Cats as Pets

Cats have had a mixed history, including being associated with magic, superstition and bad luck like the well-known saying, "don't let a black cat cross your path."

However, there is a more positive side of cat history. It includes an Italian legend of a cat whose kittens were born in the stable at the time of Jesus' Birth. Their descendents all have crosses on their backs. Saint Gertrude of Nivelles is often depicted with a cat and she is the patron saint of cats, gardeners, travelers and widows. In fact, Saint Gertrude isn't the only saint to be pictured with cats. Saint Agatha is known as Santo Gato (Saint Cat) in southwestern France. Cats were the traditional companions of philosophers. Saint Jerome is one of them, often appearing with a cat instead of a lion.

The Ancient Egyptians are believed to have first domesticated the cat, and from then on, cats caught on everywhere as pets. Egyptian cats kept their homes mouse free, they were worshipped as sacred when alive, and entombed in fancy mummy cases after their death. Cats were valued so much that when they died, the household went into mourning and the head of the house shaved his eyebrows off as a sign of their grief. If there was a fire, the cat would be the first to be rescued.

Other countries were aware of this Egyptian worship of the cat. There is a story of a battle between Egypt and Persia in 525 B.C. where the Persian commander stationed cats in his front line. The Egyptians refused to attack because they feared hurting the cats, so they lost the battle.