The Cat Who Thought Himself a Dog

    
                    Ernie was one of four kittens born to a calico mother. He was a domestic short haired yellow tabby male. His three sisters were all calico just like their mother. The mother for some reason chose to abandon her four young at four weeks old. She left them in a building and there they were discovered by the property owner. They were crying for food when discovered.  They were fed milk from a dish and eventually given solid food. But they were not without getting dirty. The only mother they knew was not left to bathe them. The owner would soon take care of all their needs. He moved them into the house with him and his wife. They learned to love the kittens as much as the kittens learned to love them.

          Ernie watched the two people. He was making his choice of owner. Whereas; all the girls chose the woman as their owner, Ernie chose the man as his owner. All four kittens would take on their own personalities. 
          From the start, Ernie felt different. Maybe it was because he was the only male. Or maybe; it was because he was the only short haired domestic. There had to be more to it than that. From a window, Ernie watched a creature outside. It was a dog. He made a barking sound to which Ernie tried to imitate the barking sound.
          But all he could get was a meow when he tried to bark.

          Behind him, he heard his sisters laugh.
          “You can't bark!” They meowed together. You're a cat! You need to act like one.”
          But Ernie kept watching the dog outside. He heard some kid yell, “Come here Fido.” The dog came running to him. And the kid threw a round object. “Fetch the ball!” He yelled again. When the dog brought the ball back to him, he heard the kid say, “That's a good boy, Fido.” He reached out his hand and patted Fido on the head. The praise was something Ernie wanted from his master.
          “I can do that,” said Ernie. And sure enough, the next day Ernie brought his owner a ball. In surprise, he picked up the ball. As if by habit, he threw it. He was surprised when Ernie took off running for it and brought it back to him. From then on, they played fetch together. And Ernie got the love pats and the rubbing on the head.
          “Good boy, Ernie! Good boy.”
          Ernie loved his master. He would wait for him to come home from work. He would cuddle up beside him as he sat. If clothes of his master left out, he waddled and played in them. He even at times chewed on them. Ernie thought of himself as a dog. He had replaced all myth that a dog was man's best friend. Ernie, the short haired yellow tabby, had become his master's best friend.