I hear you, Florida Man. My wife and I met over an abandoned kitten in a Berkeley dorm basement in the '70s, and we had


s throughout our various stages of marriage. But when we lost the last of them a few years ago, we decided we wouldn't get any more cats, because we're now in our 70's, and we wouldn't want to worry about who would care for them if we became infirm or something.
Pets are an amply-rewarded investment, but they require significant care and planning, daily and sporadically (such as travel).
Peripherally, my wife and I both had and loved dogs when we were kids, but we've only had cats ourselves. OTOH, our two daughters got dogs, so I joke that it "skips a generation". But I like to say that I love dogs . . . other peoples' dogs.
Pet's "personalities" can be so fun; in general, dogs have "unconditional love", while cats' are a bit more conditional, so more prized.