So, you've had the discussion a million times, gone through pet therapy, and your spouce/sig other/roomate/etc says "its me or that cat/rat/dog/ect.

Who leaves?


My kitty is my baby. I'd have to think really hard if it came down to it, but I'm tempted to say I'd keep the cat.

cheryl

*edited for spelling

I voted for the cheese.
That is one decision I hope I never have to make.
Hubbs or Mr.Jack? how about I leave? that would probably be simpler :gabigrin:
Gren

I have an easy solution: Only marry a person who loves pets as much as you do :gabigrin:

I can't answer this poll because I would not ever have dated someone who wasn't a pet person... although, I *did* end relationships because someone didn't like my cat. So I guess that's the answer.

I was thinking of my DH, but I suppose there are other people in the world too...

Horrible question. I'm not even thinking about it. Cheese. Definitely.

I voted bye bye S/O. :waving:

Although I hope to never have to make that choice.... if for some unknown reason, I had to, I'm sorry, but it would be the cats stay, and you can go, don't the door slam you on the behind too hard now...

Horrible thing to think about, and I do love Mr.Saji, but still, my cats are my life, and he knows this.

But the best option : THEY ALL STAY!!!:gabigrin:

I don't actually have a spouse but if I did he'd better love my dogs or :hatchet:

The thing is, I believe that people are completely responsible for their pet's life and well-being... but not for their spouse's, under normal circumstances.
Now, if I could find a situation that I felt was actually *better* for my cat than my having him, then I could give him up :wail: for his own good and still keep my spouse :tealbiggr !

Cheers

I've been in this position. A SO once told me to choose between him & my snakes...I was amazed at the number of cages that fit into all the extra space once his junk was moved out.


Fortunately my current (hopefully permanent!) guy is as big of an animal lover as I am...our critters are what brought us together in the first place!!!

Roux

Now, if I could find a situation that I felt was actually *better* for my cat than my having him, then I could give him up :wail: for his own good and still keep my spouse :tealbiggr !

- Varbalow

I think Varbalow's is the answer I like best so far. But I had to say cheese, I couldn't deal with that choice! Like others here, my SO and I are both animal lovers. We want pets way more than we want kids right now! People ask us if we are planning a family and I'm like, yeah, a family of puppies! :razz:

sgrace

Since my DH is vegan, I decided to show the Cheese to the door. DH would never ask me to give up my DP. That's not really a joke for me, there really is no cheese in the house, or milk, or eggs, or meat...etc...I have to get my cheese elsewhere.....but the kitties stay :gabigrin:

yeah, a family of puppies! :razz:


Since my DH is vegan, I decided to show the Cheese to the door. :gabigrin:

These two just crack me up!

(and it's a real mitzvah to make me laugh these days, so congrats!)

- Dvips

Humpf! Cheese, of course

Neither BHH or I would ever allow ourselves to be in that position and pray that their would never be any situation out of our control that would cause something like that.

If we were in a dating situation we would never consider someone who didn't adore having animals - in the house, in the bed and under the covers thank you very much.

We don't even have friends who won't let our dogs crawl all over them - people are warned ahead of time - in our house you get dogs and everything that comes with that like drool, hair, jumping, slurping ... deal with it lovingly or don't bother to come in ... :gabigrin:

I picked cheese!

I'm with Lexy and Gabi (and maybe others, I didn't read all responses yet), I wouldn't get into a position where that was a decision!

I think it is important for your pet to get along with your new "person" (so/boyfriend-girlfriend, whatever).

As a matter of fact, my cat use to be afraid of my ex husband. My cat was IMMEDIATELY comfortable being around my hubby. And my cat is a major scaredy cat. He LOVED my hubby when they first met. That was a big clincher for me! ;)

Love me, love my cat!

It's not an issue at this point, because my kitty died just before I moved in with my soon-to-be-dh. I moved in with his kitties (my step-kitties?).

My former bf was reportedly allergic to kitties and had one of those 'dogs are cool, cats are stupid' attitudes. He sniffled a bit when he came to my place, but he'd never spend the night, we'd always end up at his place. Eventually we moved in together, and he listed all of his rules about where Frankie could and couldn't sleep and which furniture she was allowed on (yeah right). Both Frankie and I ignored these rules (talk to the paw, honey!) Within the first week (once she stopped hiding after the big move) she was sleeping where she always slept--with me--and sitting wherever the heck she wanted. By the time I moved on, he was a 'cat person'.

