Do you have a favorite pet?

[Imdanny]

Is that fair to the others?

 

[Haven]

I love each of them more than anything else in the entire universe.
I tell them so every single day.

 

[NOYFB]

I love each of them more than anything else in the entire universe.
I tell them so every single day.

Me too!

 

[Imdanny]

We have one so...

But I'll tell you SHE favors SO.

 

[mrswahs]

Sadly

We have a cat and a gecko. The gecko is almost 6 years old and she doesn't really do anything. I still really enjoy watching her and her silly quirks, but I actually have a relationship with Sherlock, our kitty.

ETA: she's my favorite little lizard lady though

 

[lulu]

Funny you should bring that up. I went to the local animal shelter today for volunteer orientation. I'm going to be helping out in the cat cottage. I saw so many wonderful cats and dogs it made me sad. When I got home I sure loved my guys up. They're all my favorites!

 

[y2kitty]

I have two male cats. One wakes me up in the middle of the night frequently. The other has woken me up once in 11 years and it was because a building near my apartment was on fire and smoke was coming in the open window. The one who only woke me up for an emergency is my favorite. But I tell the other one that if he would knock it off they could be equals.

 

[Lottie]

We just have the one, but he has a favourite and its me.

 

[Asu]

I do have a favorite,and while I know it's not really fair,I can't help it.He is the sweetest,most affectionate cat I've ever seen.He is blind,and we rescued him when he was just about 3 weeks old,so he was depending on me completely,and I'm his mommy.With our oldest I have a good relationship,I love him and he is pretty sweet.The youngest...well,we strongly dislike each other.If it was just for me I would have tried to rehome him,because he is NOT happy here,he is actually having problems from it.The vet suspect he suffers from depression and probably something else,but the specialist was too expensive and we never took him.My husband want to keep him,tough,so he is stuck here and I'm stuck cleaning up his pee from everywhere,since he constantly pee on the everywhere,walls and bed included.

 

[iLander]

We have 3 animals; 2 dogs and a cat. I like them all so differently, so it's not a "one favorite" thing.

My avatar doggie I like because I can tell her to do things and she will. She can say yes (wink) and no (blinks both eyes really slowly). She has a huge vocabulary and understands way too much. She also "translates" for the other animals. I'll ask "what does the cat want?!" and she'll get in the cat's face, and comes back and licks her own lips. Then I understand the cat wants food and nobody remembered to give him his afternoon feeding. I'll ask what the little dog wants and she'll come back and sniff her own tail. Then I know the little dog needs to go potty. She also tells me she's (or another animal) is sleepy by pretending to yawn. It's all a bit strange and freaky, but I love that about her.

The littlest dog is just so darn cheerful! She wakes up wagging her tail, and she goes to be wagging her tail. She plays and runs around, even though she's almost 7 people years. She's sad when people walk by her and don't pet her. She's very emotional and thrilled when you come in from the other room. I love that about her.

We're convinced our cat was an assassin in his previous life. He's very suave and cool, but he does freaky things to the rats in the yard. Once, he cut out only the rat's heart and ate only that. Another time, he neatly cut off the head (neat little nibbles around the neck) and deposited it on our bedroom carpet. The rat's eyes were open, it was upright, and facing the bed. It freaked me out when I woke up. Gruesome, but oddly cool. He also understands stuff. A couple of weeks ago, I told him we were going out of town the next day, overnight. and he's have to stay out on the porch. But he misunderstood, he thought I meant that night and refused to come in that night. I even dragged him in, and he scooted out the cat door. He had a puzzled expression that whole evening.

So, yes, they're all my favorites, but in totally different ways.

 

[lyra]

Yes. But in my defense, he's got an adorable face. And he's not as smart as his sister. And he's so small. And cute. He has a horrendous underbite that is so sad it's cute. He defends his territory. Everything is his territory. Wherever he sits is his territory. All the toys are his territory. Socks are his territory. He doesn't shed either. And he's a severe lap cling-on.

 

[Meezermom]

We have six rescues; three dogs and three cats. I do love them all equally, as they all have different personalities. Although, I probably favor my little "old lady" maltese mix, Jasmine, just a teeny bit more because I've had her the longest (and she was this shaking teeny tiny mess when I found her at the Pound) and she traveled with me when I located to another state to be with my new husband. Of course her adoring eyes, and the fact that she insists that I sit with her on the couch at times, and wherever in the house I am she is too......she just melts my heart. Well, they all melt my heart in their own ways.

