There’s an old saying that dogs have masters, cats have staff. Although I think it ought to be that dogs have staff, because they sure do need a lot more care than cats!

I knew in the abstract that dogs are a lot more work than cats, but the reality is something different. We gave Chester his first bath (from us, that is) yesterday. What a sad looking puppy, all drowned looking and shivering. He was quite good about it, while making it quite clear that he wasn’t enjoying the procedure.

I have only had to give a cat a bath one time in my life. When I took in Cleo, she had fleas, so we gave her a flea bath. I swear that tiny 6 week old kitten grew 10 arms, all of them ending in steak knives.

When I leave the house to run errands, whether it’s for an hour or several, I swear sometimes the boys haven’t moved an inch from the position they were in when I left. Yet Chester howls the entire time (we’ve videotaped him; we’re working on that).

I’ve no doubt that most cats are much more social creatures than people give them credit for, but most of them just aren’t as needy as dogs. I know there are some independent dogs out there, but most of them want to be near you all the time. While Gizmo likes to be near me too, it’s not the same as Chester.

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