Oh yeah, I'm definitely with you there. I would honestly prefer to have ALL mounts/minions/etc obtainable in game first, and then maybe trickle over to the cash shop (if they must). There are plenty of minions I will never have, which is a bit of a bummer, because I just don't tend to buy game merchandise.
The cat is the one and only purchase I've made outside the game, so wishful thinking on a minion being attached ;)
