Official News - page 5

WATCH OUT BELOW!

by Catspaws

After a recent rainstorm, I got to wondering where the phrase "it's raining cats and dogs" had its origins. It seemed an odd phrase to me, because most of the felines and canines I know seem to be particularly allergic to water. Indeed, I rarely see them outside during rainstorms, and if they are outside, they're usually cowering under cars or trees or anything else to protect them from the weather. So, being curious (no pun intended), I decided to research this interesting subject.

The first thing I learned is that mythological references say that cats have influence over storms, and dogs are symbolic of storms. Indeed, Cats bring the rain, and dogs bring the wind. Interesting, I suppose, but surely there is more to learn. Perhaps the fall of cats and dogs from the sky is a way of expressing the volume of sound found in a violent storm, which can often sound like the racket caused by fighting cats and dogs? Hmmmm, more research is needed.

Some suggest that once the streets in England were built so shoddily that many cats and dogs would drown whenever there was a storm. People seeing the poor dead creatures floating by thought they had fallen from the sky, since they had to have come from somewhere. (I surmise they'd been tipping the ale tankard when they decided this.)

Another theory I found was that during the fourteenth century, cats and dogs were afflicted with the horrid bubonic plague, just as their humans were. During heavy rainfalls, the bodies of hundreds of animals would be washed out into the streets.

The most common theory seems to be that long ago, most roofs were made of thatch, which provided nice warm beds for many domestic animals. In bad weather, the rain would wash the animals from the roofs, or it could be the animals left the roofs looking for better shelter. I guess it was a good thing nothing larger than a cat or a dog slept on the roof.

So the next time a heavy rain comes your way, you might want to duck, just in case Frisky falls onto your head.

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