Cats may play coy, but their aloof and sometimes neurotic behavior just draws you in closer until you very clearly belong to them. Cats have a unique ability to give you just what you need when you need it. They may not sit at the door and celebrate your return home like a dog, but when you need a companion the most, they are always there. Critters on the Move celebrates this unique relationship between cat owners and their pets with adorable window stickers that can be used at home or in your car. Take your pet with you everywhere you go now with Critters on the Move!

HISTORY OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN CATS AND HUMANS

One must know how the relationship between cats and humans began to understand a cat’s place in our present day society. Man, over 5,000 years ago, domesticated the first cat. This domestication was by accident and not to provide pets or companions to humans.

In the Valley of the Nile, which was then Egypt, the people harvested and stored large amounts of grain. The stored grains attracted rats and the rats attracted cats. People quickly recognized the benefits of the rodent control provided. Cats bred and lived happy lives in Egypt, providing rodent control for mankind. Over time, the cats became so popular they were declared as “demigods”. Cats were placed in a position of being more valuable than the average person. Cats were considered the Pharoah’s property and if anyone killed a cat, they were sentenced to death. The cats were pulled to safety, before people, if a house caught on fire. When a cat died of natural causes, the priest had to confirm the cat's death was natural. Upon the death of their cat, people would sob and show the signs of grieving of that day which consisted of shaving their eyebrows and beating their chests. When cats died they were mummified the same as humans were and the cats were buried with mummified mice and rats as well as saucers and food.

Most likely, Egyptians began letting the cats into their homes to protect food from rodents. Being naturally affectionate animals cats enjoyed the interaction with humans. The Egyptians saw a mystical quality in the purr of the cat. Ancient texts describes that the purring of a cat could induce a more restful and tranquil sleep.

As civilization moved forward, ownership of cats became a symbol for good health, fortune, and marriage. One was considered to be very lucky if you owned many cats. The cat was also common in China by 500 BC. At first the cat was given as gifts to Emperors. As time went by the nobility were allowed to own them, then the priesthood, and finally the commoners. In other countries where Islam ruled, cats were held in high respect. Cats were always kept aboard ships to kill mice. Ships were the avenue by which cats spread to other parts of the world. The spread of cats was very quick, and cats soon became part of many religious beliefs and deities. Freya, a Norse goddess had the head of a cat and the body of a woman. This inclusion of cats with religious gods created the downfall for the popularity of the cat with humans.

Christianity condemned false gods. Unlike the Egyptians who considered cats to be god-like, Europeans saw them as evil demons associated with black magic. During the Middle Ages, the cat population was nearly wiped out throughout Europe. Cats, were thought to be the “bringers of the plague”. This led to the annihilation of cats. Later it was discovered that cats provided a positive role in controlling the plague by controlling the rodents, people started keeping cats as pets again. Also, as the hate for cats decreased, when the witch-hunting ceased in Europe cats, once again became popular house pets. For the next few centuries the position of the cat teetered. Written history provides accountings of how cats have been worshiped, adored, loathed, and persecuted by humans throughout time. In Great Britain, cats were worshiped. They were the only animals allowed in convents. The theft or killing of a cat could result in a death sentence to the person who committed this crime. However, in other countries at this time, including France, the cats were considered to be a Satan and black cats represented acknowledgment of the cat’s owner having an agreement with the devil.

Today, cats are superstars: the protagonists of comic strips and television shows. By the mid-90s, cat services and products had become a billion-dollar industry. And yet, even in our current day culture, a bit of the age-old ambivalence remains. The cat doesn't seem to be able to entirely shake its association with evil: After all, how often do you see a movie's maniacal arch-villain, as he lounges in his chair and plots the world's destruction, stroke the head of a Yorkshire Terrier or a Golden Retriever?

In many countries and cultures the Cat has become the favorite domestic animal because of its features and habits. Today, there are more cats than any other pet in the United States and the United Kingdom. There are approximately 90 million domesticated cats that live in 34% of the homes in the United States. Domestic cats now live on every continent except Antarctica. There are over fifty distinct breeds of cats.

Now cat lovers can take their pets with them wherever they go with Critters on the Move. Adorable window decals of your favorite pets, even your own! They are not just for cat owners either. We have a great selection of dogs as well as exotic and farm animals.

“PURR-FECT” QUOTES FOR CAT LOVERS

“The smallest feline is a masterpiece.”
~ Leonardo da Vinci

“People that hate cats will come back as mice in their next life."
~ Faith Resnick

”There is the little matter of disposal of droppings in which the cat is far ahead of its rivals. The dog is somehow thrilled by what he or any of his friends have produced, hates to leave it, adores smelling it, and sometimes eats it...The cat covers it up if he can..."
~ Paul Gallico

“You may own a cat, but cannot govern one." ~ Kate Sanborn

“The furry little buggers [cats] are just deep, deep wells you throw your emotions into."
~ Bruce Schimmel

“Cats can work out mathematically the exact place to sit that will cause most inconvenience.”
~ Pam Brown

“Who hath a better friend than a cat?”
~ William Hardwin

“I wish I could write as mysterious as a cat.” ~Edgar Allan Poe

“A meow massages the heart.”
~Stuart McMillan

“Cats are the ultimate narcissists. You can tell this by all the time they spend on personal grooming. Dogs aren't like this. A dog's idea of personal grooming is to roll in a dead fish.”
~ James Gorman

”The cat could very well be man's best friend but would never stoop to admitting it.”
~ Doug Larson

”As every cat owner knows, nobody owns a cat.” ~ Ellen Perry Berkeley

“The purity of a person's heart can be quickly measured by how they regard cats.”
~ Anonymous

”I don't mind a cat, in its place. But its place is not in the middle of my back at 4 a.m.”
~ Maynard Good Stoddard

”The child will turn instinctively for assistance, the puppy will grovel in abject submission, the kitten will brace its tiny body for a frantic resistance.”
~ Saki

”Purring is an automatic safety valve device for dealing with happiness overflow.”
~ Anonymous

”When your cat rubs the side of its face along your leg, it's affectionately marking you with its scent, identifying you as its private property, saying, in effect, 'You belong to me’.”
~ Susan McDonough, D.M.V.

”The cat is the only animal without visible means of support who still manages to earn a living in the city.”
~ Carl Van Vechten

”Every dog has his day -- but the nights are reserved for the cats.”
~ Unknown

”I never married because there was no need. I have three pets at home which answer the same purpose as a husband. I have a dog which growls every morning, a parrot which swears all afternoon, and a cat that comes home late at night.”
~ Maria Corelli

”The trouble with sharing one's bed with cats is that they'd rather sleep on you than beside you.”
~ Pam Brown