I guess the reason I've been without do long is that I've never had to go out and actually get one before... people always have cats they don't want and give them to me. And I don't handle trying new things very well.
My wife is a dog person (no cats; she is deathly allergic to cats). Once we got married, she wanted a dog. We bought a beagle, then continued to acquire more dogs, all rescues. After 29 years of continuous occupation with dogs, we currently are down to two dogs, and are now talking that these may be our last ones. Knowing my wife, I doubt it.
I remember right that after my 21-year-old orange tabby Oliver died, I would occasionally get the sensation late at night that he'd just hopped onto the foot of the bed as he often used to. Of course, when I sat up and looked, he wasn't down there—but it was a strange (but also comforting) phenomenon just the same.
Sorry for your loss @Miss Chicken. My cat of 13 years, Zoe, died unexpectedly right before Christmas of 2018. I swore I would never get another pet and, for two years, that's what I did. Then one day, my brother said that his next door neighbor had a cat who had kittens, and suddenly, I wanted a companion to keep me company. Initially I was told that there was a female available and I planned to get her. I even had a name chosen, 'Cleo', short for, 'Cleopatra'. However, by the time I had well and truly made up mind, she had been adopted. There were two male brothers left. I was told I could have none, one, or both. I chose both, because I could never look at one and not wonder what happened to the other. I adopted Antony and Caesar on Memorial Day 2020 and they just celebrated three years with me. It's nice having them to come back to after a long day at work, wanting to be walked and fed. Sure, they wake me up at all hours of the night, jumping up and down off the bed and sit by the door at 5-6 in the morning wanting to be let out and walked, and it can be tiring, but when they're curled up on my lap or on the bed purring, it makes it all worthwhile.
In later life, when you have blood-sugar and arthritis issues, you will often feel the gentle caress of your pets upon your ankles ... even when it transpires that they aren't near!
A warm cat on your lap, eyes squinched shut and purring softly as you stroke its fur... a happy, wiggly dog that jumps on you and eagerly licks your face... or even both, if you can handle refereeing a squabble or two. Funny story... my parents' dog and my sister's dog were mostly cat-friendly alone, but together, they were cat chasers. Until the day my sister got this kitten that grew into a monster tabby cat, probably about 20 pounds, most of it muscle. The dogs tried chasing her one day. Someone went to the vet. It wasn't the cat.
I am going to cheat here. We are owned by a cat right now. Since I was 3 years old there was always a pet in my family. But then I got married and didn't have one for the first few years of marriage. I really missed having one. Then my husband and I were adopted by a kitten she was amazing. A calico and so pretty. We loved her so much. Then she didn't even make it to 5 and had both kidneys fail. We grieved that loss for years and years. We didn't have a pet of our own for like 14 years. My mom had a kitten adopt her and she shared her cat with me. With us. It was nice but not the same. Though we got used to not having a pet and all the things that go with it. Things flipped though, my Mom's cat died a few years ago and now we have our neighbors cat. The neighbor died and no one wanted the cat. So we get this 8 year old tortie cat. We were totally not ready yet to get one. And we wanted a kitten. But this cat was so sweet and fit right into our lives, and she is now 15. We of course don't know how much longer she will live but she is pretty healthy and only at this point need shots for her kitty arthritis. She still plays and does all her normal things and she looks good no old lady cat look yet. We will be sad of course when her time comes, though we know she has had many good years. It was harder with our first cat because it was so unexpected and she was so young when she died. Now we are getting older as well. And we talk about after a time when our cat has gone. We will get one more kitten and that will be it. We wouldn't know anyone who would take the cat if he or she outlived us. Most people we know seem to be dog people or have allergies to cats. I know Mom misses having a cat but she lives in a retirement home where she can't have one so we share our kitty with her. Whenever she needs her fill of cat love we bring her over and she enjoys our cat. Then she can go home and not have to do the litter box and so on. Maybe you know someone who has a cat or dog who would do this for you? Even bring the cat or dog for a visit. It works for my Mom. I don't know if any of this helps. This is what we came up with. I am so sorry for all your loses and my cat, husband and I all send you hugs. Though, our cat really hates hugs, not sure why. But this once she sends one.
I used to get dog fixes that way... my sister and her family had a dog, but they were busy and the dog was home alone a lot. So, since I wasn't working at the time, I would go over and play with the dog... threw the ball for her, taught her to catch a frisbee in her mouth, stuff like that. I live alone in a small place, so getting my own dog is problematic.
We mostly had dogs. I'm not really a dog person, but they seemed to like me, sitting by my desk while I wrote. We had a couple of cats, which I do prefer, as not so needy. We had to put one dog down (brain cancer) and the other one just upped and died a few months later. Devastating. The ex insisted we get another dog, which our cat hated, and not long after she died (she was at least 12), The the kids moved out and it was just the 3 of us. She lived for quite a while until she got really sick and we had to put her down. The ex went home, couldn't handle it, so I stayed with her, held her in my lap (something she loved to do) as she had the injection, and afterwards ugly cried. No, pets since then, they don't live long enough and it hurts too much when they die. Around the same time she died my dad did too, and I was still grieving my mother, so it was a;ll a bit much. I'm living with my kids, the ex gave them a dog, and it's a friendly pup they don't pay enough attention to, so I toss a ball for it occasionally. That's enough. Much as I'd like a cat, no. Too much else to do as I try and sort myself out. Sorry for you loss, @Miss Chicken.
I'm sorry for your loss. I have had cats and I miss being a staff member for a cat. I intend to have a cat in future. I get my fix by seeing pets belonging to friends and family. I wouldn't worry about your pet outliving you as long as you have a plan. My friend knows he will inherit dogs from his parents. Good luck. I don't know how things are where you are, but here the shelters do home checks.
We have had lots of cats in the past. We are down to four cats. It feels a lot quieter without the others, who passed away long ago.
Both our kitties have passed on. We've been without cats for about a year now. There are things I miss and things I don't miss. DH says we won't have any more cats; he's not a fan of litter boxes and fur. I'm to the point that I'm not fond of litter boxes, either, so the girls may have been our last kitties. We have a Boston Terrier; he's almost 7, and we hope he will have many more years with us. After he passes, I don't know if I will want another dog. Part of me knows that having a pet is good for you, but I don't know whether we will want another at that point. My condolences, @Miss Chicken Losing a beloved pet is very difficult.
I have to admit I have seen some positives about not owning a cat. For a start my cat used to tramp kitty litter all over the house meaning we had to vacuum every day. Also no fur to vacuum up. I am also sleeping better because I don’t have a cat demanding to be feed at 5am and I am not being woken up by him jumping onto my bed. I really miss his company though.
Back in 1979, right after our husky passed, I'd swear I could her her giving herself a bath on a few occasions at night. As for after my cats were gone, other than a few instances like yours where I thought I felt my girl cat jumping up on the foot of the bed, I never really felt their presence. My male liked jumping up at the head of the bed, trampling across my pillow, 2-3 times a night, so I'd have felt that.
My bud of five years has been gone now for two days but we've already started investigating getting another bunny. One, to be a companion for the remaining bunny (rabbits are social animals and do better when bonded with another). Two, to give another bunny a good home.
This is Sebastian. He was one of ten male New Zealand rabbits rescued from a lab a couple of months ago. We adopted him a couple of hours ago after his bunny date with our Sylvie went well and will be bringing him home this Saturday. We are probably going to change his name to Bucky Barnes, The Winter Bunny.