Here's the link: Cat Ladies
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vampygirl13 |
OT: Cat lady video |
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Not sure if this is supposed to be funny or sad----but holy crap the amount of cats one lady has! What must her home smell like?
Here's the link: Cat Ladies
vampygirl 13
Melissa: hair that constantly changes color (light blonde at the moment), blue-gray eyes, PPP with acne-prone skin. Addicted to MAC and Aromaleigh, and I love e-tailers! |
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DaenaCat |
#1 | |||
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Sad. Definitely sad. :-( And I'm a huge cat-lover and have 4 myself.
"We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars." -- Oscar Wilde
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vampygirl13 |
#2 | |||
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me too--I have 2. My close friend has 5 and I joke and tell her one more and she's Crazy Cat Lady from the Simpsons!
We had a distant relative like this---when she died at 96 they had to get all of the cats out and tear down the house from the smell.
vampygirl 13
Melissa: hair that constantly changes color (light blonde at the moment), blue-gray eyes, PPP with acne-prone skin. Addicted to MAC and Aromaleigh, and I love e-tailers! |
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Miss Mill |
#3 | |||
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I about spewed my coffee when I saw the title of your post! I just took in my fourth stray after swearing I would stop at three. I'm single and
everyone has called me "the crazy cat lady" over the past week. A guy friend told me that he read that
smelling "fumes" from litter boxes has an effect on one's brain and that's why people become "crazy" cat ladies. Whatever.
I am very anal about cleanliness and can assure people that I would not let this happen. Unless I do become so whacked from litter box fumes that I lose all touch with reality. But Mary Ann will come over and hold an intervention, right Mary Ann?!!
~~ Lenette ~~
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Sharibaby |
#4 | |||
Miss Mill wrote:Then she needs to get in the car and drive West to save me too!
Hoarding like that is a sickness I think. I do understand it though. I say honestly that if I ever won the lottery I would be a biggest house I could find and just take care of cats. I think I would build them their own house out in the backyard though.
The Whole World is Watching
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cosmeticjunkie |
#5 | |||
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There is a woman who has been committed to a psychiatric facility for doing this in our community. She lived in a townhouse where I walk (backs to a lake). You
could smell the odor when passing by it. The neighbors complained for YEARS and finally a homeowner, trying to sell her unit sued her for damages (the smell
drove people away). THIS is what it took for authorities to finally look into it. The number of dead cats they found, the maggots, they feces, etc. but the
woman swore she was perfectly sane just someone who loved cats. She passed all the tests and was found competent and yet..... know what I mean? They had to
tear her house down (end unit) because of the filth and well, it was beyond repair (cat urine had soaked through to the wooden structure/base of the house).
There are so many charges pending from so many different groups.....
Sadness is all I feel for that lady. CJ (You can search and find info regarding the woman I mention. She's in Columbia, MD. Considered the worst case in the state and up there for the US).
Casper white w/pink undertones, dark brown hair and brown/greenish eyes.
"Always remember that true beauty comes from within- from within bottles, jars, compacts and tubes."
Last Edited By: cosmeticjunkie 06/30/09 08:03:22.
Edited 1 time.
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Andrea Panel |
#6 | |||
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I think the saddest part was when the one woman said she was lonely. And yet having a million cats and a less than fresh smelling house probably isn't the
way to endear yourself to people.
I think the woman that had 16 cats seemed pretty reasonable. Her house looked clean and all the cats looked well cared for. The lady that had over a 100 and admitted she need help - how can she adequately care for all of them? There isn't enough hours in the day to keep track of each and every one. I'm also surprised at how well all the cats get along. I know Belle would not tolerate even a single other cat in our household, much less a few dozen more. I would love to have three cats. That seems like the perfect number.
Proudly participating in the Great Debt Reduction Act of 2009. Current debt reduction: 20%
(06/01/2009)
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DaenaCat |
#7 | |||
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Andrea -- i thought the same thing -- how in the world does she care for all of them? How can she afford it?? Just the cost of food and litter alone must be
staggering. I have 4 kitties and even so it's sometimes hard to make sure they all get the attention and one-on-one time they need. It helps that MrCat
is in on cat duty of course. But I can't help but feel that those cats must be neglected either in terms of socialization with humans or medical
treatment.
"We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars." -- Oscar Wilde
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Miss Mill |
#8 | |||
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I hope Mary Ann chimes in soon and acknowledges the huge responsibility we've placed on her!
