# My formerly cat hating husband has been converted



## Sundown (Aug 11, 2014)

Despite the fact that our cat possesses almost every negative characteristic that cat haters mention when explaining why they hate cats, my husband has fallen in love. Tonight one of our local shelters posted a picture of an adorable calico kitten on their Facebook page. I commented that it was too bad we couldn't take her. He said, "Why not?" I mentioned that our landlord had only approved 1 cat. He said, "Are you sure? Maybe he will allow one more." I can't believe this is the same man who once swore he would never have a cat.


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## Jenny bf (Jul 13, 2013)

Love this post. 
My husband had never had animals before but it took just hours for Lulu to have him wrapped around her little paw


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## DebS (Jun 14, 2015)

This gives me great hope for Mark. He has never lived with a cat before and is having some adjustment issues with Amelia. It isn't bad, but he is much more accepting of the dogs. Amelia's counter surfing is his biggest complaint, followed by her nighttime activity level. I think she will worm her way into his heart over time, though.


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## Sundown (Aug 11, 2014)

I think one thing that has really helped is that every time he sits in his recliner Caspian will curl up next to him and go to sleep.

My husband would like a dog, but we both agree we should wait until we have a house with a yard. I've never had a dog before, so that will be a big adjustment for me.


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## Adelea (Dec 20, 2015)

When I was younger I wasnt overly fond of cats.

Then I was introduced to these Norwegian Forest Cats a friend had.

Now I have one of my own - for coming up on 6 weeks - and I cannot imagine life now without her.

You just need to find the right cat, and there is no hope for you =)

Abigail is such a sweet natured cat, she has won over several of my cat disliking friends, who enjoy it when she jumps up for some snuggles!


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## littlecatblue (Sep 3, 2013)

I am always thinking about Seinfeld's comments about cats being perfect for men, because they don't require much commitment. 

My stoic husband is a closet cat lover. He won't touch them, feed them or do anything with them. He mostly tolerates him. 

The tabby cat, Otis, is the most annoying cat on the planet, but he loves my dh. He sleeps on his side of the bed after he leaves, waits for him to come home, and is forever trying to get a space on his lap before dh shoos him away. 

Otis is getting older, has some medical problems, and I suspect he has some dementia. He peed on our son's bed this morning, which hasn't happened in 15 years of having that cat. As we talked about what to do about Otis if this becomes a thing, dh defended him, insisting it had to be the other cat. Otis is innocent. He would never do that. 

It was heartwarming to see this stoic guy who won't so much as pet the cat get upset about the idea of "doing something" about Otis. He loves that cat! 

(Otis wasn't innocent, but was locked in son's room all day, so it hopefully is just an incident).


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## Marcia (Dec 26, 2010)

LOVE this!! Once you go cat - you don't go back!!


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## Marcia (Dec 26, 2010)

DebS said:


> Amelia's counter surfing is his biggest complaint, followed by her nighttime activity level. I think she will worm her way into his heart over time, though.


Try a Ssscat! I ordered one and set it up behind my couch because my Lacey was pooping there. One spray that sounds like a hiss was enough to redirect her to the litter box!!

My two new kitties, Ruff and Reddy are counter surfers so I'm going to set it up at night on the counters to deter them. I love this thing - it's a motion activated forced air canister. Available on Amazon.


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## DebS (Jun 14, 2015)

I'm off to Amazon to order now, Marcia! Thanks for the info!


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## TabbCatt (Mar 26, 2014)

It could be just me, but my cat G isn't afraid of the air canister, I've got SEVERAL, lol. The thing is, he and Maya seem to know when that thing is switched on. Maya's a less counter surfer, but G is always finding ways to be up super, duper high and just sit up on top of my kitchen cabinet...sigh. DebS, make sure you stock up on those refill canisters, I find myself going through a can much faster because more than half the time, _I'm_ the trigger!

Sundown, hearing this post makes me very happy to hear how much our pets can change us all for the better! And hope for anyone else who has doubts/fears about owning cats! Before you realize, your heart has been stolen!


