I heard him once say that he didn’t have any kids, because they make you worry all the time. I didn’t know he was married. It’s amazing some celebrities seem like they are wild are the exact opposite.