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Old August 2nd 03, 06:09 PM
bewtifulfreak
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"Bob Brenchley." wrote in message
...

You have some strange garbage cans if a cat can do that.

Also, all antifreeze produced in the EU is "pet safe".


Not everyone in this group lives in the EU, Bob.


Or
the one who shoots the cat with a pellet gun,


Heard of that happening - guy got a very heavy fine and was soon
forced to move as a result of the hate campaign he earnt himself.


Our cat was shot by a pellet gun, and ultimately had to be put to sleep. We
have no idea who did it, so (s)he gets away with it scot-free, while the cat
is now dead. We reported it to the police, for all the good it did; our cat
was considered 'property', not a living thing. And I *do* live in UK.


The feral we just took in, was because the neighbors (on whose

destructive dog I had
complained to Animal Control) were threatening to harm the cat,


Something I would have reported to the police.


Police generally say they can't do anything about someone who is threatening
*you* unless they do something, so I don't think they'd do a whole lot about
someone threatening your cat until it was too late.


because (and I must say
unfairly) they couldn't just CALL animal control, as there is currently

no law forbidding
cats to roam and destroy, but there is a law prohibiting DOGS from doing

so.

That is how it should be. Cats represent no danger to humans - dogs
do.


No, but cats can do damage to property or gardens, not to mention birds, and
thus, many people are very resentful of free-roaming cats either for the
damage to their garden or because they're bird lovers or both, and some will
actually go to great lengths to keep cats out of their yards, including
doing things to harm the cat.


It wasn't
even our cat, but looked similar to our cat, so they 'assumed' it

belonged to us and
threatened harm if we didn't 'keep it from bothering their dog'.


As I said, such threats would be reported to the police.


And as I said, to no result whatsoever.


I prefer to call myself a
'responsible' pet owner.


You would, but your lack of understanding of a cats needs makes your
an appallingly bad cat owner.


You say all true cat lovers and animal societies feel the way you do, but
any research on the 'Net or with various animal societies will prove that
there are many others who support the completely opposite view. You may
feel they're wrong, but a great many people feel you're wrong as well.


One bad thing about domestication. We teach animals to trust humans.

Sometimes I think
that is ultimately a bad thing. Like I tried to explain to a friend

about rehabbing
wild creatures. You must not imprint them too much, because that fear and

mistrust of
humans may save their lives. Not all humans are kind and good.


This is true. Bob says cats are only domesticated in that we've gotten them
to live with us, but the fact is, they've lost many of their natural
protections and instincts, and cannot be treated like true wild cats.
Despite how little Bob says it happens, wild cats are becoming extinct not
only because we're encroaching on their habitat, but, because this is
happening, they are coming into human habitats for food, and thus, being
shot. If this is happening to big wild cats, what hope do small domestic
cats have in protecting themselves against the dangers of city life? It's
all well and good to address life in the EU, particularly in UK, but many
people in this group are from cities in the US, and could well chose not to
own cats, but there would then be that many more feral cats living a not
very satisfying life in the outdoors, of sickness, attacks, and possibly
death, either by people wanting to rid themselves of the population (see
Kaeli's site for a tragic story about an entire feral population wiped out
by some idiot(s) with a 22.), or by cars, or some other horrible accident
befalling them. You're well entitled to your opinion, Bob, but that opinion
doesn't give you the right to make personal attacks on this newsgroup. I'm
sure that most of the indoor cats owned by people here, even if not as happy
as you believe they could be, are not suffering unduly; indoor owners may be
'sick' in your opinion, but are not blind, and would be able to see if their
cat was sulking around unhappily. And I truly believe that anyone on this
group who saw their cat in that state *would*, indeed, find another home for
it.

I know I'm wasting my breath, because you will probably just cut and paste
your pat line in response, or contradict everything I've said, but I just
felt the need to have my say. I won't continue banging my head against this
brick wall much longer, though, because that kind of behavior truly *is*
sick....

Ann