I don't think I'd ever be in the position to choose unless I had wildly misjudged the person. One of the first questions I ask a potential suitor is 'do you have any animals'.

i said pets

it's only fair and here's why (and what i tell the Smooch)

the pigs have been around longer than he has. I brought Rusty home in April 2001, Biscuit in July 2001, and the Smooch in December 2001. Therefore, the pigs have squatters rights.

i said pets

it's only fair and here's why (and what i tell the Smooch)

the pigs have been around longer than he has. I brought Rusty home in April 2001, Biscuit in July 2001, and the Smooch in December 2001. Therefore, the pigs have squatters rights.
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

For me personally anyone who knows me knows how much I care for my animals. So if my S/O gave me that ultimatum it would show how little value was placed on my feelings, and because I despise ultimatums anyways I would have to say :waving:

Well, I voted bye bye spouse...to me, my animals are my children...we're a package deal, and just like I would never give up my future biological children for a man (and I don't think I would have much respect for someone who would) I wouldn't give up my adopted furry children either...besides, I feel that if the man I was with would want me to, then I don't think it would say much about me if I acquiesed, or about him for demanding it. But I don't believe it will be a problem, as hopefully the man I marry will either be an animal lover, or realize that if he wants me he has to take the cats without protest. My current BF isn't a "cat person", but then again, he's just a BF so it's not an issue right now...but if it came to marriage, well I'd have to think about it... :wink:

Just thought I'd bump this to see if any newbies are interested :waving:

Cheers!
Dvips

I think if dh and I were in a big fight and he was saying I'd have to give up my dog for him, he'd better be ready to hit the pavement. He doesn't want more babies so he's just going to have to put up with my puppy. I have maternal instincts here and they need an outlet!

The cat was not a factor in the breakup of my marriage, but afterwards, she and I spent many happy years together. :love:

Love me. . .Love my cat!

My boy (kitty) *picked* my husband. I was at a stage where I was dating a lot of guys and every time one would come over, my kitty would get all buzzed up and start playing rough. Not so with my Mister. My Mister came to visit and the boy curled up in his lap and went to sleep! He didn't even do this with me.

The Mister is also deaf in one ear. . .so the boy would curl up around his head when he was asleep and put his little furry purrbox right in that good ear! And purr *all* night I might add. I suppose it speaks well of the Mister that he didn't complain; I think he liked it.

Yep. I knew it was love after that.

I know it would never come down to a choice because my bf loves my dog as much as I do. He calls her "our girl", and she adores him too. BUT....if for some totally strange reason I ever did have to choose, I have to pick my precious girl, even though BF was here first. She was a rescue dog and was abused by her first owner. It took awhile for us to gain her trust, make her feel like she had a forever home and would never be hurt again. It would rip my heart out to have to give her up for any reason, I just couldn't do that to her after all she's been through.

Oh gosh this is so hard. I have 3 bengal tigers, but one is my best pet I have ever had. He's everywhere I am and in my lap or buggin' me for attention. Plus he's very vocal and loves to "talk". DH is around and up my butt too and usually buggin' me for attention too, but it's just ont the same :mrgreen:

I wouldn't have to think twice. Buffy wins hands down.

Well my animals are my babies...........
so..........

Cheese. I don't like cheese very much. I could live without cheese.

Oh wait. The SO is making you choose??
SO in a heartbeat.

~Diamond~

I have dumped a guy because my dog didn't like him. She is very friendly, so if she really dislikes someone then that tells me a thing or two about the guy! As far as a guy disliking her... can't happen... there is no way anyone can dislike my baby.

I'd choose puppy over sig other any day! :inlove:

No man is more important than a HORSE!

I have 3 bengal tigers

Okay, that's it, I'm inviting myself to your place to see them!!!!!!!!!!! How incredible is it that you have these Great Cats?!?

(Don't worry. I'm currently too poor to travel to DFW... but I can start saving :wink: )

:lol:

I'm not in this situation (and won't be, because K loves the little critters as much as I do), but if I had to make the choice my SO would be the one to go. Animals are a part of my life. Rescue work is a part of my life and that does mean that I do apparently silly things like get up every couple hours at night to bottle feed kittens and go through towels at an inordinate rate. K is wonderfully patient, even though rescue work isn't as important to him, he knows it's important to me and helps out with feedings and vet trips. Now that we've only got our cats at home, we're thinking it's time to adopt a puppy/dog. :smile:

I would definitely can the pet. We're talking HUMANS versus ANIMALS. If I'm blessed with a husband I'll do my best to care for him and that includes hanging onto him ratha than the dog. Hopefully it won't come to that though. :wink:

Anna, how wonderful! Someday I would like to do fostering too, so you are my hero :flowers:

Anna, how wonderful! Someday I would like to do fostering too, so you are my hero :flowers:


I absolutely love it. K and I had a deal when I wanted to foster, bottle babies only (twist my arm, I think they're even more adorable at that age) because our cats are much older and stronger and we've always lived in very small apartments without the space for a dedicated kitten room. Bottle babies live in a carrier until they get strong enough to move around so we could keep them safe in our small space. Then they would go to someone else's house for 'grown up' fostering.

