The best of our local pet stores is cursed. From Silas’s perspective, anyway. Until this week, I’d taken him one time. He had a meltdown when someone came around the corner of a high counter and startled him. Since then, we’ve gotten back into the habit of going out together, so I thought I would try again. One quick pass around the store, then he could wait for me in the car.
The first 3/4 of the store went great. No barking, polite but not overly interested greetings of the staff. We were standing in the corner of the toy aisle, minding our own business, when the shop cat poked its head around the corner. “Hmm,” I thought, “I don’t know how Silas will like a cat maybe we should move.” And then Yowl/Hiss/Snarl/Bark!!! I have no image in my mind of what happened. Cat looked around corner, I had my one thought, and then BAM. Noise, and the pet store clerk running over to get the cat.
If you’re expecting that Silas charged the cat, who got too close to the end of his leash, you are wrong. This is the one fact I do know, because Silas emptied his entire bladder, and the puddle was exactly where we were standing when I first saw the cat.
Which means apparently the cat saw Silas and moved toward him at considerable velocity. According to the clerks, this is not the first time the cat has taken it on herself to rid the world of dogs, although she doesn’t do it consistently enough that they’ve felt obligated to close her up permanently.
The staff did everything they should have–closed the cat up in the office, got Silas some treats, loved on him. I didn’t think to make sure the cat was okay, in part because I didn’t realize that they’d really made contact. Until I saw this:
Poor Silas, he just can’t catch a break. I do hope the fast, positive response by the staff minimized his psychological trauma. While a fear of cats won’t ruin our lives, since I’m allergic, the last thing he needs is proof that the world is out to get him.
We found a completely empty little park to run in afterwards, which did seem to cheer him up a bit.
My Imperfect Dog 
Oh poor Silas…those pet shop folks must have felt awful too…our shop has a cat that doesn’t like dogs and the owners put him in the back room whenever a dog comes in…i think they’re had some bad experiences and don’t want repeats
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Oh dear – poor poor Silas!!! So glad the staff responded to Silas’s needs and didn’t oust him out of the store! I’m sure Silas was thinking – “see? the world IS dangerous!” Poor fella!
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Ouch! It doesn’t exactly seem fair that the cat has free reign to go after shop canine customers:( Kaya & Norman met a pet store cat the other day that was very chill. I hope Silas doesn’t have a bad perception of kitties or pet stores from now on!
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Oh poor love!! We have a small mom/pop pet store that has a couple of store cats (not crazy, hissing making your dogs wet themselves kind of cats) and they have a sign that states dogs must be nice to the cats, fair warning that there is a pet store cat(s). Does your pet store warn you? Or did the cat take you completely by surprise?
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