SCOTT LUDWIG: Athens, Greece’s cat issues: Trampled under foot

No, the title isn’t the name of a song by Led Zeppelin. Well, technically it is, but that’s not what this is about. Rather, it’s a piece of advice for anyone considering a trip to Athens, Greece:

If you don’t watch your step, there’s a pretty good chance you’ll trample on a cat. Seriously, cats are literally everywhere in Athens. And if it’s not a cat you’re stepping on, it’s a kitten. I’m a sucker for homeless dogs. That holds true for cats as well. My wife is the same way. Together we’re a veterinarian’s best friend.

It’s a good thing Greece is 6,000 miles away. Otherwise there would be more than just one litter box in our basement.

Cindy’s a dog person, but I’ve always preferred cats. I have my reasons. Cats don’t have to go outside to handle their business. They can be left home alone for extended periods of time without having to worry about what might be on the living room rug when you return. Try doing that with dogs; it usually won’t end well.

Another reason is that cats don’t need to be bathed. They take care of that themselves. Bathing dogs, on the other hand, is done by humans (although I could be talked into trying out a car wash). Once dogs are bathed, they need to be dried off. Otherwise, they’ll rub against every piece of furniture in the house to do it themselves. I’ve got video evidence.

You can leave a bowl of food out for cats, because they just eat when they’re hungry. That doesn’t work with dogs; the bowl would always be empty. You can always tell when a dog is hungry. It’s awake.

At one time we had five cats. They were all adopted, although it’s not clear if we adopted them or they adopted us. Here’s how it happened:

(1) I woke up one morning and was about to go for a run when Cindy told me there was something in the garage I should know about: a pure white kitten with the bluest eyes I’ve ever seen on a cat. It was completely covered with fleas. Our son found it on the side of the road and decided it needed a home. Ours. We named him Maui.

(2) Not long after that, I saw an ad in the local newspaper with photographs of a pure black kitten that was “looking for her forever home.” I was on the phone that night, making arrangements to pick her up. By nightfall, Molly had a home.

(3) We put our foot down and decided two was enough. That is, until Cindy came home one afternoon with my Father’s Day present, a gray kitten she couldn’t resist that was up for adoption at an outdoor market. After Millie joined the household, we adamantly decided to stop at three.

(4) Until we got our fourth, that is. A friend of ours had a litter of kittens she was trying to find homes for. Cindy couldn’t say no to a male orange tabby that was roughly the size of a Cocker Spaniel. We named him Moe and decided he would absolutely, positively be our last cat.

(5) Then we went to Morganton, N.C., for the weekend, and one day in the pouring rain a gray kitten appeared as we were opening the door to our motel room and immediately started rubbing against our legs. We bought it a can of food at a convenience store and took it in for the night. We decided to take her back home and be foster parents. But on the way home Cindy said “Morgan” would be a great name for the kitten because we found it in Morganton and it worked for either sex. (We can’t tell the difference; that’s a vet’s job). Well, as everyone knows, once you give a stray animal a name it’s yours forever.

So that’s how we ended up with five cats.

Then one by one they started crossing the Rainbow Bridge, and now we just have Morgan. She just turned 16 and doesn’t look much different than she did when we met on Oct. 24, 2009. I remember the date because she watched – literally watched — the Florida-Mississippi State football game with us in our motel room.

When Morgan joins her brothers and sisters one day, we won’t be getting another cat. That’s because we now have a dog – her name is Maisy – and she requires never-ending attention. Every day there are countless number of bathroom trips, outdoor walks, and tug-of-wars with stuffed animals that last about as long as it takes to remove the price tags.

Anyway, getting back to my original point, if you go to Athens just be sure to watch your step. And when you see all those stray cats and want to take one home with you, remember there are plenty of those here as well.

We had five of our own long before we ever saw the Parthenon.