Pets and Babies

Poo. Yes, you read that right, poo. It’s the one thing pets and babies share in common. If you’re going to have either, sooner or later it will be part of your reality. Babies seem have the upper hand in that they tend to grow out of it. They reach a point in their development where it is no longer a necessity for others to participate (if you get my meaning). Oh sure in later years they may opine about it. Use the word as a conversation starter. But as a parent, your physical involvement with the real thing ends. Pets on the other hand, seem to be stuck in some sort of developmental stasis. Simply unable or unwilling to just take care of business themselves. Cats, dogs, lizards, rodents, even fish (you have to change the water, don’t you?) insist on dragging you into their world. Today, as Emma and I chased a cat with what I will simply call a “poo foot” around the house, I questioned why anyone would want to possess such an animal. I was fine with this scenario on the baby front but on the pet front, not so much. I seem to recall voicing my strong aversion to ever dealing with such matters (for pets not babies) and being summarily dismissed by two guaranteed caregivers under my very roof. I can’t help but feel like I was lied to just a little bit. Although, I have to admit, the freshly bathed (that’s right, he got a bath), purring, napping beast resting on my lap as I type this does hold a certain charm. If we could only train him to use the toilet (and wash his paws)…