I got a pair of them … and they act like a pair of ’em too.
Last night, the one who’s a Luddite — he doesn’t even have a computer, if you can believe it, and I suspect that he’s just like Bush, watching ESPN2 all day — called me up and alleged that I’d been arrested for kidnapping.
The other one — who lurks here at BT but doesn’t have the nerve to post here — sent me an e-mail that Johnny Cash has (presumably posthumously) released a new song, “A Boy Named Lisa.”
Ha, ha, ha!
They’re making fun because the cat, who I named Lisa, went to the veterinarian yesterday, and we found out a few, um, things. First, let me say that I went through a lot of hoops for this cat, arranging for the local private shelter to pay for spaying, although Darcy and I had to come up with $35 co-pay.
I’d called the vet’s office a couple times and asked how to be sure it’s been spayed, and they told me that they’d have to shave her stomach to be sure (sometimes the scar is faint and hard to see). I dropped Lisa off at the vet’s office at 7:55 a.m. So, about 11 a.m., they call with the news that Lisa is a neutered male. But, “Lisa” was neutered so young that there’s no vestige of testicles left (what one could do with a phrase like that), and that they’d had to shave “her” stomach to realize that she was a male.
Now, this is the cat — some of you will remember this story — I was trying to find when it was crying in a huge, thick hedge last November. And I leaned on a branch, fell down, and ended up with a wound and black eye from hitting a pruned branch on the way down.
After a couple more days — as I threw cat food into the hedge — she finally came out, and I began feeding her in the morning and at night. She meows at my door to let me know it’s time for food. She has never wanted to come inside — or even to go in the separate building that houses the laundry and garages. She’s clearly an outdoor cat, and my plan after she’d recovered from anesthesia was to release her back here, and I’d keep feeding her.
Then, yesterday at 11 a.m, the vet tech dropped the second bombshell. HE (it’s a he, Susanhu) had a microchip! Owners! Hooray! They told me to call the county shelter, and they gave me the owner’s names, phone number, address, and the cat’s real name, which I won’t post here for reasons only known to me.
I immediately called his owners, and left them a message. No one called last night. I brought “Leo” — yes, he’s Leo now — home, and my BT lurker neighbor helped me set up the big cage in my garage. (BT Lurker had also very kindly helped me the night before by helping me to get this 16-lb. cat into the carrier to go to the vet. BT Lurker is a VERY nice man.)
The odd thing about the owners? This morning, a Susan called. She’s Leo’s owner. They live less than two blocks from me, but have never seen Leo/Lisa since last November. (I have to wonder what else happened in that home.) And, they don’t want him back. Sh says that they adopted him from the pound last October, kept him inside, but after a month, he bolted outside and never returned. I wonder why. Anyway, they’re moving into a business they bought, and it’s on a busy street. So, that’s that for them and “Leo.” I invited her to come visit, but she’ll see about that. I told her to call anytime. I mentioned the, ahem, money, but that didn’t elicit a response.
Yet one more adult cat that hasn’t an official home. I rescue them all the time. I’m sure that a LOT OF YOU DO TOO. Why don’t people get their cats and dogs spayed and neutered? And why in the hell don’t people adopt cats and dogs from shelters, and not from breeders? We have millions of cats and dogs, like Leo/Lisa, who get euthanized every year because there simply aren’t enough homes. And they’re almost always fabulous pets. Even the most shy cats will come around in time…. I’ve taken in two shy cats who, within a year, were the most loving, affectionate, and comfortable-feeling cats. People need to give them a chance. Especially the shy ones. And most especially the adult ones that almost no one wants because kittens are “cuter.”
Uh oh. This was an OPEN THREAD … kinda long, huh. Well, go for it. And, yup, I’m sending BT Lurker this link … he’ll no doubt invite the Luddite neighbor over to see what I wrote about those two …
They don’t want him back? Very nice. They should be embarrassed to admit that.
At least at 16 lbs it looks like he has plenty to eat.
This is really embarrassing….
the vet tech also told me that he’s fat.
I have a dog that I have to walk at least 20 miles a week, or he looks like a tub of lard. And he doesn’t eat much more than my skinny dog. Go figure.
aah, that’s nothing. Growing up I had a cat named Wilbur who was over 20 lbs.
