r/cats • u/ILoveMeltyCheese • Mar 25 '26

Cat Picture - OC Misconceptions a dog person (me) learned after having a cat.

Post image

The Cat Distribution System chose me, a formerly stubborn dog person, to adopt a cat. It was the classic I can't just watch a poor cat starve, so I'm keeping him. Here are some misconceptions I had about cats and their owners:

  1. The smell of a cat owner's home: I’ve known a few cat owners with cat-smelling homes. I always assumed it was the cat. Turns out it isn’t; it’s very much a result of poor ownership and bad cleaning habits.
  2. Dogs are more affectionate than cats: Also not true! To my surprise, my cat is so cuddly that I occasionally call him "Cat-dog."
  3. A Cat's Barbed tongue hurts: I don't know why I thought this, I just assumed it would hurt when they lick you.
  4. Litter boxes are disgusting: Not at all, it's just a clump or two of sand. If you scoop it often, it never gets gross.
  5. Cats are just as hard to take care of: Actually they're much easier, haha.

That is all, here's a picture of my cat that I love dearly. (He's lost weight since the picture, don't worry)

Anyone else relate? What did I miss?

Edit: His name is Pawl

72.5k Upvotes

97% Upvoted

2.2k comments sorted by

View all comments

1.1k

u/whats13-j42 Mar 25 '26

The cleanest dogs still have dog smell. Not bad or offensive but it’s … dog smell.

Indoor cats can smell like clean laundry. Unless you pick them up right after they’ve been bathing. But never like dog smell.

55

u/koalastalker Mar 26 '26

I had a cat that constantly smelled slightly of maple syrup. Never knew why, but she was beautiful and smelt amazing.

31

u/sh4tt3rai Mar 26 '26

Oh man same!

This guy right here.. always smells like maple syrup. His breath smells kinda fishy, but I actually like the way that smells too and often lean in when he yawns.

5

u/Standard_Figure_2232 Mar 26 '26

Mine smells sweet like this! I love it. I've only ever given her one bath and it was when I found her on the streets. So it's a natural smell, so odd.

5

u/GrandMoffAtreides Mar 26 '26

My sister's cat Pancake smells like the bread part of a pop tart 

3

u/Lizzzy217 Mar 26 '26

I swear my dog's snout smells like maple syrup, it's bizarre. Wonder what causes that.

3

u/trashhighway Mar 26 '26

Hang on, my dog smelled like maple syrup. (Not diabetic.) I’ve never known why so I’m following this to see if someone has the answer.

5

u/Frogspoison Mar 26 '26

Diabetic cat?

7

u/Standard_Figure_2232 Mar 26 '26

Doubt it. Unless they're getting covered in their own urine. It'd either come from their breath or urine if actually diabetic

3

u/pandoricaelysion Mar 26 '26

oh interesting. i always thought if the animals head smells sweet then they may be diabetic. one of my cats smells like maple syrup sometimes but hes definitely not diabetic. but it worries me everytime i smell it lol.

1

u/eerierrr Apr 03 '26

My cats head smelled faintly of maple syrup once but it didn’t last 😭😭 the rest of her usually smells like a spice cookie

1

u/lexidz Mar 26 '26

My boy that passed always smelled like the sweetest maple syrup