[speaker001:] okay
[speaker002:] well what kind of pet do you have
[speaker001:] one very old fat cat Prissy and that's why Pat won't ever let me have a party at my house
[speaker002:] that's right I remembered that's right Prissy get's you in trouble because you can't have them there
[speaker001:] that's right she does shed a lot of fur
[speaker002:] and how many pets have you had
[speaker001:] she's we've had her for a long time we used to have a Spitz that kind of got deposited on us when a cousin was getting a divorce and we were supposed to keep her temporarily for about twelve years usually we've had dogs or cats
[speaker002:] yeah well you know we have a dog named Pumpkin so what we've had him
[speaker001:] yes
[speaker002:] a year and a half and uh it's okay I don't know I I I told my kids basically I would just not as I just soon not have a pet in the house but I give in
[speaker001:] yeah I'm reaching that point too
[speaker002:] yeah it's it's it's hard for me I like pets a lot but I just don't like them in the house
[speaker001:] um-hum
[speaker002:] so I wished you know I wish we lived in an area where we had a big backyard I'd have a dog you know I'd have it outside but um I
[speaker001:] um-hum well I'm thinking of a next time about going back to a dog though because the cats really do shed a lot you just never get rid of the cat hair
[speaker002:] do they
[speaker001:] and I know there are a lot of dogs that are pretty clean and don't shed so Emily wants a dog a lot of her friends have little house mops kind of like yours
[speaker002:] sure sure well it is easy and like Pumpkin is real easy I mean we don't even have to walk him much or anything he
[speaker001:] um-hum but do you have to let him outside for all his business and all yeah
[speaker002:] yeah yeah he goes out in the morning
[speaker001:] but see that's what would be hard for us since we're not there a lot
[speaker002:] yeah well unless you got a doggy door you know like my my aunt and uncle have a doggy door and their dog just goes in and out at will
[speaker001:] um-hum yeah
[speaker002:] so that that's nice
[speaker001:] I think Jay would go bananas over that though he he likes for our house to be as secure as possible
[speaker002:] all sealed up yeah I know that's that's the problem with it but um
[speaker001:] um-hum
[speaker002:] but basically dogs our dogs worked out has worked out well and I think it's nice for the children I it's not my most favorite thing in the world but
[speaker001:] um-hum that can be so therapeutic though when when I really want to just crawl into a shell I think uh wouldn't it be nice just to lay on the bed and pet the cat
[speaker002:] yeah right well they are loving I mean that's
[speaker001:] um-hum
[speaker002:] that's the thing uh you know my friend Barb I have a friend good friend who's just moved here and she's gotten two cats and honestly she is just crazy about those cats
[speaker001:] um-hum
[speaker002:] and she's single lives by herself and they totally have kept her company you know I mean it is just it's really meant a lot to her to have those cats
[speaker001:] yeah and I really I I don't think I'm prejudiced since I've had both but I think cats are more prone to really have personalities I mean they own you rather than the other way around
[speaker002:] um-hum um-hum um-hum
[speaker001:] and I really do believe that I get a kick out of seeing my seventy seven year old aunt with her animals and she had a cat get killed not too long ago and she said no more you know I just I can't go through that again and it wasn't three months before she had another one and just adapting to it just
[speaker002:] yeah
[speaker001:] like she always had
[speaker002:] yeah
[speaker001:] and it's really neat for people living alone like you say with your friend
[speaker002:] yeah it's really you know Barb said she wishes that she had done it years ago you know that she had um
[speaker001:] um-hum
[speaker002:] gotten an animal years ago because she's been single a long time and you know she says it just makes a world of difference to come home and have them in the house
[speaker001:] yeah growing up it was so funny because mother would always have a soft heart for strays and
[speaker002:] uh-huh
[speaker001:] we never back then you didn't spay and neuter your animals that much you just kind of put up with whatever happened and she could never get rid of them fast enough before the next litter came along it wasn't usual unusual for us to have six and seven cats and I remember my first camera experience as trying to put cats up on a porch and take pictures of them that were going to be award winning type photos they've always been a part of my life
[speaker002:] well I guess so you've had them so you had them just from early on then
[speaker001:] oh yeah we had a Cocker Spaniel growing up but but the cats were the things that I loved and especially with being around kittens and the babies and all
[speaker002:] now were they indoor cats or outdoor cats
[speaker001:] no no dad never never would have allowed that
[speaker002:] right
[speaker001:] so they always just kind of showed up and came and went and had babies and we played with them we we used them as dolls sometimes we'd dress them up and put them in carriages as much as they'd tolerate it
[speaker002:] uh-huh uh-huh
[speaker001:] so it was always fun
[speaker002:] uh-huh well now see we lived on a real busy intersection in Phoenix and we had a dog but he was killed we we couldn't it was it was not it just wasn't conducive to animals
[speaker001:] oh yeah that was traumatic wasn't it yeah
[speaker002:] yeah it was it was very traumatic my sister it was really upsetting to my little sister and and um so that it just we didn't have many pets growing up just because our house wasn't conducive to that
[speaker001:] um-hum yeah
[speaker002:] and uh it just wasn't safe we didn't have a fence and our dog just got killed we'd keep him chained up but he got out and you know sure enough was hit by a car so
[speaker001:] um-hum yeah that's exactly what happened with ours and my brother really took it hard because he was the one that had left the gate open so he blamed himself personally although you know there were so many things that could have been different but it was hard for him to cope with it being his fault
[speaker002:] oh yeah I bet
[speaker001:] so I do hate that I that's one reason I like cats and critters that can stay inside because you don't face that
[speaker002:] right
[speaker001:] it's it's hard
[speaker002:] right
[speaker001:] especially if you really do get attached to them I'm I'm already kind of preparing for Prissy dying because she's pretty old and fat and oh I just know it's going to come sooner or later so that's one reason I've been letting Emily talk about dogs because I think
[speaker002:] uh-huh
[speaker001:] we we say that's going to be the end but I think when it really comes to it we'll want another pet
[speaker002:] how old is Prissy
[speaker001:] she's at least thirteen or fourteen we don't know exactly because we got her as a young kitten or a you ng cat and didn't know that much about her she's a neat cat I mean she owns us all the way
[speaker002:] um um-hum um-hum
[speaker001:] but it does require a little bit of work and housecleaning
[speaker002:] well uh you know it does that's just it and right now it's I do well to just take care of my children
[speaker001:] yeah yeah
[speaker002:] you know without taking care of an animal too so
[speaker001:] um-hum and you have the problem when you travel too we always we board her now and that gets kind of expensive
[speaker002:] that's right that's right we just we just were on vacation and uh it was you know it was expensive plus I think you know for Pumpkin he didn't you know he didn't like it we were gone two weeks and that was hard on him to be boarded for two weeks
[speaker001:] yeah yeah um-hum where'd y'all go
[speaker002:] uh we can't talk about that can we we went to Gulf Gulf
[speaker001:] no I guess not it's not pet related
[speaker002:] Gulf Shores Alabama and New Orleans and so we had a really good time
[speaker001:] oh boy yeah oh how neat
[speaker002:] so but yeah Pumpkin was
[speaker001:] but the puppy survived
[speaker002:] yes he did I always wonder I think well now how much do they remember you know like
[speaker001:] and you know my aunt says that they do drug them I just went bananas when she told me that that was a fact that she had shopped kennels and vets and that they all very lightly sedate them so that they sleep a lot and that just gave me the creeps because I you know I hate to think they did that to anything or anybody
[speaker002:] oh huh
[speaker001:] but she said every vet's office and kennel if they would let it if they