Dads who didn't want pets

As a Dad who doesn't want more pets, I'd just like to clear something up.

We don't dislike animals. Our heart doesn't grow three sizes when you bring one home and catch us cuddling with it two days later.

I fucking LOVE animals, and I will cuddle the fuck out of anything that would let me, but I also know that nobody else in the house will make sure it's fed and cleaned up after. So, no you can't bring another animal home because I've already got enough on my plate, but when you do it anyway, be prepared for it to be MY little buddy.

Obligatory pic of one of my 4 little buddies.
- I love your little buddy.
Exactly. I will add that as much as I love animals I really hate the loss of them to the point I basically don't want to get them each time. All the get lots of animals folks seem super heartless in some ways. Yeah your sad but not I never want to go through it again sad. I also feel guilty that I can never give the animals quite enough. Not enough walkies. Not giving them enough attention.
- You gotta move on through the grief, accept that they're no longer with you, but that you gave them the best life you could. And maybe realize that giving another pet a good life doesn't mean you're replacing or forgetting your last one. Some people are just better at it than others, they aren't being heartless.
  That said, people who get a new dog a week or two after their previous one died are insane to me. That just feels disrespectful.
- Yeah, the guilt for not give them enough never left you. I'd like to move on, but even after many years, even after my family added another cat to our family, I still fear for the worst.
- I happened to have a lot of human friends pass away unfortunately young, so for me, to have an animal live its whole natural life in my care in peace, comfort, warmth with everything it needs, compared to some of the alternatives out there, especially as I've always adopted, means it was going to live its life anyway - I just made it better.
  And I do want to go through it again because death is a part of life, but it's the life part that's the good bit. And it's only sad for me, for the animals, they had a great time.
- Not giving them enough attention.
  Here I am. Didn't want animal because I struggle mentally a lot and I know I don't have vapacity to keep them occupied. Partner finally understood and backed off just for her mom to put us in situayion where either we takr her cat or it ends in shelter. Cat my partner spent a lot of her life with. >_<
Plus, it's going to die one day, and that really sucks.
- Or you end up spending hundreds to make sure it doesn't, and then it still dies anyway.
- Everything dies and I think we should try and frame death as natural and we provide great lives for our pets.
  It’s not heartless to want to then give another pet a great home.
Talking to another mom about our menageries on school trip. Me: wow! She takes care of all those reptiles?! I can't even get the fish fed or litter box cleaned over here Her: oh, no. Not at all. By "she has," I mean "I care for"
Im right there with you. I didnt want our second dog. My wife was certain she did. Now his seperation anxiety is so bad that hes on puppy prozac and needs something cleaned up every day because we both work. And guess whos doing all the feeding, cleaning, medicine, and baths? Guess who wants to get rid of him? And guess who he follows around and will literally sit on?
Edit: grammar
I also added a rule.
Exclusive naming rights of all pets brought into the house.
If you’re going to ignore me, there will be consequences.
Isn’t that right cuntdestroyer?
Was about to make this point as well but you nailed it. I don't want to bring the pet home because I KNOW I will love it.

I'm a dad who loves cats. My dad, who dislikes pets, keeps asking me about my next travel cause it's fine, he will take care of Figaro if I really need him to.

Is your cat named after the Mozart opera?
I went for classical composers for mine. Had Mozart and Sergei (Rachmaninov).
- That way you could call it🎵 "Figaro, Figaro, FIG-a-ro" 🎶
- I knew most people who think about the Marriage of Figaro, but I've just always really liked how the name sounds. Since both my previous cats already had name when I got them, I had to wait a while for this haha.
  Fun facts, Figaro is completely black (not tuxedo like the Disney character), I'm actually a composer (not much in classical music tho), and there's a nice song by MF Doom named Figaro.
- I'm guessing it's probably a Tuxedo cat named after the cat from Pinocchio.
To be fair, taking care of a pet temporarily is an entirely different matter to having a pet permanently. I wouldn't trust myself to care for a pet day by day for years, but taking on that responsibility for a few days while also getting the benefit of having an already trained pet for that time?
- Yep, indeed. My dad travels a lot so he wouldn't really consider having a cat. But what started as "I guess I can take him for a few day" as quickly turned into "When is he coming back??".
Hey! You should show off how awesome Figaro is by showing a pic. Check out one of mine.
- Challenge accepted!

