Cats in the house

Mum talking about my newly married cousin and his wife:

"... And they even have a separate room for the cats! She tells him to get the cats out of the house, but he says no. He tells her that he'd first kick her out the house. He's had them for so many years, he can't just get rid of them - they're not just pets, they're like children to him now. She doesn't understand that. People who have never had pets don't understand that."

So this is how a man learns about feelings through his mother.