P.S. I also had a hamster named Orville.
Wilbur! What a great name…. will have to remember that one. Got any old photos of him?
maybe in a shoebox somewhere.
My favorite cat was Sherlock. He killed so many animals that my mother but a bell on him. He learned to stalk without setting off the bell. It was amazing. He disappeared one day when I was about 8 or 9 years old. Never found him. My brother blamed it on a neighbor’s dobermans, but I think he took on a raccoon or something. He terrorized squirrels, killed a few of them. And one day I heard a cat fight outside and I went out and say grey fur all over the yard of my neighbor. Their cat was grey, Sherlock was black with with markings.
He was a fierce cat but wonderful with kids…like me.
at least Lisa/Leo spayed/neutered…that’s a plus. 🙂 And he/she was adopted from the shelter, not from breeders. And it’s possible the behavior of the cat was due to treatment from owners farther back from the most recent; if they had the microchip installed they at least were interested in long-term companionship at one point, until Lisa/Leo ran away.
[I’m not even going to touch the obvious similarities between Lisa/Leo’s lack of testicles and the current state of the Democratic Party…]
yup. PERFECT EUNUCHS! All of ’em.
I’m laughing so hard at your post.
(ANother cool thing about Lisa/er Leo: He and the raccoons who drop by get along just fine. They kind of ignore each other. He doesnt’ stress when the coonies eat the rest of his dry food because he knows there’s more comin’ — geeeeez.)
Say! He really likes Costco’s cat food, which is SO MUCH cheaper. And the private animal shelter is willing to use Costco’s cat food. It’s obviously not top-of-the-line, but it’s alright. My two indoor cats love it too.
Actually, I think Costco’s cat and dog food is top of the line. Our vet told us it was pretty much the same as Science Diet. Costco’s a good company — they only sell high-end stuff at good prices. Not so great if you don’t want or need high-end (like furniture and linens), but great if you do.
Their people food is really good, too. And they’re good to their employees. You have nothing to feel bad about feeding your cat the Kirkland brand!
The county shelter spays/neuters all animals + they microchip them before they’re adopted.
Our county shelter, which was a scandal about 4 years ago, has really improved conditions and gotten its act together.
It was so bad, though, that that’s why the private shelter got started, and they’re still going strong too. In fact, they now help out the county shelter — if the county has too many kittens, etc., they’ll pitch in and help them out. They have a wonderful relationship these days although– about 4-5 years ago — they all hated each other.
LeoLisa is a very lucky boy to have found you!
I have a very timid young girl kitty prancing on my keyboard right now, who was delivered to me by a friend. (I THOUGHT she was handing me a rat and almost fell out of my chair.) She wasn’t much more than three inches long, with umbilical stub still attached, a littlerunt abando9ned by an overworked feral catmom and left to die behind a coke machine. (the cat, not my friend.)
And so it came to be I learned how to set up a feline neonatal intensive care unit, with the help of the internet, whee I discovered horrifying things, like they can’t even pee at that age without help! Don’t ask.
Oh scribe, that is way toooooo funny…I know exactly what you are talking about…
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I was just doing my thing since September 2004 to get a grip on U.S. politics and what’s happening in Our World. wow – too much and thank you for confidence.
Congratulations to all BooTribbers for their contributions and BooMan for making it all possible, but especially susanhu and blksista, who I both admire, for their nomination.
And Jérôme a Paris @EuroTrib, naturally.
I’ll NEVER wave the white flag, I prefer to dye all linnen and underwear red, just to prevent a surrender. We need to frogmarch the Bush Cabal out of the people’s mansion on pennsylvania ave., so I can do some gardening from 2009 on. lol
PS I wasn’t aware of a nomination until an email with a PSS note was added, which I didn’t understand.
PSS I have been cut-off from Booman for previous ten hours. What a surprise …
“But I will not let myself be reduced to silence.”
▼ ▼ ▼ MY DIARY
Congratulations, Oui, well-deserved recognition!
Oui, I agree with Kidspeak. But then again, I know each of you folks here deserve lots for y our hard work towards education others. I applaud each of the nominees and wish the best of luck. I am so glad you are all with us here…hugs
HELLO to the two “L’s”..:o) Just incase you are looking in here today….
