Favorite Proverbs and Stories

All languages are rich in cat proverbs and cat sayings, many of which can be applied to feline or human behavior.

The following selection cites only a few, out of hundreds of examples: from Spain "A cat with gloves cannot catch mice," from Italy "Old cats mean young mice," from the Netherlands, "The man who does not love cats will never get a pretty woman," from Britain, "Curiosity killed the cat," and finally from Russia "A cat and a woman are for the house, a man and a dog are for the yard."

There is an African folktale that neatly explains how the cat came to be the favorite companion of women all over the world. A cat is seeking the best animal to live with for protection.

Each time the cat chooses a new protector, that animal is preyed upon by a stronger one, so the cat keeps moving on until finally it settles with a man. When the man goes home he is confronted by his wife, who in anger chases him from the house. From then on, the car lock shelter under the woman's protection.

From Poland comes one of the most poignant feline folk stories. Early one spring, some kittens were thrown in a river to drown. Their mother wept so loudly that the willow trees along the banks of the river consulted about what they could do to help.

They bent their branches out over the river so that the desperate drowning kittens could cling to them. Each spring, willows deck themselves in silky velvet buds, soft as kitten fur, in memory of their rescuing the young.