Nine Lives....and Counting!!!

It goes without saying that I love our bulldog - Boo!!! I rescued him almost six years ago as a gift for Richard. He came with his name. He is such a strong (and kind of ugly) dog that I think that I would have named him Cesar, but he is stuck with Boozer which is on his papers. And as a term of endearment, we call him Boo.

During most days, Boo is my buddy. Since my office is only 200 feet from my home, Boo goes to work with me. And when I have no one else to talk with, he is my listener. He lets me complain, rant and rave and he never tells my secrets. He doesn't have a comment back for me nor does he tell me how to fix it - he just looks at me, puts his head in my lap and cocks his ears to the side - listening to me.

But before Boo was a part of my life, I would have told you that I was a "cat" person. Cats take care of themselves. They don't leave "land minds" in the yard. Nor do they have to go for walks or be let out. I guess that makes me a lazy pet owner before Boo.

The other thing that I enjoy about cats is their curiosity. We have three: Patches, President and Snowflake. (They live mostly outdoor though they do sneak inside for a visit now and then)But the one thing that I could do without is their gift giving. I'm not a person that knows how to accepts gifts anyway, but I really could do without the headless kind (mice, lizards and snakes)that are left at my front door!!!! But anything that moves is noticed by the cats. It is comical to watch them "stalk" - especially the squirrels or birds. The cats have yet to catch one and they seem to know that they won't get caught. SO they taunt the cats by allowing the cats to get "just close enough" and then they take off. It always gives me a laugh to watch the cats try so hard. It's not like they are stalking for food - they have plenty here. They stalk because their curiosity gets the better of them. They can't stand to have something move without checking it out. Even while sleeping, you can see their ears twitching - listening for any movement.

However, many times not only am I rescuing an animal from one of the cats because I can't stand to see them kill, but I am rescuing my cats from danger. Boo senses danger and turns away from it. One day while the garage was being built, we decided to go down and look at the progress. Boo ran ahead and when he reached the garage, he quickly turned around and bolted. There in the middle of the garage floor was a coral snake!!!!.

However, the cats see a snake and can't help but to investigate it - even if the snake is a rattlesnake. As much as I don't want the cats to get bit by a rattlesnake, I have a pretty healthy fear of them and don't want to get too close to the snake. So I will stand from afar and find something to throw at the cats to distract them - praying that the snake takes off as well.

Every time that I have to rescue the cats from a rattlesnake, I always have the same thought - "Curiosity is going to kill the cat".

It reminds me that there are things that are attractive to me but are as dangerous as a rattlesnake. It may look harmless - just something that is moving to be investigated, but it's bite is deadly...

What makes you "curious" but deep down you know that is posionous for you????