Nero Was Never Supposed to Become a Cat Dad
- By Mary, Devoted Hooman
- May 13
- 2 min read
Updated: May 14
He is a 14-year-old standard short-haired dachshund with very fixed opinions about the world — namely that cats are irritating, suspicious creatures who should absolutely not be trusted. Throughout most of his life, he has viewed felines with the same level of disdain most people reserve for telemarketers and parking fines.
And yet somehow, despite all of this, he ended up living with Odin.
The irony starts before Odin even arrived home. When Odin’s breeder had his litter, she also had a litter of dachshund puppies at the same time. The kittens and puppies grew up together in complete chaos — climbing over each other, wrestling, sleeping in piles and generally ignoring the fact they were technically different species. So from the very beginning, Odin believed dachshunds were simply strange-looking cats with short legs and emotional issues.
Nero, unfortunately, did not receive this memo.
The moment Odin arrived at our house, he attached himself to Nero immediately. There was no gentle introduction period or respectful observation phase.
He followed Nero everywhere.
Copied everything he did.
Slept next to him.
Sat on him.
Stared at him constantly.
Nero reacted exactly how you would expect an elderly dachshund who dislikes cats to react — with visible annoyance and long, exhausted sighs. He looked personally betrayed by the entire situation.
But Odin was completely undeterred.
I think because he grew up around dachshunds, he never saw Nero as a dog. In Odin’s mind, Nero was clearly his father figure, roommate, emotional support animal and unwilling life mentor all rolled into one.
Over time, something shifted. Nero still pretends he dislikes him, of course. Maintaining emotional distance is very important to dachshunds. But the evidence says otherwise. He waits for Odin outside doors. He checks where he is in the garden. He tolerates behaviour from Odin that he would never accept from any other creature on earth.
And Odin absolutely adores him.
Even now, fully grown and dramatically oversized, Odin still follows Nero around the house like an apprentice studying under a reluctant master. If Nero moves rooms, Odin usually isn’t far behind.
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