I let my cats smell every meal before I eat it. Regardless if they like the smells or not, they're always interested in what I'm doing and what I have.

Same here. They have a way of saying, "Hey, I want to smell that!" and it's adorable.
- If yours are anything like my tortoiseshell, it's a loud and clear message. They will run over and give a distinct meow, but they're very communicative in general.
Mine do that as well, and the dog picked it up too lol. She is a bit more enthusiastic about it though. 😅

Very well, I approve, you may put the item away.

Cat

Cats have a way of inserting themselves into your life, don't they?

It's funny how some cats will constantly enter your personal space but act so offended when they want to be alone. God forbid I try to pet her when she doesn't want to be touched, but she shoves her head under my hands while I'm doing something else.
- I see you haven't studied the Ancient Scrolls of Cat Chivalry...
  : dumps out a pile of wadded up newsprint and proceeds to bat it all under the settei.:

That's good enrichment right there! Cats love to investigate new and interesting smells within their territory.

We got a chair in the kitchen we started announcing as the sniffing station, cause she sits there every time we come from grocery shopping and waits to be allowed to sniff things. So now if we say "sniffing station everybody!" she runs to it and waits for new things to sniff.
- That's awesome, I love how excited cats are about their favorite routines. Does she ever go sit there and look at you like she's asking for something to sniff?
And they're specifically interested in what we eat. At least all of mine have been. I actually do the same thing with groceries and also cooked meals 😄
- My cat would sometimes act as if she was anxious for our wellbeing while we were eating (this started after she surreptitiously tasted some food that she clearly did not enjoy the taste of.)
- Definitely, my cats love to sniff all of my cooked meals. I'll bring it to them if they're lounging to pay the sniff tax!
  I normally set the grocery bags down when I get home and let them investigate before I put stuff away.

The number of people talking about their cats but not posting pics in this thread is too damn high!

As a (soon to be) dad who doesn't want any more pets, it's not cause I don't like animals. I love animals... maybe too much, cause I just don't know how many more I can bury.

Maybe I need to get a pet that will outlive me. Something cuddly with a lifespan of like 60-80 years

Mammals mostly don't live that long and reptiles aren't the most cuddely. But sloths or primates can live to 50 years. And some birds can outlive you easily with cockatoos getting to 120 years occasionally

It is not a contradiction to refuse your child's desire for you to adopt a cat and to love a cat. If you force a parent to adopt a cat, they will resent you for foisting an unwanted burden on them. However, the cat has no say in the matter, so it makes no sense to resent or punish the cat. Your parent developing a loving relationship with the pet you forced on them does not absolve you of your imposition.

My dad didn't want pets when I was a kid. He was the only person the cat would lie on top of on the sofa when watching tv. Kitty owned him.

Who even gives their cats human names? I've had Light, Muffin and her twin brother Odysseus, Stanislaus, and Cat.

What insane person is out there naming their cat Lucas??????

But Odysseus and Stanislaus are human names?
- Yes, they are names of humans. But nobody is named that nowadays. There arent Odysseus' and Stanislaus' in the average school year. Whost you can find a dozen Lucases, so.....
Why are you so opposed to it?
Well, over the years we've had; Bob, Charlotte (Charlie), Oswald (Ozzie), Ron and Frank
- Bob the cat from Runescape? /s
- I admit I'm quite biased, I grew up with cats with interesting names and kids with animal names. Always felt bad for the kids with animal names, what parent names their kids Hunter and Sadie?
  So sad
Godric!!
Who names their cat Cookie/Popcorn????
I never understood these ppl. I always gave my pets a normal name bc like…how am I gonna call my dog popcorn, but I don’t mind calling him Oscar for example
Lol idk naming animals is just fun and I love giving them normal human names as much as weird names.
I've had a Harold, and a Patrick, and a Rickey.
But I've also had cats named "Rabies", Maverick, Hobbes, and currently Hachi and Yokai (I stole my name from him).
Here's hachi and yokai. Hachi is the one in the tuxedo:
Edit: picture no upload :(