Susan, PPl are the funniest critters of all the animal kingdom…
As you have go to know. I am a cat lover. Well, I do love all animals, but cats are the ones I do want in my home. Dogs can come in too, but have to be very housebroken for that to occur. I do spend much time away from the house to have an inside dog that can not hold itself for at least 12-15 hours in some cases.
I think your story shows just how softhearted you are….:o) and that you do have great neighbors…
Someday, I will have to tell you about the stray goose in my fenced in back yard, which is huge and three dogs in that fence, and a crazed old lady (moi) who would go to any extreme to save an animan from harm…Life around my hose is never without fun and humor at the most unexpected moments. Sounds like we are alike in many ways….:o) Anyhow, shame on the owners for not wanting the cat back..after going to all the trouble of a chip and all…
I’ve told you I wished you were my neighbor! We’d have so many good laughs.
My neighbors are great.
Luddite helped me out because the raccoons kept turning on an outside faucet … coonies love water. And they’re smart so it was easy for them to figure out how to turn the faucet. Luddite wrapped that pipe so well that there’ no way in hell that even those crafty raccoons can tear it off.
And BT Lurker even gave me a big bag of dog food and doggie treats for the coonies….
And somehow he found me a Christmas present from the racccoons. They left it on his porch for him to give to me! It’s a raccoon toy — absolutely darling!
Oh Susan, that is great…They do sound like such treasures to have as neighbors.
BTW, Since the discussion from Katrina and the animal problem there, Every month, I gather at least 25 dollars and go buy either animal food or paper towels or pinesol to give to the humane society/animal society here. They really do appreciate that too. I know not much but every little bit helps.
HEE!!!!
We have a feral cat colony at work and a trap/spay-neuter/release program. They are a healthy, happy colony. The trick is managing them.
Recently someone caught a kitten, about 2-3 months. I had the onerous job of visiting her every day and holding her (as any of you who are around cats know, if you want to tame one that’s been feral, they require a lot of handling). She got tame really fast, an absolute sweetie, and is now the queen of her own condo with a loving family.
I have three cats and fear I’d have a lot more if I lived in a bigger house.
Lisa, don’t you know that the cats are making you believe you are taming them…Cats are that way, ya know. They tame the ppl not the other way around…:O)
I’m naming the (inevitable) next stray Brenda!
(Or Brando if it’s a boy.)
As you know, I named Lisa after you! I hope you’re not hurt he’s now Leo 🙂
Ohhhh .. you should post that photo of that kitten you cared for. Absolutely darling!
(And, everyone, Lisa lost two cats this past falll … it was very, very sad.)
Thanks for sharing the recent “adventures” of Leo/Lisa. It’s good to know that he has a place to call “home”, even if it isn’t in your home.
My Phoenix (who’s a she), is another example of a cat who needed to be given a chance, though her circumstances were rather different. As a kitten, she’d been adopted from a shelter by my sister-in-law’s sister. Her apartment at the time was a smallish studio, and Phoenix was literally bouncing off the walls and would always squirm frantically if someone tried to hold her. After about seven months, she felt she had no real choice but to give Phoenix away, and so my sister-in-law and brother took her in on a provisional basis. Several weeks later, they were headed out of town for a stretch, so I agreed to board Phoenix for them.
While my apartment is hardly huge, it was considerably larger than the studio, and had the added advantage of deep windowsills at chest height, on which Phoenix could stretch out and survey the surrounding streets. She seemed generally content, only she quickly developed a gastro-intestinal problem. I took her to the vet, got some antibiotics and “special” food, and she began to get much better. Because of her illness, I delayed returning her to my brother (I suspected that the constant changes in scenery weren’t helping Phoenix either her physical condition or her neuroses).
By the time she had fully recovered, Phoenix and I were bonding, and one of her favorite things was to be carried around in my arms right after I got home from the office (I was working long hours then, so she’d be alone in the apartment for 14 hours or so). This was a major change from her past behavior. As soon as I secured permission from my landlord to keep a pet, I agreed to keep Phoenix on a permanent basis.