There is Willow, my very first cat who taught me that cats are wonderful and clowny (who is our "phantom" cat because she's hardly around), Jade-Lin, our Siamese who came to us as a tiny as a mouse kitten from a young couple, who did not want her and she was about to become an outside cat (and is a total cuddle bug), then there is Tia, our tiny black Halloween kitten adopted from a rescue organization who we got as a companion for Jade-Lin (best buds and someone Jade-Lin can "mother") who is now at 2 years of age and 16 lbs. (!!) We found out that her mother was a Maine Coon. She is one LARGE black cat - but a total sweetie, who is also very mischievous at times (and knows it). All our cats are inside cats.

Maggie is our Shepherd/Black Lab Mix from a local shelter - The sweetest dog I've probably ever known who, at the age of 7 still has her puppy dog eyes, and whom the cats absolutely adore (and she adores them in return), and Mickey, our Min. Schnauzer Mix who we also got from the local shelter about three years ago (it was our intent just to bring the shelter supplies that they needed....). Mickey was so abused, that when we adopted him the shelter would not let us take him home immediately because his right back leg had to be amputated. His former owners did something to his back leg (we don't know exactly what), but they left it hanging there for months (totally separated from his body on the inside). Someone ultimately surrendered him to the shelter. We took him home directly from the Vet several days after the amputation. Three years later he developed diabetes, but we've got that under control giving him his insulin twice a day and keeping him on his prescription diet dog food. Mickey too has an endearing underbite. It took him a few years to warm up to me because whoever abused him apparently was female - but he's come a long way, although at times but can still get a little cranky, but for the most part he's a happy dog who is loved and cherished probably for the first time in his life. My husband is "his person", but that's ok.

 

[stephbolt]

Yup, my kitten that I've had longer than I've known my husband is by far my favorite, but not by much.

 

[justginger]

I absolutely do - our dane x mastiff girl is my animal soulmate. She's perfect for me, just a furry shadow mini-me. Lazy, affectionate, and very soulful.

Our other dog is a nightmare. I made the mistake of 'fostering' him in college after he had been abused and not being able to let go. He must be my good samaritan project of a lifetime because he is a NAUGHTY dog. No amount of training will undo the damage that was inflicted on him...we've done it all, more than once. He is petrified of strangers, especially men in hats, doorbells send him into a barking mess, he is in a constant state of hypervigilance, just waiting for something to bark at. It is all fear-based and that makes me sad. But honestly, we're talking barking issues to the point that I don't think we'll be able to have children until he's gone, or there would be no naps, or entire nights of sleep. We've been doing this for 6 years now and it's gotten old. Of course there's no option but to soldier on, and I'm sure I'll miss him when he's gone, but it will be a relief to not constantly try to keep him secure and quiet.

We also have two cats. One is DH's and is a fat, lazy blob that likes to headbutt and has whiskers THIS long. She's nice, but the other cat is MINE. After fostering about 60 cats, she's the one I've chosen to keep as my own, if that tells you anything. She likes to sleep on my neck like a furry scarf.

 

[Missy]

I love all of my furry family members so much but the one that will always hold the most special place in my heart is our dear darling Billy who died June 2009. I miss him so and he was truly a special cat. He was so empathetic and affectionate and in tune with our moods and so loving- more like a loyal dog than a cat but much smarter. I cannot explain his specialness in words but all that met him felt the same way about him.

I wish PS would let me attach the video tribute my dh made when Billy died but I guess the file is too large. It is such a moving tribute.

Here are a few pics of our darling Billy who is now at Rainbow Bridge...

The Rainbow Bridge Poem

Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.

When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge.
There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together.
There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.

All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor; those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by.
The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.

They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent; His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.

You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.

Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together....

Author unknown...

 

[Enerchi]

Thank you for posting that poem Missy. I have a dog that is there now... Ollie was the most wonderful dog - so attentive, loved us all (family of 5), trained beautifully, could do tricks.... oh how I miss him. He became diabetic and had liver issues. We gave him daily injections of insulin but he went deaf and blind and lost sooo much weight. We booked the "last" appointment 3 times in total - the first 2 he rallied but we were only fooling ourselves. On the 3rd time... we went thru with it.... the vet did not give him enough of an overdose, so he lingered about 5 minutes. The vet thought that was unusual (YA THINK?????) and gave him a second dose which took him from twilight paralysis to "the rainbow bridge".

We all miss him.

Very touching to read that poem - thank you Missy

 

[Missy]

Thank you for posting that poem Missy. I have a dog that is there now... Ollie was the most wonderful dog - so attentive, loved us all (family of 5), trained beautifully, could do tricks.... oh how I miss him. He became diabetic and had liver issues. We gave him daily injections of insulin but he went deaf and blind and lost sooo much weight. We booked the "last" appointment 3 times in total - the first 2 he rallied but we were only fooling ourselves. On the 3rd time... we went thru with it.... the vet did not give him enough of an overdose, so he lingered about 5 minutes. The vet thought that was unusual (YA THINK?????) and gave him a second dose which took him from twilight paralysis to "the rainbow bridge".

