Whether you’re admiring the cats up for adoption on the SPCA website or just wondering what life would be like with a fur baby, there’s no denying that taking care of a cat comes with some added responsibilities. Here are some things that every cat parent can relate to, and every future cat parent has to look forward to:
1. You wake up when your cat wants to get up. It doesn’t matter if your cat wants to play, it’s time for breakfast or they simply want you to wake up — your cat will relentlessly meow and jump on you until you pay attention to them.
2. You cry at the prices of cat toys, but buy them anyway. $20 for a piece of string on a stick? You know that your cat is just as easily entertained by your shoelaces, but you buy them all the toys and cat scratches you can find.
3. You have no more privacy. Your cat will try to push through every door you close. If you manage to close one, they will claw and meow at the bottom of the door until you open it.
4. Small trinkets and jewelry suddenly go missing. Left your favorite earrings on the counter? Your cat probably already knocked them off the counter and into a black hole, never to be found again.
5. You sometimes use your cat as an excuse to not go out. “Sorry, my cat really needs me right now.”
6. You get used to people asking you, “what happened?!” when they see scratches on you. My cat happened, that’s what.
7. You worry when you haven’t seen them for a while. Usually, your cat is running around all day. If more than 10 minutes of silence go by, you start to get worried that your cat might be stuck in a box somewhere.
8. You take pictures of your cat like people take pictures of their newborns. And then you ask people “do you want to see a cute picture of my cat?!” all the time.
9. All of your clothes have cat hair on them. Cat hair is the new black, right?
10. You watch what your cat does and question how you’ve raised them. I didn’t teach you to kick all the cat litter out of the box and tear up furniture, did I?
11. You will constantly be cleaning up messes. No open container or toilet paper roll is safe from a cat.
12. You’ll realize you’ve never loved something this much. Your cat can be a pain sometimes (maybe all the time), but you love nothing more than cat cuddles and your cat parenthood.
all photos by author