Dear O Sung Wu,

Our family household always had pets - from budgies,
to three dogs, to a pet duck, two cats -
and even goldfish, and two rabbits. I also grew
up with horses - living close to a riding school.
I grew up with all sorts of pets.
However since being married - my husband
has refused to have any animals in the home. His excuse
has been that we both work - and it wouldn't be fair on
the animal.

My fantasy one day is to own a cat - a Burmese.
A friend has one and it is such an affectionate and
beautiful animal. I admire its feline beauty, its
slow graceful walk, magnificent cat.

It's up to me to persuade hubbie. And that will take
some doing.

Good evening to you FOXY...

I have very little understanding or knowledge of cats. I like holding them, admire them cleaning themselves, and the joy and companionship they give to many who live on their own. Loneliness is one of the greatest horrors confronting people who live entirely alone. I'm sure a gentle cat would provide many of the answers to the lonely. In fact I know they do.

All I know about the Burmese cat, is they're very soft and fluffy ( I think ?), and probably one of the most popular of all breeds. All I can hope for you FOXY, is your husband will one day soon, understand how much you really want a Burmese cat ? And his current resistance to the idea, will simply just melt away, hopefully ?

Dear O Sung Wu,

Well you've opened the door for me and now
I'll bore you with some details about one of
my favourite subjects - the Burmese breed of
cats - here goes:

The Burmese is a short-haired breed of cat.
Its coat colour ranges from a dark seal-brown to
lilac-coloured tortoise-shell. The ideal Burmese
should have a body much like that of the Siamese-
medium in size, long and slim. The bones should be
as fine and the hind legs again slightly longer
than the front ones. he tail should be long and thin
and pointed at the end. The neck should be long and
slender. The head is not quite as long as that of the
Siamese. The ears are not quite as large as those of
the Siamese, but they too are wide at the base and
stand upright from the head. The eyes are true
Oriental almond-shaped slanting towards the nose and
are yellow in colour.

The Burmese are very affectionate just like the Siamese,
but they're much more placid in character which makes them
easy cats to live with. Their voices are as shrill as the
Siamese but they talk distinctly less, which undoubtedly is
an attraction to many people thinking of keeping a
Burmese as a pet.

I also hope that I shall be able to persuade my husband to
allow me to share our home with this beautiful animal.
Fingers-crossed.

Hi there FOXY...

You've in no way bored me, I like all animals and believe they can often teach us a thing or two about tolerance, patience and other qualities us extremely brilliant, but often screwed up humans seem unable to embrace.

I'm not sure if I'm letting the side down, OK ? However I would like to share with you a little secret about the one universal weakness us husbands (of any age) all possess ? And by accommodating that weakness, your husband should be 'putty in your hands'.

Cook him a really brilliant meal, comprising of all those dishes and niceties he always yearns for ! And after doing so, all that remains, is what you should call your (new) little Burmese kitten ?

Sorry FOXY, I've got my breeds all mixed up I think ? It's the Persians that are very 'fluffy' I reckon ? Are they grey in colour, or am I up the creek without a paddle ? Burmese, Persians, they're all lovely little animals, and provide a great deal of happiness to their owners ?

My lovely wife often claims, 'Dogs have masters, and cats have servants' ? I'll stick well clear of that statement, lest I become another subject of derision and ridicule ?

Thanks FOXY for another valued opinion.

Dear O Sung Wu,

Thank You for the advice. At present I am doing lots
of hubby spoiling. The poor thing has done his back in.
He's had back problems for quite some time now. He was
diagnosed with an "aging" spine - some time ago and has
been going to a chiro for years to have the discs
tapped into place as they give him trouble. This time
putting up the Christmas Tree did him in - and he virtually
could not straighten up. He's gone to our GP and had an
injection - because the pain was so bad. Anyway, I love
to cook - so that's not a problem - and he loves to eat.
But I just may leave the cat question alone for a bit -
until hubbie's feeling better. Not a good time right now
to bring it up.

As for the Siamese cat? The Siamese is the prince of cats.
It's physical beauty is of a delicate kind that lies in
its elegance of line, subtlety of musculature and delicacy
of colour. It's alert in character, affectionate and
endearingly sociable. I would have preferred the Siamese
but its main draw-back as a pet is its piercing and much
used voice, which seems closer to the cry of a human baby
than any animal sound. Walt Disney made use of this human
element in their miaowing when he gave speech to the
Siamese ub the film, "The Lady and the Tramp," and made them
whine, "We are Siamese - if you please."
The Siamese is a short-haired cat.

Fluffy or Long-haired hats that you're thinking of are -
the various kinds of Persians, Chinchillas, and Long-haired
Tabbies. They're lovely as well - but my preference lies
with the short-haired cats. Your wife's right about cats
being masters and very choosy who they befriend.
I guess many people are either a "dog" person or a "cat"
person. Either way - where would we be without our pets.

Hi everyone,
There were times in my life I just don't know how I'd gotten by on my own without my dog.
He died of multiple myeloma (leukemia) quite a few years ago and reading this makes me think back fondly of him.

There's this horrible trend of police shooting pets in the US and I am grateful the same sort of thing doesn't happen here.
Reading about these kind of stories really makes my blood boil.

http://www.infowars.com/cops-show-up-at-wrong-address-execute-pregnant-dog/