We all miss him.

Very touching to read that poem - thank you Missy

You are so welcome Enerchi.

I am so sorry for your loss. Billy also had diabetes for the last 6 or so years of his life. He died from complications to his heart and kidneys. It was a valiant fight and in the end we knew when the time was right for him to go to Rainbow Bridge.

I bet Billy and Ollie are there together right now having a great time and looking down on us and smiling.

 

[Enerchi]

Thank you for posting that poem Missy. I have a dog that is there now... Ollie was the most wonderful dog - so attentive, loved us all (family of 5), trained beautifully, could do tricks.... oh how I miss him. He became diabetic and had liver issues. We gave him daily injections of insulin but he went deaf and blind and lost sooo much weight. We booked the "last" appointment 3 times in total - the first 2 he rallied but we were only fooling ourselves. On the 3rd time... we went thru with it.... the vet did not give him enough of an overdose, so he lingered about 5 minutes. The vet thought that was unusual (YA THINK?????) and gave him a second dose which took him from twilight paralysis to "the rainbow bridge".

We all miss him.

Very touching to read that poem - thank you Missy

You are so welcome Enerchi.

I am so sorry for your loss. Billy also had diabetes for the last 6 or so years of his life. He died from complications to his heart and kidneys. It was a valiant fight and in the end we knew when the time was right for him to go to Rainbow Bridge.

I bet Billy and Ollie are there together right now having a great time and looking down on us and smiling.

Yes indeed, they are!! Waiting for us to join them (but I'm in no rush to get there....!)

I don't have very many photos of him on my computer, but this one was taken just days before the event. So sad to look at him at this point, but what a great dog he was!

I love your kitty in the freezer!!! That was hilarious!

 

[Missy]

awwwww, Ollie looked like a real sweetie-pie. So huggable! I know how much you must miss him. For me, I can now think of Billy with more happiness than tears though I am still so sad and miss him every day. At least I don't cry whenever I think of him anymore...unless I am watching the video my dh made. He put it to the song Fallen Embers by Enya.

Here are some pics of our 4 furry family members now...Fred is the only one that knew Billy. We adopted the other 3 in honor of Billy's memory to rescue 3 lives that needed loving homes.

 

[Enerchi]

SOOOOOOO cute!!! Love Frankie's attentive stare - if only we knew what went on in their heads! I laugh and put words in cartoon bubbles above my dog's heads all the time (so I have no declared publicly that I'm a bit nutty!! ) and our yellow lab looks at my DH with such love and adoration - there is nothing he can NOT do in her mind - and in her 'bubble' its always "I love you my tall Man - you are the best!". Our other dog is an almost 10 year old airedale that would be the equivalent of the sheepdog on the Bugs Bunny cartoons - "Hey Fred/Hey Earl" as they clock out at the end of their shift by the tree

But as for this original post - do you have a favourite? - of the 2 we have now, I'd pick my airedale in a heart beat!

 

[Missy]

Oh yes, I agree. I would love to know what they are thinking much of the time LOL...I also imagine little bubbles above their head with their thoughts!

OK I am going to try to post the video so I joined youtube to add the link so I could post it here. Not sure this is going to work. If it does and you decide to watch it (it's a few minutes long I think) at the end wait about 10 sec before you stop because there is a delay before the final screen. Hope you enjoy.

http://youtu.be/AOxele31zsU

 

[Enerchi]

AWE!!! That is sooooooooo sweet! I would have loved something like that for Ollie. That is wonderful - what a great man your DH is!
That is a very appropriate song for the video... "once I was with you". It made me teary

thanks for posting your video

 

[Missy]

AWE!!! That is sooooooooo sweet! I would have loved something like that for Ollie. That is wonderful - what a great man your DH is!
That is a very appropriate song for the video... "once I was with you". It made me teary

thanks for posting your video

Thank you Enerchi. And thanks for watching.

Apologies to Danny for going off on a tangent in his thread. But yes, Billy was and will always be my favorite furry family member.

 

[Maisie]

I love my dog and cat equally. I wouldn't favour one over the other. My husband prefers the dog. Thats because the cat doesn't like him though. She is very nervous and I think she has a problem with men (we didn't get her till she was 3).

 

[lulu]

Oh Missy-that's a very moving video.

 

[manderz]

I currently have a cat, a parrot, and a 55 gallon saltwater fish tank with 7 fish. My favorite is my fat cat. He love fi an I both equally, he's really well behaved, and he is our pet (I've had the parrot for about 14 years, since he was just a baby, and Fi and the parrot don't like each other, and the fish are lots of work, and not at all cuddly). I love them all, but the cat has a special place in my heart.

