cat commentary 1900

thanks british library flickr

We have seen words of advice from the Biggle Pet Book before. Here's J. Biggle introducing us to the domestic cat:
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I am one of those who believe that cats are capable of deep affection for their guardians, for I have seen many cases where cats have mourned the departure, or gladly welcomed the return, of those they have loved and trusted.
Cats have some advantages over dogs as home-pets. They are less clumsy, they take up less room, do not eat so much, are not so noisy, nor do they track dirt into the house on a muddy day. They are as good, or better, as ratters and mousers, and seldom have any odor, a fault from which few dogs are free.
Cats, in their nature, are clean, sagacious, tenacious of life, brave, independent, and usually self-sufficient. They are irritable by temperament, sensitive to changes of weather, to frost, to thunder : they are excitable, and naturally disposed to bite and scratch when at play; there is a tendency in them to lose their heads when in high spirits.
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 Biggle, J. (1900). Biggle pet book: a collection of information for old and young whose natural instincts teach them to be kind to all living creatures. Philadelphia: W. Atkinson. 52.