I've had pets all my life, since I was 4 years old and we had our first cat. Since then I've had cats, dogs, turtles, tortoises, ducks, hamsters, chickens and fish. I didn't live in a farm, but was lucky enough to live in a big house with animal lovers as parents. At age 25 I moved an ocean away from home and left my two cats with my mom and my siblings (both have past since then, they were very old), I missed them every day and always felt I was missing something.
Two years ago I moved to Barcelona, Spain, with my boyfriend, it had been 8 years since I had a pet of my own, we thought we would stay there for a long time - which didn't happen, but that's a story that has been told in another post - so we decided to adopt a cat, an animal we both love. The adoption story itself is quite long, and I don't think it's worth telling, the important part is that after seeing him on facebook I fell in love with Tiny - pronounced Teeny - who was called Simba back then.
Top picture: Tiny, the day he arrived, already very comfy and at home with us. Bottom picture: Summer 2014, a very happy Tiny.
Since the moment he came into my life he has never left my side. Both me and my boyfriend have a different relationship with him, with my boyfriend is more of a play/ love relationship, and with me it's a more cuddle / love relationship. We both adore him and we don't see ourselves without him. He has a very strong personality, very opinionated, cuddly and sweet but he'll let you know what he wants and how he wants it, he is very curious and wants to know what we are doing at all times and where we are. We watch shows together and kitties on youtube. He has stolen the heart of a lot of non-cat people and cat people alike. He is both a playful cat (which is what my boyfriend wanted) and a lap cat (which is what I wanted). He gives us kisses all day, which makes up for the fact that he never purrs.
The super handsome Tiny at his best.
We are not sure how Tiny's life was before he came into our lives, he was already 1 year old and had been in a foster home after being found on the street and in another home where they didn't want him, all we know is that we saved each other. He is my faithful companion, always there, always loving, I wouldn't change him for anything.
Why Adopt and not Buy?
Honestly, I have ZERO interest in breeding, I find it unfair to a lot of animals out there with no homes.
The biggest issues for me are two things, 1) a lot of pure breed and mixed-breed pets are in shelters or abandoned because irresponsible pet owners purchase a pet and are not prepared for the responsibility. Cats are fairly easy as pets, but they still need a certain amount of responsibility, they will scratch the furniture (in most cases), they could pee to mark territory, they can scratch children, etc etc... every time you get a pet do your homework, and if you want no responsibility and all the cuddliness then get a stuffed animal.
2) Puppy and kitten mills. Every time you buy a pet in a pet store and sometimes online you have no idea where this animal has come from... In a lot of cases, they come from pet-mills. For more info click here and here.
Please, adopt a pet and bring happiness into your lives. They will love you unconditionally. If you can, adopt an older animal or one with special needs, those that are deemed "not cute" or "not adoptable", especially if you had previous experience with animals.
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