Our Views: La. felines get counted

Cats have a legendary capacity for self-esteem, so we doubt that Louisiana’s felines will have their egos bruised by the news that the state ranks 48th for cat ownership across the nation.

That ranking comes from a survey of pet ownership conducted every five years by the American Veterinary Medical Association. In Louisiana, 25.9 percent of households own a cat, according to the survey. The two states with lower cat ownership are New Jersey with 25.3 percent and Utah, with 24.6 percent.

One local veterinarian suggested that perhaps some Louisiana residents are not counting the occasional barn cat as a pet when answering surveys.

We’ll note that in cat ownership as with so many other things in life, quality is preferred to quantity. LSU has its Mike the Tiger mascot. We can’t imagine the New Orleans French Quarter without its shop cats and apartment cats — all of them, apparently, much loved by their owners.

Having a cat, we have observed, is a full-time job. With that in mind, Louisiana residents probably have at least as many cats as they can handle.

Comments

1) Comment by [e-mail] - 02/02/2013

Maybe last in cat owners owning up to owning a cat, but feral cats are running around everywhere, and were an even bigger nuisance until the coyotes decided that they were tasty. Now we have a coyote problem.

2) Comment by nimby? - 01/02/2013

twinkie is correct , you never own cats , they allow you to live with them . I'm out in the parish in an area lots of strays are dropped off . they seem to find us , 14 cats , 6 dogs . I prefer them to most people .

3) Comment by twinkie1cat - 01/02/2013

It is not surprising that people don't consider themselves cat owners, because some don't seem to think they have to be responsible for them when they get big. Plus, while you pick a dog, a cat picks you. That is when they come to my house. I arrived in Baton Rouge with 2. I now have 7 plus 4 that call themselves feral and eat at the window. (A little hand feeding can help tame a feral kitty if he is young. Get some Friskies canned food and put it on your hand. He can't get it unless he eats it off you hand. I have not gotten them completely tamed yet, but they are coming around.) Also, please get your kitties spayed and neutered so they don't all end up at my house!

4) Comment by prbeav - 01/02/2013

Cat owners may learn a lot from their pet. For example, Spunkie always leaves some of her food, even though she knows she can scratch on the kitchen door to get more.>>>>Alas, if we overfeed her, she does overeat.

5) Comment by Being_Stupid - 01/02/2013

Louisiana is #1 in pet turtle ownership.