It amazes me how fast you get attached to your pets.
For most of my life, I never had pets. My parents didn't like pets. The closest I came to pets was a pet rabbit we kept out in a cage in the backyard. Not much of a pet. When I moved out and got my own place, I decided that I was going to get a pet of my own. I've always liked dogs. I grew up next to a house with 4 Dobermans, so large dogs don't scare me at all. I figured that once I got my own place that I would get a dog. Things didn't work out that way. After I'd lived on my own for a few years, I realized that getting a dog really isn't practical, since I'm never home. Dogs require too much attention and maintenence for a guy who's never home. He'd tear the house apart. So I decided, reluctantly, that a cat was a better choice since cats are very independent and pretty much take care of themselves. I'd always hated cates because I believed that they were very arrogant, aloof and unfriendly creatures. How wrong I was.
One day I went to the Humane Society and 'browsed' among the selection of kittens. I picked out 3 possible ones and spent some time with each one. The other two pretty much ignored me. Tiger (who at the time was named Peaches) was a little orange tabby kitten who was very playful and affectionate. I decided immediately to get him. I had planned to get 2 cats, so that they could keep each other company, but I couldn't find another one I liked so I stuck with him. This was almost 3 years ago and he's grown A LOT since the days of the tiny little bundle of fur that was so small you could hold him in one hand.
I've spent almost 3 years living with a young, active 'crazy' cat. He is a lot of fun to have around and he is great company. No matter what room you are in, he'll come in and sit nearby. When you come in the door from work in the evening, he's sitting there waiting at the door to greet you. Whenever I sit in the recliner and watch TV, he'll come over and position himself at the foot of the recliner, rest his head on my foot and go right to sleep. Whenever I lay down in bed, he comes in and 'tucks me in' every night. Then he proceeds to sleep right next to me, purring along.
Four days ago, I dropped my cat, Tiger at a friends house for a few days. I needed to get him out from underfoot because I was moving a lot of furniture in preparation for having the carpet in my house replaced. I knew he would just get in the way during all this so I dropped him off at the 'catsitters'. It wasn't even the end of the night before I really started to miss him. In my 36 years of life, I've only had a pet for less than 3 years, but he's become so much a part of my life, that I miss him when he's gone.
Luckily, I pick him up tomorrow. I'm anxious to get him back, but I don't think my friends are going to want to give him up so easily! :)