Will the Real ‘Crazy Cat Lady’ Please Stand Up!

We laugh about her, she is the butt of many single jokes, and some are even scared of her, but does the ‘Crazy Cat Lady' really exist?

When I Googled ‘Crazy Cat Lady' the top presenting search results were a collection of grotesque and rather aesthetically displeasing images. This woman is usually middle-aged with wild unkempt hair, epitomized by the cartoon image we see depicted in the Simpsons. But will the real ‘Crazy Cat Lady' please stand up?

Crazy Cat Lady!

According to the online Urban Dictionary, the term ‘Crazy Cat Lazy' has received the following denotations;

1.       ‘An elderly suburban widow who lives alone and keeps dozens or more pet cats, usually many more than municipal code allows, in a small house, and refuses to give away or sell them, even for the sake of the safety of the cats or herself.'

2.       ‘A woman, usually middle-aged or older, who lives alone with no husband or boyfriend, and fills the empty lonely void in her life with as many cats as she can collect in one place.'

3.       ‘That old lady that lives down the street from you that has over a dozen cats named after each of her ex-boyfriends that have done her wrong.'

Being a recently reformed ‘Cat-Hater’ turned ‘Cat-Lover myself, I too have been callously titled the ‘Crazy Cat Lady' on more than one occasion. I can only assume this is due to the combination of my single status, my love for these adorable little fur-balls, and my apparent old age (yes… I'm a whopping 28 years of age… still left on the shelf much to my parent’s dismay).

Ok, I admit I sound a little like a mother talking about her newborn child with my ranting of my one year old ragdoll nephew, but he has so much character and is such an affectionate little guy, how can I not declare his cuteness to the world?  


I am definitely not lonely, I have only one cat (and he technically isn't mine), and my house isn't that small! I may not have the credentials mentioned in urban dictionary to warrant my ‘Crazy Cat Lady' status, but maybe that just makes me the' New Crazy Cat Lady?

Basil and I

While the stereotype of the ‘Crazy Cat Lady’ will probably always remain, the reality of whom this woman really is, will never be the same again. To all you out there, my name is Dani, and I AM the new ‘Crazy Cat Lady' and I'm standing up!