Dearie, dearie me.
Today, I am faced with perhaps the most thorny question ever posed. The most difficult decision I have ever been called up to make in a long time. For once, I will need to consult my surest inner counsel…
“Dogs or cats?”
I have. technically speaking, never truly owned a pet in my life, but I live with relatives who have. Before I moved down south, my aunt and uncle adopted to pets of either species – Milly the dog, Flash (Ah-ah!) the cat. Both of them were rescues – Milly in particular had been found wandering by my uncle about the road. This was when I was about ten – this is now.
Over the years, mainly on school holidays down south, I have been able to bond quite closely with both. When I was first introduced to them, admittedly, I was nervous – not so much of the energetic dog, but rather the cat. When I was very young, my mum had a very grouchy old puss called Molly, who in her old age was certainly not open to children. In fact, I only ever remember her lashing out at me. This didn’t leave the best impression on my malleable mind and for most of my early childhood I was on edge around felines. Flash single handedly changed this – he was possibly the calmest entity I’ve ever seen. He never bickered with Milly, he never minded our prodding and he didn’t bat an eye when thunder-storms struck. He was and still is immensely chill.
Milly, on the other hand, was quite excitable. This was always immensely entertaining. Walks with her could quite unexpectedly become intensive exercise – she’d run after every rabbit she could smell, charge after (but never harm) other dogs and go positively ballistic if she sighted a hot air balloon. She always chased the quad-bikes and tractors, yammering and bouncing merrily, and could always be coaxed to play with a length of rope – she never undestood fetch! She was very playful, even in old age.
About 2 years ago come August, we moved down south to look after family and be close to the university I was to attend after my gap year – daily exposure to the pets I love! It became my responsibility to walk the dog to save my Uncle time for work, as well as to look after both the pets when they went out on holiday. Between preliminal study and work experience, this bonding time was an absolute joy with Milly. So many anecdotes I could tell, but for time I might as well keep this brief. Anyway, I’ve rambled enough already.
As you could have gathered with the tense I refer to her in, Milly sadly is no longer with us, but I am immensely grateful for the time we had together – starting from our move down, I reckon about 500 days. We’ve commemorated a bench for her where she lies, out in the orchard. As for the cat, he still lives! He’s been sleeping a lot in our conservatory this summer and coming in for “”affection”” (treats might be the ulterior motive). Though he’s hardly as selfless as dear old Milly, I still love him with every ounce of my living and thank him for reorientating me with cats.
So, if I was to choose which pet was better, I would probably choose Dogs for activity and Cats for relaxation. They’re probably nigh equally as welcome, just in different respects. Can you say the same?
Well, if you have a cherished companion creature, take some time today to cherish what they bring to your life. In the meantime, I wish you all a good day!
Ben Easton - The Novel Hovel 
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