Since we moved I haven't had a chance to hook up with another cat rescue group to start fostering here, but I am enjoying the sleep. :)

SigOth. They can take care of themselves. My cat depends on me.

Well, I have no SO, but pretending I did....I would choose our dogs. I absolutely adore our dogs (and animals) and if I ever met someone who wasn't a animal person at all then I would probably end it.

BEEN THERE, DONE THAT!!!
Goodbye, bumhole.
Fluffy stays!

BEEN THERE, DONE THAT!!!
Goodbye, bumhole.
Fluffy stays!

LOL Moonchild - you are the perfect person to answer this one :rockerdud ...g

LOL Moonchild - you are the perfect person to answer this one :rockerdud ...g
You know, he never liked Nikita anyways!
("Fluffy is going to the pound...")
I always told him she was here before you,
and she WILL stay here...
Stupid, little man:hatchet:!

you should put his picture in the bottom of the litterbox. lol.

Okay, that's it, I'm inviting myself to your place to see them!!!!!!!!!!! How incredible is it that you have these Great Cats?!?

(Don't worry. I'm currently too poor to travel to DFW... but I can start saving :wink: )

:lol: Varbalow

I *believe* she's talking about a bengal cat, as in these:

http://www.bengalcat.com/

I don't believe a bengal *tiger* could be sitting in her lap without the chair caving in. :wink: But hey, I could be wrong.

Hey TXcuralgal5... so which is it, tigers or cats? :hollie: Inquiring minds want to know :lol:

I've been in this position. A SO once told me to choose between him & my snakes...I was amazed at the number of cages that fit into all the extra space once his junk was moved out.
Roux

:rollin: ... too funny, Roux!

We don't have a pet (though are about to sit a friend's cat for 6 mos while she goes out of town and are both looking forward to it :grin: ). Glad I don't have to face this one.... We've already been through the blended family stuff and that was hard enough :rolleyes: ....

Couldn't decide how to vote here.

With my DH I don't worry about having to make that choice. We're BOTH guilty of dragging in strays. The closest I could see with us in this situation would be fighting over custody. That said, if I ever happened to be with a SO that *thought* he would *try* to make me choose . . . humph, the only thing left of him would be skid marks.

http://pages.prodigy.net/indianahawkeye/newpage46/15.gif

Oh, and I could never give up cheese either. :wink:

you should put his picture in the bottom of the litterbox. lol.

Excuse me!
My catīs litter deserves something so much better... :wink:

Voted for cheese,

I have 2 signs - heart shaped wood with red edge -

One says:
Husband and Dog missing
5 cent reward for dog

the other says:
Wife and Cat missing
5 cent reward for cat

I voted for "Sig: Don't let the door hit you on the way out."
Why? Because I love my dog more than my life, just the way I love everyone I decide love with all my heart, be it my bf, my parents, siblings, friends or whoever. Parting with him would break my heart and I could never forgive myself. Someone who loves me would never ask me to give up my dog. So if someone DOES ask me to give up my dog, he clearly doesn't love me. And what do I want from someone who doesn't love me? Allergies and stuff don't count. There are many great ways of desensitizing nowadays. My bf did that for me/my dog. He had to go and get a shot once a week for a whole year. Now I know he loves me. (And my dog.) :inlove: :cloud9:

The crab/cat or boyfriend. Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm....Easy choice...

So, you've had the discussion a million times, gone through pet therapy, and your spouce/sig other/roomate/etc says "its me or that cat/rat/dog/ect.
I am a bit late for this one but I wanted to chime in with my two cents ... if it was indeed my dear, dear boyfriend who gave me the ultimatum, as was stated in the original post, then I guess I am not as dear to him as I would have thought. Therefore, he would be the one shown the door.

HOWEVER! If it is as the circumstances are that my prairie doggie Ginger is just not getting along with him, sadly, I bid a fond farewell to my beloved pet. It'd be kind of hard to live with someone whom your pet hates; and even though Ginger came first, my boyfriend is much more important to me than a pet. Sorry

So I chose cheese :wink: Luckily, I have a sweet, understanding boyfriend who's working with my furry friend to try to get along. It's going slow, but hopefully it's progressing :grin:

..................

The cat was here first. Don't let the door mar the bootprints on your @$$ on the way out.