That was a bit over six years ago now, and while Phoenix frequently remains skittish, we’re best friends to one another. In fact, I just realized that today is her seventh birthday (according to her initial adoption papers), so we’ll have to celebrate tonight!
Phoenix is the luckiest cat! Wow. What a story.
They do need room to roam.
But, Darcy and I each have a cat who each had to survive outdoors before they came into our lives. Now, those each have very little desire to go outside. They know what living outside is like, and they want none of it. But the cats who’ve never lived outdoors are more likely to be itchin’ to get out. (That’s not always true — just our own experiences.)
My other indoor cat, Althea, came from a business buildnig right by Wal-Mart. She loves NOTHING MORE than to lie next to the electric baseboard heaters.
In fact, she lost her tail at Wal-Mart because she crawled in a car engine to get warm … but no one there took her for treatment. The stub of her tail is so ugly but the vet told me that only plastic surgery could fix that … we just live with it.
Althea does like to go out for about a half hour in the summer months. But never when it’s cold.
My Katie is a former outside cat who has no lingering interest in the outdoors. Not surprising, though, because she became an indoor cat through her own initiative.
One summer evening several years ago I left the back door open with the screen door shut to let the air circulate through the house a bit. By the time I returned to close the door, there was a hole in the screen, and a pretty long-haired tuxedo cat was curled up in a recliner near the door. With five kittens.
Mama Katie and a couple of the kittens stayed here, and I found good homes for the rest of the family.
OH yeah. My oldest, Murphy, was a semi-feral who found her way into my apartment by crawing in through a hole in the murphy bed in the adjacent apartment. She has NO interest in going “out there.”
Leo is a fine name for a kitty!
I had a cat named Leo when I was in undergrad. Named him after my Sociology professor. He was black and white, and the meanest cat I’ve ever known. My favorite memory of him is that he once threw up on one of my term papers — minutes before class. I wrote up the experience for an English class and got an A.
Phoenix absolutely detests the outdoors, but she loves darting out the front door of my apartment into the hallway — luckily, I’m up three flights of stairs, and there are two separate doors to get out onto the front stoop. I’d be terrified if she ever escaped outside, because I’m sure she would go into panic mode.
My parents have lost a couple of “indoor” cats to the outside world, including one who got away in the suburbs and was so timid (and utterly loyal to my mother) that we doubt she ever would have willingly exposed herself from whatever hiding space she found. We searched for days, to no avail (the porch door had been left ajar, so my folks couldn’t tell how long she’d been out before they noticed she was missing).
Like most cats, Phoenix likes it where it’s warm: in the sun on the windowsills; stretched out on the floor next to the radiators; on top of the kitchen cabinet above my stove; and, of course, lying next to a human body.
Great story, Susan. We have a Leo, too – one of a pair (Leo and Zena) that we brought in as kittens born in the alley behind our house. We intended to name them Leo and Toby after the West Wing guys, but I figured out that Toby was a girl shortly before I caught her (the pair were quite wild). So they became Leo and Zena. Then when we got them to the vet, I learned that Leo was also a girl (vet says I’m good at “half-sexing” cats. I’m still trying to figure that one out!). But Leo she still is.
Leo and Zena’s mom was left behind when some neighbors moved. I, too, just don’t understand how people can do this. She had 4 more kittens before she disappeared. We have them, too. I couldn’t bear to take them to the shelter. That is, we took them, and then went back and got them the next day (I’m a total sap, I know). They are “The Gang of Four”.
I live in rural Alabama and feed most of the cats in my area, plus the odd opossum or raccoon family. It takes roughly 60lbs of dry food and 50 cans a week, I have roughly 2 dozen at a time. I used to name them all, but hunters (and an occasional automobile) kill the majority before they reach their 1st birthday, which is why I despise hunters so much. Almost all of them are tame but only about half of them have names now. I usually raise them indoors for the first 5 weeks until they are old enough to get out through the cat door on their own.
I currently have a sweet 4-month old white kitten with an orange tail who needs a name, and I haven’t thought of a good one yet. I tend to use odd names, like the four brothers who were named Famine, War, Pestilence and Death (Pest is still around), or the two gorgeous fluffy blue-greys who were both named Blueball (so I didn’t have to tell them apart). Though I also have Max, Katrina, Bebe, Solomon, Black Beauty, Baby Blue, Jessica, Fozzie, and The Cute One (which is his actual name on the vaccination certificate) among others. Lots and lots of cats.
