Some seem to think all witches should have a familiar. This goes for both Pagans and Non-Pagans. The truth is that some of us do, and some don’t.

So what is a familiar?

Just because you have a cat as a pet, doesn’t mean it’s your familiar.

A familiar doesn’t have to be a cat or a dog. It might be a bird, a horse, a pig, or any living thing. I define a familiar as anything living which helps you with your magic. Watch for a keen interest in your magical workings. And I don’t mean the normal curiosity all cats possess. For some pets, it’s also possible to educate them to be familiars.

Those with allergies might get a reptile or an amphibian. Or why not grow a plant, familiar? Maybe your husband is your familiar? Our the tree in your backyard? As for me, I have no need for a familiar, although I’ve had a total of seven cats over the years. In the last twenty-one years, I’ve had none.

Our dog King (we didn’t name him)

We had a dog for a number of years but had to put him down in 2002 because of epilepsy. Since I moved to the countryside, I’ve wanted to get a pet again. Since I’m a cat person, I’d prefer a cat. But hubs can’t have cats, and there’s too much disease in dogs at the moment. These days it’s rare for a dog to die from old age. They get cancer our epilepsy, our some other serious disease. Another reason is that, when we work, we’re away from home most of the day. So having pets wouldn’t be responsible.

Do you have a familiar, or would you like one?

This post is part of the Pagan Blog Project, created by Rowan Pendragon.