Cat wins. Every time. The cat loves you, dosen't care if you gain a few pounds - it just makes you softer to sit on. You can look a wreck, and the cat will come and demand to be petted.

Bf's on the other hand......

Yup. Cat wins.

That is a toughie, but here let's put it this way. If I were in a really bad accident and had to go to the hospital, I'd make sure that someone was bringing my dog over to see me before my husband.

There is nothing better for a hurt soul than dog licks.

'Liza

Okay, I'm a little surprised that this poll was on the home page, considering the age of the entries, but I'll chime in. And I'll take it a little more seriously than it was probably intended.

I picked SO gets the boot, but let me cheese a little. I would not start a relationship with someone who could not be around my cat. I would not continue a relationship with someone who merely tolerated, but let their mask slip. I would not cement a relationship with someone who felt it necessary to make "do it or lose me!" demands, regardless of the nature of those demands (I don't have any bad habits that would affect others, I don't belong to a cult, have no criminal tendencies; in other words, there's nothing about me that should inspire an ultimatum like that, so if someone made that kind of demand of me, it would be about power and control, not concern for our relationship).

And the animal versus human argument doesn't fly with me -- a human companion is not better for you just because they're human. I've had human companions in the past that could be defined (at the time) as SOs. They're all firmly in the past because they weren't right for me. If I had given up a "baby" for one of those relationships that eventually ended, I would regret it still.

Having said that, if I truly intended to have a long, fruitful future with my SO and he was here first (e.g. the cat was a stray I took in after I met SO) then the cat would go. You're talking about trading one relationship for another; the quality one wins.

My fiance came with me when I got my cat, and she always abandons me when he is at my house to take up residence on his lap instead, so I would have to say that if he ever told me to get rid of her that he would have to go, as something seriously strange would have happened to him.

I love my husband to death but I have a soft spot for animals. Especially Turtle :inlove:

Unfortunately, I actually did call this out once-sort of.


Just before moving to Japan we were discusing what to do with Monte (MY collie X). We wanted to take him with us but it was becoming a long dificult process. Not with his actually getting over here but the housing prospects were looking slim.

Before we ever even got the dog I had let DH know that, to me, a pet is not a disposable item. You don't just dump it because they are inconvenient for you, or you are board with them. I really do feel that a pet is a BIG responsibility.

I told DH that I would do anything to keep Monte in my life, because Monte does so much for me. Some times he is my reason for getting out of bed in the morning, he is a calming nfluence in my life. He has saved my life. I told DH that if he had to go to Japan for 2 years without me then 'so be it'. I would do what I needed to do to keep Monte.

As it was he went to Japan several months before I did, so that he could deal with the whole housing issue and we wouldn't have to kennel Monte. That was a rough separation for our family and I'm so glad that we are back together again.

I guess I'm not as much of a pet lover as everyone else here. I would definately say that Ariel would go before DH. She's nice and all but I love my DH so much more than a cat. I do consider her a companion when DH isn't home but I would much rather be with him than her. She's just a cat. Not that she's disposable or anything but if i was on my death bed and only had time to see one person before I went it would definately be DH.

i didn't even have to think about it , i chose my pet.
i actually let the significant other know the situation before hand to make sure to avoid complications in the future. my cat is my son , and as long as i'm here he will be here as well, he is completely dependent on me and never asked to be here and i took him in aknowledging the purest responsibility and love for him as long as he lives.
the significant other has a choice... hee hee

I've been in this position. A SO once told me to choose between him & my snakes...I was amazed at the number of cages that fit into all the extra space once his junk was moved out.



:lol: :lol: :rollin:
THAT was funny!!! :grin:
I voted "don't let the door hit you on the way out."
And he knows it!! :wink:

I voted for cheese, because you don't have a choice for sigless pet owners. But if it *was* a boyfriend or the cat, I would think long and hard ... before I told dear BF to hit the trail. Bwahahaha! :twisted:

Speedy, mommy to the horribly misnamed (but much loved) Angel

I posed this question to my husband and his response was that he'd work out a solution so NOBODY had to leave.

That's my husband. The problem solver. :grin:

... I love my DH so much more than a cat.

Obviously, you are correct about how you yourself feel, but I wanted to say that it not necessarily just a matter of love; it is a matter of responsibilty too. I consider myself to be completely responsible for my pet's life and well-being. Although I would like to aid my DH in his life and his well-being, he is responsible for himself. (My cat would be responsible for his life and well-being too, except that I don't think that he has the capacity. :silly: )

I am certainly not saying that you are wrong - how can you be wrong about what is right for you? This is just my :twocents:.

Cheers,
Dvips