You know Shari, my daughter says that all of the time. She would love to have a special house built to keep cats and also have a big yard for them to roam. If I ever won the lottery, I'd definitely be inclined to have a cat rescue and do that. The cost of litter and food is way more than I should probably be spending on my income, but it's so worth it to me and my daughter. We get so much entertainment and joy out of these cats. They're all so very different in personality and they love each other. We find them cuddling together on a bed taking a nap or licking each other. It's adorable. I have a beauty forum friend and she has 14 cats. She's married and no kids. I cannot imagine her house, but she loves cats so much and has spent a small fortune out of her pocket to get them fixed or medically cared for. She's so passionate about animals and not allowing strays to be destroyed. She's definitely not crazy and holds down a respectable job. I admire her big heart.
~~ Lenette ~~
Last Edited By: Miss Mill 06/30/09 07:55:06.
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SweetLucy1 |
#9 | |||
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What's really embarrassing is that my father has become "that crazy cat lady." The family who lives
next door to my parents have a number of cats that they keep outdoors (frankly, I don't know if they even let the cats inside their house). Problem is,
they don't spay/neuter them, so they're constantly multiplying in number. Well, several years ago, the smartest ones of the bunch figured out that
life was a lot cushier at the house next door, where my dad made sure to put out food for the neighborhood birds, squirrels, and raccoons. Once my dad saw
cats hanging around their back yard, he started feeding them, too. As of now, my parents have four indoor feral cats and feed at least three (if not more)
outside feral cats on a regular basis. I asked my dad last night how many outside cats he was feeding, but he refused to tell me.
I tell you, I don't know what happened to him. Growing up as a kid, he never liked cats and always, always stated how dogs were superior, blah, blah, blah. Now he's crazy cat lady. I find it charming but quite confusing. I just wish he would capture the feral cats that he does feed to have them spayed/neutered, but both my brother and I have harangued him about this until both of us lost our voices.
"The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and science." (Albert Einstein)
"Pet a dog where he can't scratch, and he'll always be your friend." (Orville Mars) Brown hair, hazel eyes, fair, combination skin with reddish undertones. Buzzing from Portland, Oregon. |
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vampygirl13 |
#10 | |||
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My aunt on my mom's side is our crazy cat lady. Some of them stay on her porch and some outside---but we think there are 9 of them now. She did get most of
the spayed or neutered though.
This is also the same woman who brought her parrot to THANKSGIVING DINNER. And he had to sit at the TABLE! I had to call my mom to remind her to tell Aunt Mary Ann that her bird was NOT invited! LOL
vampygirl 13
Melissa: hair that constantly changes color (light blonde at the moment), blue-gray eyes, PPP with acne-prone skin. Addicted to MAC and Aromaleigh, and I love e-tailers! |
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Miss Mill |
#11 | |||
This is also the same woman who brought her parrot to THANKSGIVING DINNER. And he had to sit at the TABLE! I had to call my mom to remind her to tell Aunt Mary Ann that her bird was NOT invited! LOL OMG! Birds freak me out and I could not sit there and enjoy my meal wondering if the dang thing would lunge at me and peck the hell out of me.
~~ Lenette ~~
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vampygirl13 |
#12 | |||
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Miss Mill---luckily I was not in town when it happened. I just heard about it from my mom. She didn't know the bird (his name is Comet) was coming or that
he had to sit AT the table! EW!
My mom said "never again". So last year when she talked about having them over I said "You better remind Aunt Mary Ann that no birds are invited!" She called my aunt and it went like this: Mom: Mary Ann, I'd like to invite you guys to Thanksgiving dinner. But your bird is not invited, please leave him at home. She said my aunt actually seemed shocked that she didn't want Comet at the table!
vampygirl 13
Melissa: hair that constantly changes color (light blonde at the moment), blue-gray eyes, PPP with acne-prone skin. Addicted to MAC and Aromaleigh, and I love e-tailers! |
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Miss Mill |
#13 | |||
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Melissa-isn't it funny how some people perceive their pets? They really do elevate them to human status. I have a hard enough time with my new cat wanting
to be up in my face when I'm eating. He wants people food. I'm trying really hard to break him of this. He's a part of the family, so to speak, but
he's not joining us at the table! I really wouldn't enjoy a bird at the table either.
~~ Lenette ~~
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donnababe |
#14 | |||
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There was a segment on the local news last night about this problem. They kept calling it the Animal Hording Syndrome. I couldn't tell if the psychological
community has recognized this as an official syndrome but the reporters keep repeating it as though it was.
