Galaxy Jackson - Cat daddy: what the worlds most incorrigible cat taught me about life, love, and coming clean

JEREMY P. TARCHER / PENGUIN
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Copyright 2012 by Jackson Galaxy

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Published simultaneously in Canada

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ISBN: 978-1-101-58561-0

Printed in the United States of America

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ALWAYS LEARNING

PEARSON

This book is dedicated to Benny and his brethrenevery busted up, discarded, and caged cat, left waiting for the shining promise of home.

To anyone who has ever put their dreams on hold in order to make these lives more tolerable. Shelter worker, animal-control officer, foster parent, rescuer, feral champion, legislatoryour sacrifice has meant everything.

And finally, to anyone who has ever adopted an animal, often decidedly averting their gaze away from the eyes of logic when a helpless one called out; thank you.

We are together the reason why animals will all have a home somedayand because of our efforts, someday will be sooner than we thought.

I m a cat behaviorist.

In ninety-nine cases out of a hundred, when I say that, whoever Im talking to says, Youre a what?

A cat shrink? I try. Blank looks. Cat therapist? Cat whisperer? Nothing. If your cat were peeing on your bed, Id come to your house and help him stop.

Recognition. Maybe. And then, inevitably: Can you really make a living doing that?

On a good week.

This was how I answered the reporter who wondered what I said when people asked me what I did for a living.

Well, to be fair, she said once I finished, youre not exactly what people think of when they imagine the Cat Guy.

She was right. Im not. Im pretty well covered in tattoos. My head is shaved. There are huge earrings dangling out of both my ears, almost down to where my beard reaches, which is normally just a bit north of my chest.

But its okay, I told her, because its all part of my plan. We need to explode the concept of what a cat guy looks like, what a cat girl looks like. We need a country literally full of cat guys and cat girls, bikers, politicians, clergy, and everyone in between, in order to keep millions from dying without homes.

I did this interview about a year before the premiere of my show, My Cat from Hell, on which I help people find ways to strengthen their relationships with their cats, using methods I started developing in the shelter where I worked and in whose trenches I learned how to love, appreciate, and work with cats on a higher level.

Since I began working with cats, Ive met tens of thousands of felines, in shelters, in homes. But this book is about the one who taught me the most.

Benny was seven pounds of feline frustration who I loved with all my heart. I do not play favorites, and my house was always full of critters, but Benny demanded more than the others in every way. He was challenged physically and challenging behaviorally. He put me through my Cat Daddy paces for almost fourteen years and kept me humble while the larger world came a-knocking. When I moved from Boulder to California, I left the network of health professionals I had known before, so when Bennys health issues began to dominate the landscape I desperately reached out for new connections, veterinarians who shared my belief in an integrative approach. During Bennys first acupuncture session at a new local vet, I watched the way he almost seemed to melt beneath the well-placed needles. The doctor had a bedside manner, however, only marginally better than that of a potted cactus. I thought of blogging about the experience, but at that moment I realized my journey with Benny encompassed too much for a blog entry: growth, learning, setbacks, lessons in surrender and love. I wanted to write his story. Just like with My Cat from Hell, the idea is for viewers/readers to see the absolute most off-the-charts behavior, know there could be a way to salvage things, and look at their cat with renewed appreciation: Well, that cats issues rate a 10, and youre only a 6. I can handle that. I had no problem with the idea of presenting my little companion in that light. Im sure he did. But then again, he had a problem with just about everything.

At the same time, Benny was witness to and participant in the most chaotic period of my life. I thought it important to talk about things that, quite honestly, Ive kept exceedingly close to the vest. The thing is, I treasure beyond words the relationships I formed with animals in the past seventeen years. I find no drama in saying that without them, I would have long ago passed from this world. So in honoring them, I needed to reveal the dark corners they led me safely away from, despite my best efforts to hand grenade every single gift the universe placed at my feet. Benny was one of these animal ambassadors toughest and most rewarding representatives. I am genuinely proud that we can share our journey with you.