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## DebS (Jun 14, 2015)

TC, thanks for the tip. Refill cans are on the way!


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## DebS (Jun 14, 2015)

I got the ssscat today and so far....so good. Amelia ran off, looking behind her at the canister with disdain. She has been sprayed twice. She isn't incredibly fearful, but got off the counter in a hurry! Mark was pretty amused.


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## Azerane (Feb 26, 2015)

There seems to be this weird stigma about cats, where so many people who have never owned them simply refuse to like them. Yet with dogs many people who have never owned one still love dogs. And yet cats so well work their way into people's hearts 

My mum and her partner recently took in a cat from my sister in-law because their toddler has been showing signs of allergies since birth and they've been trying to figure out the cause. So recently they took her in on a temporary trial basis to see if his allergies improved and they have so now they're keeping the cat. It's too easy though because my mum has just fallen in love with her, keeps saying how she's the best cat and so well behaved etc etc


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## Marcia (Dec 26, 2010)

If you haven't already, watch the review video that is with the Sssscat! It's hilarious! I've had great luck with it - even my deaf cat Lacey (at least we think she is deaf) avoids the area we set it up in.


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## Naet (Aug 21, 2014)

I think I understand why I don't like dogs, and maybe the same goes for cat-haters.
I don't hate dogs. I'd love a Dachshund, from what I heard from my dad who had one as a kid. And there are probably many other breeds, and just personalities of housedogs (cat is to housecat as dog is to what?) that I'd love to spend time with. But when I was young(er), my grandmother had two dogs. One, Gabriel, was very nice and liked to take things... slowly... but he passed away when I was still very little, and that was sad. However, the other one, Greta, was quite a personality... Whenever I came inside my Grandma's house, I feared for my life (and my junk) as Greta ran down the stairs, barking, and grabbed me. I would be so scared that I would wait a while to go inside so Greta would calm down. Because my main memory with dogs was Greta trying to attack me, and because I have cats instead, I would rather be by cats than dogs. Again, I don't hate dogs! I just think that the same thing could work with a dog hater, or a cat hater.


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## TranquilityBlue (Nov 13, 2014)

I also had bad experiences with dogs during my formative year that I believe may have contributed to my general ambivalence regarding their presence. However, I have it on good authority from my parents that I've basically been an obsessive cat person since I could talk, so there's that too


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## Sundown (Aug 11, 2014)

When I was little I was terrified of dogs. It didn't matter what the size, big or tiny, I was scared of them all. My family couldn't figure it out. I eventually outgrew it to a point. I am still very cautious around dogs and take them on an individual basis.
Several years ago, long after I had become an adult, my mother told me that when I was a baby she would often sit on the front porch with me. Our neighbors had a a large dog that they kept on a chain. The chain was just long enough that the dog could come into our year and put his front paws on our porch. Then he would bark. Mom said that she would take me back inside the house, but I would be shaking. I am certain that this caused at least part of my fear of dogs.


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## Sundown (Aug 11, 2014)

Oh, by the way, the cute little calico that I mentioned in the original post was adopted a few days after I posted.


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## Nuliajuk (Oct 25, 2014)

Years ago I watched the conversion of a young engineer that I worked with.
First it was: "This weekend I'm going to the SPCA with my girlfriend to pick out HER cat."
Then it was: "This weekend I'm going to Rona to buy supplies to make OUR cat a climbing jungle."
Then it was: "This weekend we're going to look at houses with fenced yards so that MY cat can have a yard to play in."


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## Estil (Mar 5, 2016)

Like I've said before, I wasn't really a cat hater but when my wife wanted a kitty in 2010 she insisted she wasn't gonna let "some man" tell her she couldn't have one (her previous two marriages were quite bad/abusive, especially her first) I was a bit uncertain about the idea of having to be responsible for another living creature. Let's just say until then the only kind of cats I liked where the kind that play basketball at Rupp Arena!  

Then again when I was little I remember visiting a farm and picking up and hugging/cuddling all the kitties I saw...maybe I should've known all along I was destined to be a cat lover.


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