The least they could do would be to stuff those toys with white meat. But could I take this complaint to the pet-toymakers? Stop worrying about what the owners think and pay some attention to your real clients. Your real clients are folk like me.

What was Nana like when he was little?” “I found him when he was a grown cat, so I don’t know what sort of kitten he was. I wish I could have known him then. I’m sure he was adorable.” You’re right there. My level of cuteness when I was a kitten was such that passersby vied for the privilege of leaving me a little something to eat.

A stray cat’s skill lies in building up a complex web of connections in order to survive on the streets.

Among cats, when a female chooses a mate, it’s a very clear-cut thing. Not just among cats, but with all animals, the female’s judgement about love is absolute.

Humans always underestimate our language skills. Just ’cause they can read and write, there’s no need to act all high and mighty.

Whenever there’s anything major happening in our family we need to inform both our dog and cat – this proposal by Chikako had become a firm family rule.

Nana, you said his name is?” “Yeah. Because his tail’s hooked into the shape of a seven.” I didn’t think we needed to explain the origin of my name to every passing stranger, but Satoru was always so conscientious when it came to things like that.

When an animal’s life is over, it rests where it falls, and it often seems to me that humans are such worriers, to think of preparing a place for people to sleep when they are dead. If you have to consider what’s going to happen after you die, life becomes doubly troublesome. Satoru drove the van through.

As I explained earlier, most animals are multilingual when it comes to listening, but reading is beyond us. Reading and writing seem to belong to a special linguistic system that only humans possess.

At that moment, we were without doubt the greatest travellers in the world. And I was the world’s greatest travelling cat.