# Hello CF! First time cat owner here :)



## SpiralHorn (Aug 31, 2011)

Hi there! I have one cat, Monkey Butt, who I adopted a year ago. She was only a month old and was rescued by a friend of mine. He had to leave town for the weekend, and asked me to babysit... so of course, I've had her ever since! 

I never intended to have a cat, I'm more of a creepy-crawly kind of person and my favorite pets have always been fish and invertebrates. Monkey has been the absolute best thing to happen to me in a while, however. I have severe anxiety and I don't know how I managed to ever live without her, and I'm working on having her registered as an Emotional Support Animal.

I joined this forum because I was having issues with a very difficult parent regarding Monkey's diet, but we've worked everything out and we're doing fine  

I just had her spayed yesterday, it was extremely difficult for me and last night was kind of scary, but today she is doing so well! Purring and everything.

Anyway, here is a picture of her, taken last week:


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## Ted (Aug 28, 2011)

Welcome, Spiral!

It's definitely proven that these furry little friends lower blood pressure. I'm happy that M.B. is being entirely supportive to you and your emotional needs.


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## Mitts & Tess (Sep 4, 2004)

Welcome Spiral! We are glad you are here. 

I would love to hear more about how to register your companion animal as an Emotional Support Animal. Does that let you have a cat where it isnt necessarily allowed? I could of used information your talking about a couple years ago involving a friends daughter who has dwarfism and was being forced to give up her cat. The cat was a great source of comfort and companionship. It became an ugly situation. So sad. I thought there were laws protecting people in situations like that.

I nick named my sister cornish rex Monkey Butt. How funny to see that name again.


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## SpiralHorn (Aug 31, 2011)

@Ted: Oh yes, the healing properties of just owning an animal are amazing. To think that something as simple as looking at a fish tank has been know to lower blood pressure. Sometimes when feel a panic attack coming on, all I need is to hear her purr, and I start to feel better. Animals are wonderful 

@Mitts: I've been looking it up, and apparently having a certificate or registration isn't required. What I have to do is have a therapist or psychiatrist write a letter stating that my depression and anxiety are considered severe enough to be disabilities, and that having the animal is recommended for my health and well being. This would allow me to have a chance at renting a place that would normally not allow pets, and that it would make it easier for me to fly with her if I had to. There are no real rights regarding ESAs however, and I would not have the same public access rights as some one with a physical disability. When applying for a place to rent, the landlord has the right to decide if my request to allow me to have her is reasonable or not. They could say no, and there would be nothing I could do. 

It would be worth it though, I don't want to get stuck in a situation where I can't keep her, and having her recognized as an ESA would make things a lot easier on me. 

I'm sorry to hear about your friends daughter. It's completely ridiculous in my opinion that that would happen to her. A condition like dwarfism can make life more challenging and stressful for people, I know it's very common for them to be depressed. I wish that more people could understand this and be more compassionate. 

HA, that's neat, I thought I was the first to use the name Monkey Butt, but I guess not


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