Fancy Christmas gifts and cancelling plans: 9 cat lovers share the surprising lengths they go to for their pets.

There's nothing better than spoiling our loved ones. Seeing their eyes light up after being handed a fancy gift? It sure is something special. 

But at Mamamia, we know that the experience can be even more special when that loved one also has cute lil' paws. 

Why? Well, as a cat owner, I can proudly say the best decision I ever made was getting a cat – not because they show that they love me unconditionally or because I want to share half my home while paying the entire portion of the rent – but because there's not much better than having a furry friend to share your life with. 

This Christmas, we're spoiling our loved ones with FANCY FEAST®. Setting the standard in gourmet cat food since 1995, FANCY FEAST has been creating mouth-watering taste experiences time and again. Delicious flavours, irresistible textures, together with thoughtful details; there's truly no better way to show affection to your favourite feline.

They're celebrating the festive season by giving cat lovers the chance to win a FANCY FEAST Advent Calendar for their feline sidekicks, which is most obviously the best way to show your cat how much you love them. The calendar is especially designed to add that thoughtful and ~fancy~ touch to dinner time.

How do you get your hands on one, you ask? All you've got to do is tell FANCY FEAST how you go the extra mile to express your love to your favourite feline during this festive season.

Of course, there's a myriad of ways to show how much we love our pets and I was very curious to know exactly how cat owners show their love – so I decided to ask!

Below, 9 cat owners reveal the most surprising thing they've ever done for their pets – from cancelling plans to letting their cat sleep on their head.

Leigh is a crazy cat lady and loves it.

Leigh Campbell. Image: Supplied. 

Before I got my rescue cats, Monster and Cookie, I swore they'd never sleep in our bed, would only go in their cat beds, not show people photos of them (because yawn), and not talk about how cats are waaaay better than dogs... yeah, you catch my drift.

Now I've had them for almost eight years, I'm one of those people. I buy them new toys most weeks, let them sleep in our bed (mostly on top of my head), constantly show my friends photos of them, dress them up for Halloween and of course, wrap their Christmas presents. I've even downloaded apps on my iPad for them so they can chase fish. Yep, I'm well and truly a crazy cat lady... and I love it.

Lisa's Archie has his very own cat sanctuary.

In 2019 we got our Archie, and from there, everything has completely changed! We were always a 'pets outside' kind of family, but now our pets run the household. 

Our garage has been converted into Archie's sanctuary – I'm talking cat trees, multiple (very expensive) cat beds because he changes his mind daily, and an abundance of toys he refuses to touch. He even has a self-imposed bedtime that he is very strict about. If the lights aren't out by 9pm, he gets so grumpy.

My mum has even gone so far as to planning and purchasing curated Christmas gifts for him each year, that she wraps in beautiful paper and uses to fill his stocking. He is such a special part of the family and we wouldn't know what to do without him.

Archie and his gingerbread toy. Image: Supplied.

Lily cancels plans to hang out with her cat.

I usually turn down plans with friends if my cat, Banjo, is under the weather. I had to cancel my friend's birthday dinner plans because my cat was sick the night before. (I feel like an important side note to mention here is the fact that my partner, too, was home and was perfectly capable of looking after little Banjo by himself.)

Sure, Banjo has a sensitive stomach, and he's always completely fine afterwards – but he's my number one. I felt bad, so I chose him over my friend's birthday... even if I'm 98 per cent sure two humans looking after one unphased, sleeping kitty is probably overkill.

Lily's pets, Banjo and Sadie. Image: Supplied.

Maddie bought her cat a boujee bed.

Earlier this year my girlfriend and I adopted a kitten, Chilli. She's literally our world and within weeks we bought her an abundance of toys and treats... and the most boujee cat bed you've ever seen. 

Has she ever slept in it? No, she sleeps between us every night. Did she wee in the bed for days without us noticing? Yes. Do we still have the bed? Absolutely not.

Not only is Chilli the cutest and most cuddly cat in the world (no, I'm not biased why do you ask?), but I swear she knows when you're sick or sad. Earlier this year, I had COVID and my girlfriend (rightfully so) sent me to quarantine in our second bedroom. For the week I was there, Chilli did not leave my side. She would sleep on my chest, headbutt me and she even started to lick my face like she was grooming me. 

Adopting her was the best thing my partner and I have ever done, and I swear my girlfriend now loves the kitty more than she loves me.

Chilli comforting Maddie. Image: Supplied.

Mitch's cat has a special part of the house.

I have never really been a cat person... until I got George. I fell in love with him and he has become my spoilt fur baby. So much so that he has a special part of the house where only he is allowed. 

It's behind my wardrobe, and he's dragged every single toy behind there. He plays there for hours every single day and I am not allowed to try to remove him or else he will ignore me for the rest of the day.

Mitch and his cat, George. Image: Supplied.

Bianca's cat has a very special cat tree.

Bianca's cat, Henry. Image: Supplied.

I have two cats and three cat trees, and Henry is allowed to play with all of them. But there is a special one our other cat can't touch or Henry gets very grumpy... we've indulged him too much, I'm afraid.

Susannah went overboard for her cat's birthday.

My boyfriend and I decided we were really saving our money hard this year, and even agreed to putting a limit on our birthday spending for each other by capping it at $100 each. But what he doesn't actually know is that I bought our cat one of those fancy designer 2 in 1 Litter Box and Scratch Castles that look like a nice piece of furniture, just because I thought she might like it. 

She's basically royalty to me so deserves a castle of her own. It's coming in the mail as we speak, and was... definitely more than I'll be spending on my boyfriend's 29th birthday soon.

Shannen pays for a toy subscription service.

Image: Supplied. 

My cat Chi Chi is the most spoilt cat ever. I have a toy subscription service because she is notorious for ripping them apart or having her dog sister (my housemate's pet) tear them apart for her. I WILL say I did a big clean last week and after removing the couch, we found about 14 cat toys so I might have to put my subscription on pause...

If she's not munching on FANCY FEAST paté with its yummy gravy centre, then she's trying to munch on her toys.

Kelly's cat Tessa has special walks for her anxiety.

Kelly's cat, Tessa. Image: Supplied.

Tessa is a very special cat and loves her anxiety walks that we started during COVID lockdowns. She has never been an outside cat, and it took a lot of coaxing (basically a lot of hours and a VERY expensive cat leash). 

Tessa has never been so happy and we cherish our 30 minute walks around the neighbourhood – we do get a lot of weird looks though!

Celebrate your feline bestie this Christmas with the FANCY FEAST® Advent Calendar. 

To win one, tell FANCY FEAST exactly how you go the extra mile to express your love to your favourite feline during this festive season. To view full T&C's click here. 

Feature Image: Supplied.