It is something of note that each of the main three characters in the Harry Potter series has a pet. What is even more unusual is that they are allowed to have their pets at school. Hogwarts rules state that students are allowed to have a pet at Hogwarts as long as it is an owl, a rat, a frog or a cat.
Harry has his pet owl Hedwig. Ron first has Scabbers the rat and later Pigwidgeon the owl. And Hermione has Crookshanks the cat.
Crookshanks is part everyday cat and part kneazle. The fact that Crookshanks is part kneazle has not been revealed in any of the Harry Potter books but has been confirmed by J.K. Rowling in quite a few interviews and on the official Harry Potter website.
Crookshanks is described as a fluffy, ginger orange cat with a flat face and a bushy tail. J.K. Rowling has said that Hermione’s cat was inspired by a real live cat that she would frequently see in the square where she took her lunch while writing the Harry Potter books. Though she never got near enough to touch the cat (she has an allergy to them) she thought that the cat would make a good companion for Hermione.
Crookshanks is, like most cats, of an independent spirit. Because of his part kneazle heritage, he also has an above average intelligence. He is also keenly aware of anyone who is using deception and will react coolly, at the least, and violently, at the most, to any acts of deception that he sees.
Hermione bought Crookshanks from Magical Menagerie while buying school supplies Diagon Alley near the beginning of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. It is unknown if Hermione is aware of Crookshanks’ kneazle background. No one was with Hermione when she bought the cat and as Hermione has not mentioned it, it is unknown what conversation transpired during the purchase of the cat. Hermone only mentions that Crookshanks had been in the shop for a long time. I would have to guess that Hermione is probably unaware of Crookshanks background.
Crookshanks reflects many of the traits that are noble in Hermione. He is intelligent, fiercely loyal to those he loves, frowns upon cheating and once he has decided that he is right about something, nothing in the world will get him to change his mind and with good reason, because he is normally right.
He also has some of Hermione’s negative characteristics. These include his bushy appearance, his stubbornness, his occasionally off turning personality and, again, the fact that when he makes up his mind that he is right, he normally is.
While I think it is lots of fun that Hermione and her friends all have pets at school, I do often wonder how certain things are taken care of. For example, where exactly is Crookshanks’ litter box and does Hogwarts provide the food for the pets or do the students have to have it delivered by owl?
taken from the web
