The Pet Thread

[joshsquash729]

I'm sure your cat appreciates your exhaustive efforts to save him. My wife and I "joke" that our cats understand us. Every weekend, we'll tell them it's movie night, and sure enough, they all immediately get up and gather around the living room. Of course they don't understand English, but there does seem to be a deeper understanding there than repetition or learned behavior.

I've no doubt that they understand us to some degree. Just like a dog understands when you say things like "drive", "walk", "ball", etc., so do cats. Garrus always assumes the position whenever I mention "scratchies", and you best believe I've had to start spelling words like "tuna" and "treats" because he'll immediately run to his food bowl if I say the full word, even in contexts that have nothing to do with him. I never even really said the word "tuna" when giving it to him before, but he still seems to know. And he certainly knows when I'm having a bad or rough day, even if I'm not outwardly expressing it. It's odd. Even if it's just as simple as pattern recognition, like how people can parse out words or meanings in foreign languages they don't speak, but may know a word or two, animals are smart like that. Who knows- maybe it's something left over from our time as monkeys and pets' pre-domestication, there's some of that animal instinct left over.

And they absolutely do know when we go that extra mile or do something nice for them (they certainly know when we don't give them their favorite food or something, so why not the opposite?), so I have no doubt that Oliver knows how hard Ace fought for him.

Then again, my fluffy wuffy bb can do no wrong, so maybe this is all the delusional, annoying pet parent in me talking.

 

[TFitz]

Ace, So sorry you and your wife had to go through that. Sound just horrible, but so glad Oliver is doing much better.