Fred Hates Siamese Cats
April 2nd 2009 21:00
Higgins – Fred’s idea of the almost perfect cat
Like many pet lovers, I carry around pictures of my favourite felines as if they were my children. I was proudly showing my friend Fred my photos of Butterscotch and Gingersnap when he says, “I don’t like these Siamese-y things.”
“But they’re cats,” I said. For as long as I have known Fred he has extolled the virtues of cats. In equal passion, he has scorned dogs, saying they smell, he doesn’t like how their coats feel and so on. So I thought Fred would be delighted with my photos.
“I don’t like skinny cats,” he said. “I don’t like the way Siamese ones look. I like compact cats.” In fact, Butterscotch and Gingersnap are only half Siamese. Their other half is Burmese which is the type of cat Fred likes. Fred’s definition of a perfect cat is a cobby cat with a round face and a thick tail. So far, he has not encountered a single cat that meets all of his requirements. The closest are my ex-neighbour’s cats, Higgins and Miggins.
I tried to change his mind. I told him I wasn’t keen on Siamese-looking cats either. They looked so slender, as if their limbs could snap off. But the moment Butterscotch and Gingersnap came up to check me out, sniffing me with their little pink noses and then putting their paws on my body was enough to change my mind. I had never encountered such friendly cats before.
But no amount of extolling my boys’ virtues could change his mind. It’s his loss then.
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