Flint Township View

A purrfect new addition

The VIEW from here




 

 

It has been said there are only two types of people in the world: cat people and dog people. But actually, the two can mingle — and both humans and pets alike can get along just fine.

Our two dogs that grew up together as puppies — Jagger, a boxer, and Bella (a chiweenie) — have a new companion. Edward is a fun, energetic grey Tabby kitten that my wife Maria recently adopted from Paradise Animal Rescue in Mayfield Township.

Maria and her daughter, Sophia, quickly fell in love with the little domestic terrorist and truth be told, so have I.

Sophia named the kitten “Edward” after Robert Pattinson (Edward Cullen) from the Twilight saga.

Maria never had a cat, and now realizes how much fun they are and wishes she would’ve adopted one years ago. In the Hogan household we had a few cats over the years, but it had been awhile and I forgot how curious and playful they are as kittens.

It takes me a little longer to tie my shoes in the morning because Edward can’t resist to play with the shoelaces. Even as I walk by, he rolls on the floor tries to catch the laces.

Edward reminds me of C.C., a huge fluffy black cat we had when we were kids. He loved to be held and insisted to be at the center of the action wherever people were in the house. He often startled friends and visitors because he would leap from the floor onto their laps and waited to be petted. If people didn’t pet him right away, he would nudge their hand with his nose and head.

I hope Edward will be the same way. He doesn’t mind being held (for short durations) and is always purring.

Edward quickly warmed up to the 85-pound Jagger and lately has taken to pouncing on Bella as she walks by. I think it’s hilarious, though Bella thinks otherwise.

Since welcoming Edward to our home, I did a little research on pet ownership. Here in the U.S., slightly more households own dogs than own cats — but in Michigan there’s a slight edge that favors cat ownership. One simple explanation is that cats are more compact. You can fit more cats in a house or apartment than you can, say, boxers, Labradors and golden retrievers.

At the state level in the U.S., cats outnumber dogs in the Northeast and Upper Midwest. Dogs are the favorite in the South and Southwest. The most dog-friendly state is Arkansas, where dogs outnumber cats 1.35-to-1. At the other end of the spectrum stands Massachusetts with 1.87 cats for every dog.

Overall, most states have a pretty balanced cat-dog ratio. More than 63 million households (around 67%) in the United States owned at least one dog according to a 2019-2020 pet owners survey, making them the most widely owned type of pet across the U.S. at this time. Nearly half the households who have one dog, including our own, have a second dog. Cats and freshwater fish ranked in second and third places, with around 42.7 million and 11.5 million households owning such pets, respectively.

It is no surprise that as more and more households own pets, pet industry expenditure has also witnessed steady growth. Spending on pets and supplies is estimated to reach around $85 billion by 2022, over a threefold increase since 1998. That’s a lot of chew toys, food and pampering.

Heck, people can now take their pets to spas and daycare facilities where they have quality time with other spoiled animals. People are crazy about their pets. So are we!

Edward is the purrfect addition to our home. There’s never a dull moment that’s for sure, but that’s okay. He keeps it fun.

Until next time, be well and I’ll see you around.

Jeff Hogan is editor to sister paper The Lapeer Area View. You can contact him at jhogan@mihomepaper.com.