 

[distracts]

I love my bunny more than my fiance's dog.

She's my tiny little buddy. She's so little and fluffy and cute, and loves to get into all sorts of trouble, but also loves to come cuddle with me. All the rabbit books say that they don't like to be held, but Gwen will come up and stand on her hind legs with her little paws right under my knee (that's as high as she can get) until I pick her up sometimes. She's just a constant delight. And she's okay on her own, too, so I don't have to feel bad when I shut her in her room while I go places. She's kind of like the best parts of cats and dogs combined - she's like a cat that really likes me and wants to follow me around and participate in what I'm doing (which mostly involves chewing on whatever I'm doing).

Don't get me wrong, I like the dog. But I'm not a dog person, I'm a cat person. The dog is so big and slobbery, and she will never, ever learn to sniff WITHOUT touching her cold wet nose to things (things like me!). She's also INCREDIBLY ENERGETIC!! The rabbit is energetic, but the rabbit also weighs 3 pounds, not 60 pounds, and having a 3 pound ball of fuzz hurtling around your house is much easier for me to deal with than a 60 pound ball of big sad puppy eyes. Also, she has to make sad-puppy eyes at EVERYTHING. Oh, you're sitting on the couch and she's sitting on the floor? SAD PUPPY EYES WHY IS PUPPY NOT ON THE COUCH? You're eating a sandwich and she's not? SAD PUPPY EYES WHY IS PUPPY NOT GETTING A SANDWICH? You are watching tv instead of the dog? SAD PUPPY EYES SUDDENLY IN FRONT OF YOUR TV, PUPPY IS MORE INTERESTING THAN TV? Arrrrgh it drives me craaaaaazy I am SO not a dog person. That's not even getting into the way she sad-puppy-eyes you when you close the door to the laundry room (connected to the dog run) to shut her outside when you're leaving the house. It's like the Most Epic Betrayal of All Time, every time, and makes me feel like the most horrible, shittiest person in the world, and like I'm abusing her and don't deserve pets at all, and am practically a puppy-kicker. But like I said in the scary sleep stories thread - I let her sleep in the bed (instead of her "dog bed," aka the biggest fluffiest chair in all of creation) when my fiance is out of town because she wakes up at every noise. She is also much better than Gwen at comforting me if I'm really upset. If I'm crying, it scares Gwen and she runs away, but Rory will still cuddle with me and make sad puppy eyes (they're her specialty, in case you haven't noticed) at me. I dunno. I'm not really a dog person but I've come around from hating dogs. They're okay I guess. I'd like Rory a lot more if she was more independent and less "my world revolves entirely around you!"

Of deceased pets, I loved my old cat more than my gerbils. I don't think my gerbils really knew who I was or cared about me at all. My cat was the perfect cat. He was a big mean fighter, and went out and killed lots of things and brought them back, including other cats, racoons, possums, and small dogs. Such a good kitty! (I definitely could not have had my rabbit when I had my cat - he would have killed her so hard. SO HARD, you guys.)

 

[Mayk]

My daughter has a favorite.. and I have a "least" favorite..

He's so pretty, his coat is so soft... but he's so loud and he never stops talking or chewing the tub facets (he has three bowls of water all filled with his toys)..no wonder he is thirsty... he gets on my bed and kneads for hours..... he's such a pest... he steals jewelry, I have to keep it all put away, he broke a watch he knocked on the bathroom floor playing with it, he talks when I am on the phone... I have a home office and every conference call he has something to say.. he bites my feet... and he's three years old..when will it end? To think... I picked a bengal for my daughter because they don't shed as much..which he doesn't, one bonus. And lets not forget.. he loves DH the best.. talks to him when he comes home too. Anybody want a cat?

 

[Enerchi]

AI YI YI!! He is so regal and gorgeous! What colouring---- wow! Maybe its his good looks that are keeping him around?

 

[Asu]

My daughter has a favorite.. and I have a "least" favorite..

He's so pretty, his coat is so soft... but he's so loud and he never stops talking or chewing the tub facets (he has three bowls of water all filled with his toys)..no wonder he is thirsty... he gets on my bed and kneads for hours..... he's such a pest... he steals jewelry, I have to keep it all put away, he broke a watch he knocked on the bathroom floor playing with it, he talks when I am on the phone... I have a home office and every conference call he has something to say.. he bites my feet... and he's three years old..when will it end? To think... I picked a bengal for my daughter because they don't shed as much..which he doesn't, one bonus. And lets not forget.. he loves DH the best.. talks to him when he comes home too. Anybody want a cat?

Not only he is beautiful,but he sounds SO much like my beloved Pochi that I want to steal him