Cat Man Monday: Construction Worker Cat Daddy

If you’re an I HAVE CAT Facebook Fan (hurry up and “like” us already!), you’ve certainly seen these comments from one Amy Roach whenever I post a photo of Haddie.

Can you get a restraining order for a cat I wonder? Just Kidding #notreally

We have an I HAVE CAT first today, a Cat Man Monday written from the perspective of the cats (I have to assume Amy was the scribe!). Amy has had cats her entire life and though she claims not to be partial to any specific kind of (save the Haddie-kind it seems) she’s found black cats to be very special and has had several over the years. Currently, she and her CAT MAN husband Ed have four cats and a dog.

Two examples of Amy’s kitty portraits (source: www.amysatelier.com)

Amy is an artist specializing in pet portraiture. And this is the story of how the manly-man construction worker she met and fell in love with became a cat man – I think it’s a perfect story coming off of Valentine’s Day (aka #SinglehoodAwarenessDay), and I hope you agree! Enjoy! And a big thanks to Amy (and the cats of course!)

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Ed Cosgrove didn’t start-off as a Cat Man. He was impartial to pets in general, but then he met our mom and things changed. Dad was living a normal life in Chicago, working as a construction worker and living the single life.

When they started dating mom was already a bona fide cat lover living with 4 cats and a dog. Dad really did know anything about cats but we helped him learn. Mom and dad moved in together in 2003 and all us cats, and the dog moved in with them.

Dad learned that mom was a packaged deal: no-us, no-mom! Dad loved mom so much he took us all in under his roof.

About a month after mom and dad started living together, daddy came to mom and asked, “How come the cats never come to me, I don’t think they like me.”

Tess Anne watching daddy as he does his construction thing

Mom said, “They love you, but why don’t you start feeding them in the morning when you get up, then they’ll really love you!“

It worked!

We all started hanging around dad, especially Sugar Anne (who died in 2007 at the age of 22). Sugar Anne would sleep all day but the minute dad came home she would follow him around. He called her “black dog,” cause he said she was like a dog. Dad just didn’t know that cats were fun and loyal, and better than dogs.

Daddy with Sugar Anne

Daddy built us a new house and made it cat-friendly (“catification” before the word existed!). He made sure it had lots of windows, and made a sun room just for us. In 2013, mom got Adora Mae as a college graduation present. That brought us back up to 4 cats, but not for long.

Adora Mae & Dad

Dad’s cousin found a black kitty on Halloween and dropped her off at our house. Dad was not happy, he said 5 cats was too many. The new kitty had to go! He made mom make a flyer, and call the shelters and the vet to see if anyone lost her.

This is the flyer mommy made:

By the end of the night the black kitty had found daddy and decided he was hers.

A few days later dad said she could stay forever. Now Delaney Rose sleeps with dad every night – daddy had become a Cat Man!

Delaney Rose (aka “flyer kitty”)

He is the best! He buys us presents, celebrates our birthdays, he wipes our tears – and his own – when one of our siblings goes to the bridge. He gives us our medicine. Tess Anne has asthma and Lucy, a tripod who passed in 2014, had hyperthyroidism.

Lucy Sue & Dad (a few months before she passed away last year)

Since Mom is a pet portrait artist he had to put up with mom decorating the bedroom with her paintings of us! So dad’s now a full-fledged Cat Man! He’s so lucky to have us – oh, yeah, and mommy too!

Do you know – or are you – a Cat Man or Cat Woman? We are always looking for cool cat parents to feature on our quest to show how awesome cats are! You may be an non-traditional Cat Man or Cat Woman or you may have a great story about how you thought you didn’t like cats ’til you met the right one or had a special experience.