What if we want a cat, but we live with people who don’t? What if our parents, roommates, or Significant Other don’t want a cat? What do we do?

We have to figure out what is behind the word, “no.”

Some people just don’t care for pets. Period. They find the bother and responsibilities to be not worth what they might get out of having any pets, of any kind. It’s unlikely we can persuade such people otherwise.

Where we might have some leverage is when the person claims to specifically not want a cat. That’s because their objections have to be misconceptions. Because, what’s not to like about a cat?

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So listen carefully to the person’s objections, and see if you can counter them with some well-reasoned arguments.

I don’t like cats because:

They are sneaky, treacherous animals. It’s true, cats are great at soundlessly appearing out of nowhere. That’s one of their predatory advantages. People only find this disconcerting when they are uncertain about the cat’s motives. This objection is grounded in a person’s unfamiliarity with the ways cats feel and express affection. They don’t want an animal around they can’t feel close to, so we’re actually dealing with a potential “pet lover” who needs more information.

Handle this by sharing one’s own insights into cats. Cat food commercials invariably show a cat expressing affection to their human. Point out the signs to look for. Remember, animal actors are all method actors, and especially cats. We can get a cat to hang with someone if there’s food in their pocket, but those blissful head rubs? They can’t fake that.

Cats aren’t good company. People who know and love dogs are familiar with the ways dogs love being near us, and the overt ways they express it. When they don’t see this behavior in cats, they conclude cats are not companionable.

If we want to go hiking, dogs are the best choice. But for companionship, cats are equally sweet, and even more interested in our little ways of amusing ourselves. For someone who wants animal interaction at home, even while they are doing other things, cats are the better choice.

Cats aren’t any fun. This is because they can’t see what to do with a cat, and have trouble imagining what cat fun is like. They see dogs as interactive. They don’t see cats that way.

Cats are a different kind of interactivity. While they are fun to play with, there’s also the element of psychological interplay that cat fans find so appealing, and non-cat fans don’t know exists. Cats regards us as toys. What makes us laugh? What will we do if they do this or that? What do we like to do, and can they do it too?

Some of the enjoyment of cats comes from realizing how much they think, and getting glimpses into these thought processes. People who want interactivity will get more of the mental variety than they thought possible.

Cats can’t be trained. Here the person is envisioning having an animal they feel they have no control over, and so must put up with anything they don’t like. Of course, this isn’t true. Cats can be trained, but it requires a different set of techniques than dogs do.

A lot of the cat’s reputation as untrainable actually should be blamed on the humans not using the right procedure. That’s hardly the cat’s fault.

Dogs are more obedient as a baseline, though in actuality, not many people have all that much control over their dogs. For every dog we see trotting along at heel, there are at least three more lunging all over the place.

But people don’t blame the dogs. They blame the people.

This is also true of cats, though what we ask of them, and what they might want to do, is different. But a cat with a close relationship with us will do almost anything to please us. Once they know what we want.

In a lot of ways, cats don’t need to be trained nearly as much as dogs do. Litter box training and scratching post etiquette, the basics all kittens should have, are incredibly simple compared to housetraining and keeping ahead of puppy chewing. With proper understanding, cats are sooooo easy.

Cats aren’t affectionate. This is probably the biggest misconception of all. And it’s entirely untrue. Properly treated, cats are capable of incredible devotion.

That’s the catch. Dogs will love us no matter how badly they are treated, while cats expect some effort on our part. I don’t have a problem with that. Relationships should be reciprocal, shouldn’t they?

No one should worry they can’t hold up their end with a cat. The biggest problem is when people don’t even start, feeling their overtures will be useless.

They don’t have to worry.

So we should be respectful of other’s wishes, while they should be respectful of ours. If our people are open to a pet, it’s a great chance to spread cat understanding over the rest of the world.

The cats will appreciate it. In time, so will the people.

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