I love this writing prompt.
Let me introduce you to our pets.
This is Simba. (aka Asshole).
When my little dude was 5 and had just graduated Kindergarten, I asked what he wanted as a grad gift.
He replied, “A kitten”.
I didn’t like cats at all. I had two bad experiences with cats in the past, and I vowed to never get one – like – ever. So, I was a little bit hesitant to grant his wish. He had been asking for a kitten long before his Kindergarten graduation, and I always said no, but the fact that he did so well in school, and was such a great kid, I finally decided to surprise him and pray that getting a cat – was not a mistake.
I looked online and found a guy who had a farm, and tons of kittens because the older cats on his property would have kittens, and they’d start roaming around.
He and his daughters took care of all of the cats and kittens, and gave them away free to people who wanted them – once they were ready. They would take the kittens for their first check-ups, and whatever else they needed, and they would have people come and get them.
The same day as my little dude graduated Kindergarten years ago – we had him stay home with my older son, while my daughter and I took a ride 3 hours away to this guys farm, and sat their deciding which kitten would be best for Elijah.
We laughed when this cute little Orange one was walking by and one of the guys daughters grabbed him, tossed him into my daughters arms, and said:
“We call him Asshole!”.
We decided to bring him home with us.
We went to the pet store and grabbed all the things he would need and a few cat toys, and headed home to surprise Elijah.
When we got home, my daughter hid Simba under her shirt. (Technically, we should have let Elijah name him), but my daughter named the kitten on the way home – because he looked like a skinnier, smaller version of Simba from the Lion King movie.
I handed Elijah a bag and told him it was part of his graduation gift. He opened it and asked why I got him cat stuff, and said, “Don’t I need a cat if I have all of this?”. My daughter walked up to him and took Simba out from under her shirt.
My little dude was so excited.
My little dude is almost 10 now and I think it’s safe to say that over the years, Simba has become more of my cat – than his. Elijah doesn’t really pay much attention to him anymore, and I’m the one who feeds him, gives him water, takes care of him, plays with him, pays attention to him, etc.
Simba follows me around, cuddles up to me, goes wherever I am, and meows at my feet. Simba has become attached to me.
Elijah takes about 15 minutes out of every day to say hello to Simba, but that’s as far as it goes.
So, he’s my cat, I guess and I’m fine with that.
I will say though – that once Elijah falls asleep, Simba runs over to him and cuddles up right by his head. 🩵
When we first got Simba – he really was an Asshole.
He would run around the room at bedtime – with his claws out acting crazy. I’d have to cover myself from head to toe if I didn’t want to get a claw to the face or any part of my body. He’d jump all over the place in the middle of the night, wouldn’t sleep and thus – wouldn’t let me sleep. He’d bite, and fight, and just act stupid.
Thankfully, as he got a little older – he started getting into a routine and learning ours. He started sleeping all night, acting a lot better, and learning his environment.
These days, he’s such a cuddle bug. He’s such a sweetheart. He is a lot more relaxed than what he was as a kitten, and those claws no longer come out if they don’t need to.
When he’s tired, he’ll literally sit by my side and meow over and over, and if I say, “Bedtime” – he’ll turn around and follow me to the bedroom. He loves to chase strings, and at our old place, he’d watch out the window as he chattered and chirped at the birds or the frogs outside.
He loves to head bump us to say hello, or show affection, and he’s become such a great cat, that I don’t even think about how much I hate cats anymore. lol.
I absolutely adore Simba, and I even stopped calling him “Asshole”. ha.
We’ve had him for years now, and he’s grown on me.
My daughter has a Bunny. (Looney).
I had no idea how smart bunnies were until we got Looney.
My older son and I went to a pet store one day to get my daughter a new bird when hers died. She had her old bird (Zazu) for almost 5 years, and it broke my heart when she called me at work one night – in tears – saying he passed.
I still have no idea why I wanted to surprise her with another animal, but a year later – I know I was standing in a pet store with my older son – as we were looking at birds while she was in school, and then my older son and I saw a big cage with bunnies in them.
We asked to hold them, and this one right here – was so pretty and so soft.
I will say that if you’re ever going to get a Bunny, please do your research because we didn’t, and we fully regret it. As much as we love Looney, having a Bunny is a lot of work, and the vet bills are ridiculously expensive.
When my daughter came home from school that day, she thought we were pet-sitting for someone, but when she found out Looney was hers, she was so happy.
Now, I’ve heard that bunnies can learn some amazing tricks, and become great pals if you work with them, pay attention to them, and handle them daily. My daughter doesn’t really do that.
She’s more on her phone scrolling social medias, than working with Looney or paying attention to him, but – she loves the heck out of him, and she will talk to him daily, pet him, show him some kind of love – daily.
As long as she’s feeding him, making sure he has water, love and a clean cage, that’s all I ask for. She plays with him often, but she would definitely rather be scrolling – than teaching her bunny tricks.
It is obvious that Looney knows my daughter well, and he loves throwing his bowl to the front of the cage to get her attention when it’s time to eat.
He knows her voice. It’s too cute.
When she walks in the room and talks, his whole body flips around and he’s on his hind legs looking around and waiting for her to come pet him. He loves the moment his cage opens and he knows he’s getting fed, and she has many photos of him just laying on her chest sleeping under the blankets – when she does pay attention to him.
He’s such a loving, sweet Bunny, but he’s so messy.
Let me also tell you – (if you’re thinking of getting a Bunny) – male bunnies can make themselves smell by not cleaning themselves as they should – if they’re horny.
Yep.
I was told by the vet that the smellier the male Bunny is, the more he attracts a female Bunny, and when Looney started smelling so bad, I took him to the vet and found out it’s because he’s not grooming himself. He’s horny. He’s waiting for a female Bunny.
The surgery to have him fixed and get rid of that feeling and smell, and for him to start grooming himself again when he’s fixed? $300-700.
While I truly wish I did my research when I was deciding between another bird and a Bunny, I didn’t and we still love Looney, either way.
He also loves to eat only his treats and tip his whole pellet bowl over, burying them to act like he ate them, and since we were told by the vet he should only be getting hay, with treats every so often – he now has no choice but to only eat hay.
He loves to kick his bedding out of the cage, and bunnies are just such picky, messy cuties. Looney loves head rubs though, and is such a great animal despite all the headaches.
My older son’s dog is Scrappy.
You ever see them videos that say, “Does your dog bite?”, and the reply is, “Not me!?”.
That’s our Scrappy.
Yes, he bites. No, he’s not friendly, and if you get too close to us if he doesn’t know you or you don’t give him time to get used to you before approaching him – he’s going to try to attack.
Let him get to know you and approach slowly.
Pay no attention to him, and once he sees you’re not a threat, he’ll be fine.
Scrappy is friendly with us, but we joke that he can be iffy even with us at times. He’ll cuddle up and want to be pet, but he’ll give the side eye at the same time.
He’s a great protector and barks his ass off when he hears someone by the door, and he’s always on high alert.
If he sees someone approaching us, he’ll give warning growls and barks, and he’s been a great dog for such a long time, but ………….
If I’m being honest – he’s getting older, crabbier, and we don’t know how much more time he has left.
Still, we love him dearly, and no matter what mood he’s in – he’s still part of the family.
There ya have it! Our pets and what makes them unique.
Babes.
Love you!
☺️Shel☺️