Leanne Warr: Don’t tell me cats don’t have feelings

Buddy was about six months old when this was taken.

OPINION

Something happened this weekend that has been quite upsetting, but also incredibly amazing as well.

I’m a cat lover. I have a cat which has become a huge source of emotional support for me. My mother also feels the same way.

She had a cat called Buddy. I say had, because on Saturday morning, I got a phone call from her saying that Buddy had been killed. He was hit by a car. The worst of it was that he was only 18 months old.

Buddy was a very special cat. Not only in how he helped my mum’s mental health but also in the way he bonded with her. He would give her kisses and was just an all-around awesome boy. Sure, he had his moments where he misbehaved. He’d often go wandering around the neighbourhood in Palmerston North, where Mum lives, and stay out all hours giving Mum her moments of worry.

But here’s the most amazing part. Buddy made friends all over that neighbourhood. Not just the right-of-way where Mum and her husband live, but further afield. Almost every one of Mum’s closest neighbours have been there to comfort her over Buddy’s death. They also want to do a memorial service for him.

Every cat in the neighbourhood, and some that Mum didn’t even know, have also been around as if paying their respects.

Now, I know what some cynics would say. That this is going overboard. But those who have pets and consider them part of their family would understand the grief Mum is feeling. If something happened to my cat, I know I would feel the same way. Yet, what has been so heartwarming is the way the neighbours have rallied around, and the way the neighbourhood’s cats have come to pay their respects. Mum often joked that Buddy was the “king” in the neighbourhood.

Don’t tell me cats don’t have feelings or intelligence. Cats, just as much as dogs, know when something’s wrong. My mother has had some serious health issues in the past few months, and for a couple of weeks after she came out of hospital, Buddy wouldn’t let her out of his sight.

When I was studying for my journalism degree, I had to do a video segment for a class on TV journalism. I remember doing an on-camera interview with the then-CEO of the SPCA, Bob Kerridge. There was always something that struck me about what he said. The laws about animal abuse aren’t as strong as they could be because it’s felt that pets are “just an animal”. Pets are not just animals to us pet lovers. They’re family. What’s happened this week just proves it.

Buddy wasn’t just my mum’s family – he meant something to almost everyone in that neighbourhood. That’s what they’re paying respects to.

RIP Buddy. You were my little buddy too.