We have reports like this all the time. It's usually cats or dogs but sometimes horses and other animals. |
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vampygirl13 |
#15 | |||
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Oh believe me, my kitties are my babies. They sleep with me, sit on my lap and I feed them people food. I could snuggle with them all day long and I talk to
them too. However, they don't sit or eat at my table and neither should a bird IMHO. And I still can't get over that she just brought the bird to my
mom's house without even asking and HAD to have him at the table. Like she practically treated my mom like she had two heads when she questioned it. Birds
don't really have litter boxes you know? EW.
vampygirl 13
Melissa: hair that constantly changes color (light blonde at the moment), blue-gray eyes, PPP with acne-prone skin. Addicted to MAC and Aromaleigh, and I love e-tailers! |
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Sharibaby |
#16 | |||
SweetLucy1 wrote:I love that story! You dad sounds wonderful.. You kids are right though. He needs to trap them and get them fixed. There are people who can help him and it's pretty easy to do. We had cats growing up but I was never that into them. I could take them or leave them. I don't know what happened to me either. I take care of all the cats in the neighborhood at this point. I really, really want to move but I am worried about all the cats that have come to depend on me. I can take "my" 3 ferals with me (the ones I have had for 10+ years) but not the rest. I just don't know what would happen to them since I have been their source of food for so long. And I just love them. I really do.
The Whole World is Watching
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teal64 |
#17 | |||
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Yes, the animal hoarding thing is a known psychological illness related to OCD and it CAN be treated with medication and therapy. The problem is that it's
usually dismissed by everyone as someone being 'just' a 'crazy cat lady.' It's a horrible thing, for the animals and for the person. I
knew a (former) vet tech when I first moved here who seemed very nice. I knew she had pets but she never said how many. After about a year of being
acquainted I had to stop by her house for something and OMG. I could not breathe once I entered the house. I have never seen anything so filthy -- feces on
the countertops, the smell was unbelievable, cats EVERYWHERE -- there had to be at least 50. And the dogs...all kinds of dogs in wire cages, stacked in the
living room. She was totally oblivious to a problem. And the animals were not healthy at all, emaciated, ringworm, runny eyes, just horrible. I made my
escape and immediately called the animal cruelty people. All kinds of drama ensued, they went out and she would not let them inside -- apparently they
can't enter unless invited unless a warrnt is issued -- but she had dogs out back which I was unaware of. Rescued greyhounds in horrible condition, and
two dead ones under tarps. Those were confiscated. I told them I would testify if needed but they had other complaints. The animals were all removed, she
was cited etc.
She confronted me about it and scared me badly -- I actually denied being the one who called, chickens&it that I was, but she really frightened me and it ended up being almost a stalking situation. She would call 20 times a day, drive by my house etc. I had to call the cops. Not a good situation. After that experience I read up on this because until then I was unaware of animal hoarders. It is not funny -- it's just horrible. Now, people who have more than 3 cats or whatever are 9 times out of 10 not afflicted with this. I have more than 3 and my house really is clean and does not smell -- I have people in and out of here all the time and some are surprised that we even have cats in here. I have a system of doing the litter boxes twice a day without fail (even when I was on crutches ) and I have found products which work, and I keep it clutter-free so it's easy to clean. I make a
point of telling people about my animals when they come in and comment on how nice it smells/how clean it is because I want to prove that people can have a lot
of pets and not be pigs. The whole 'crazy cat lady' moniker is such a shame because I think the stigma does keep people from adopting pets
sometimes. This idea that to be normal one must have 3 or less... really sad.
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vampygirl13 |
#18 | |||
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Oh Teal---how terrible! I'm glad you called someone though----the poor animals had to be helped!
In the area here there's an ordinance that a home cannot have more than 5 animals in it at once---probably due to my distant relative who had the cat problem. My friend who has 5 cats has a very clean home as well---she just happened to rescue cats to get 5. She says no more because they run her house now!
vampygirl 13
Melissa: hair that constantly changes color (light blonde at the moment), blue-gray eyes, PPP with acne-prone skin. Addicted to MAC and Aromaleigh, and I love e-tailers! |
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martianspygirl |
#19 | |||
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Teal, you definitely did the right thing. Those poor, poor creatures. I get sad for the people afflicted with this disease, but I have to admit, even more so
for the animals.
My s.o. loves to tease me that I am a hair's breadth away from being a CCL. :-P I get tears in my eyes every time I go to Feeders Supply (a local pet supply store) as they always have kitties up for adoption (sponsored by a local rescue/shelter group). I want to take them all! they also have certain days were the grayhound rescue group is there with their dogs, and they are such gorgeous animals. So for now I only have two cats, ha. We also take lots of walks in a nearby neighborhood with a walking court; lots of people who live there let there cats out since it is not so trafficy and I now know all of their names (the ones with tags). SO says this also a sign of a CCL You can see some of the little
cuties here.
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