It is very interesting to know why pets are called the same names as people. Not only cats and dogs, but birds, horses, cows and other pets are given the names of people. Many times these names are given because of fondness for the pets and love for those after whom they are named.
The lady who told me this story of Sammy also told me why she called him this name. She had met a very attractive young man while visiting in another town and when she came home she did not forget the new acquaintance. In a few days after she returned from the visit someone gave her a little kitten which she named Sammy for him. She never learned whether the young man felt honored because of this, but the kitten was well cared for.
Sammy was a beautiful Maltese kitten but his young mistress did not know where he was born nor anything about his mother, sisters nor brothers. He seemed like an orphan kitten and was given the best of care. In a little while he was satisfied in the new home and seemed to be perfectly happy.
As the months rolled by, Sammy and his mistress became very fond of each other. One day something happened which changed the course of events. The young lady made another acquaintance—this time of a young man who had gone into business in her home town. Sammy was afraid of all strangers and would not play with any of the boys in the neighborhood and would not make friends with any of the young men who called on his mistress. When the nice looking business man began visiting the young lady Sammy also became acquainted with him. From the first visit he seemed to like the new acquaintance and soon they were close friends. When the young man called at the home Sammy would always meet him at the gate and accompany him to the door. When his mistress would allow him to do so he would go into the house so that the young man might pet him.
Sammy was never trained to catch mice and was never given one to eat. It is often a good thing to have a cat that will catch mice, but sometimes it proves very fatal as mice are often poisoned and thrown out or die where the kittens can find them. Sammy was not allowed to eat meat either, especially raw meat. Feeding raw meat has proven very costly to many valuable cats as it has made them of vicious or cross disposition. The mistress of Sammy was very careful to cultivate in him a kind and obedient disposition.
In the yard of the home there was an old tree in which Sammy spent many happy hours in the warm sunshine. Not many feet from the ground the tree forked and this made a very desirable place to get out of the reach of dogs and to rest or sleep. This had been a favorite resting place for Trilby, a kitten that lived in the home long before Sammy was born. The lady said that both kittens had used the old tree for a resting place and that she had often regretted that she had not taken their pictures. I am sorry, too, as I would like to have shown you the picture of Sammy in this book, but we will have to imagine how peaceful he was as he slept in the warm sunshine.
One beautiful autumn day in September, the young man whom Sammy loved and who had been going to the home very often, went to take Sammy’s mistress away. Sammy was pleased to have the young man there although he did not understand why so many people were there and what it all meant.
A few days after the couple were married they moved to a little cottage in another part of town and took Sammy along to live with them. In this new home he seemed perfectly satisfied and never tried to go back to the old home again. He spent many happy days in this home and every evening he would go down the street to meet his new master. The young couple became very much attached to Sammy and gave him the best place in almost everything. Have you ever heard of a spoiled kitten? Sammy was like some children who are allowed to have their way for he became a spoiled kitten later in life.
On another day, many months after the beautiful autumn wedding day, a little baby came into the home to live. Sammy did not know what to think of a baby crying and to see everyone making over the new daughter. In those days he felt somewhat neglected as he was not petted as much as usual but he soon became attached to the little one in the crib. He seemed to love the baby as much as anyone else and at last he became so jealous that he would try to protect her when anyone would lift her from the crib. He would almost fight the young father or mother to keep them away as he seemed to think that they should not fondle her. He must have been afraid that they would hurt his little playmate, although the baby never got to play with Sammy except to coo at him from the crib. He became so cross and so jealous that he had to be given away.
The father saw a man in town one day who lived in the country and he told this man about Sammy and of how good he had been until he became jealous of the baby. Sammy was given to this man and he went to live on a farm. I have wondered how much he missed the baby but probably the farm life attracted his attention so much that he did not grieve very long over the change. He lived to be seven or eight years old and proved to be a valuable cat on the farm. He never got to see his little baby mistress again but after she grew older she was told of Sammy’s fondness for her. She is now three or four years older than Sammy was when he died but of course she can remember nothing about him except as the parents have told her.
Sammy is buried on a farm not far from Liberty, Missouri, and those who knew and loved him will never forget the story of his life.