I have a back yard that is fenced in, like I said above. It is about 150 feet long by 75 feet wide. I had it done that way to house and maintain the two g-Shepard’s and a mixed breed, of my son’s, so that they would not get loose and stray over the neighborhood, and/or be imprisoned in doggie jail.
I have 1/4th of the back again fenced off, for their run, to keep them away for the ppl who are there for working purposes or children who are afraid of big dogs. Two springs ago, on a early Sat. morning, as I was awaking to the day and went to the throne room, when I heard all this barking and moaning from the dogs out back. I went and looked out of my dinning room window, and what do I see, a goose or gander, I do not know which, since I can not tell the sex of either nor do I want to get that close to one to find out. The goose or gander of which I will refer to as G from henceforth on out, was waddling all about the back yard either G was chasing the dogs or the dogs were chasing the G. Either way, this was rare in my neighborhood for we do not have birds like that here….or so I thought…well, there is a pond across the road about 1/2 a mile after one turns off into my subdivision, and here in TN one can find subdivisions in the country easily,,,
I watched in amazement for about 5 mins or so then thought, I have to get that G out of the back yard for its own safety and probably, most of all, for the dogs safety, once I determined what really was happening.
I adorned my slippers and robe and thought that this was gonna be an easy job, for once I shooed the bird off into the wild blue yonder, that was gonna be the end of the story…NOT SO!!!!!
I went out to find the mixed dog hiding under the deck…never even, but peering out to see what I was doing, and the two Shepard’s trying to fight off the bird, only to get pecked hard by G. This was something the Shepard’s did not understand for they ruled the roost so to speak in their domain. I could see on their facial expressions that they have never come up against such an enemy as this in their dog lives.
I shooed the older Shepard to the 1/4 run and locked her in there. I had to run down the younger shepard to get her to go to the run. That was in and of itself a challenge for me, for she was not one to be put anywhere without her wanting to go there. Whew!!!Finally I got both Shepard’s in the run, locked away for their own safety sake. Now mind you they had some fur missing and some bloody spots on their snoots where the G had pecked away at them. Must have been some war, before I awakened to this all going on….:o)
Well, now was the time to get G out of the back yard..,.By not knowing much about G’s, I stood there in my robe and slippers and messed up hair and disgust in my whole demeanor,. I saw one neighbor and his family watching on and did not say anything..the other neighbor was looking on as well, but was acting like nothing was gonna happen after the Gods were in the run. Now mind you, I still had one dog under the deck…I did not want her out of the fenced area to run loose either. Talk about a NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH!
I had to catch that G to get that G out of my yard. I went back in the house and found a throw, of which I was gonna get close enough to throw the throw over the G and then carry G out of the yard…right???!!! well not actually,, As I was trying to get close to G. I almost got close enough to pick the G up but G was not to be picked up. Also G was wanting to fight with ME too.,.,so got the throw, to throw over the G..right? and got actually close enough to do so and threw the throw….not covering the G for the G moved quicker that a speeding bullet or a locomotive…faster than superman…oh my God now what, I thought. I have to get G out of my back yard.
I finally relented to open the big drive through gate and hopefully G would just walk out of it..Not so fast…G was dumb I thought for G was not wanting to go through the gate either. G just wanted to stay around and fight anything and everything. I took the throw, waved it like at a charging bull,,,, chasing G towards the open drive through gate. Back and forth, I went, trying hard to contain G’s movenment towards the open gate. Now mind you folks, this is now taking up about an hours worth of time here, if not more.
Finally G was out of the yard. I closed the gate and locked it. G was then headed towards the road…CARS! I thought..this dumb bird will get hit by one, if I let it just walk on the road. By then the whole neighborhood was watching on, as I was challenged by this damn bird. and me in my robe and slippers and a damn throw,. I was walking the bird down the road and threw yards to the pond, when all the marines in the neighborhood finally decided to come to my rescue or the birds rescue, I do not know which. WE finally got the bird to the pond and so all in a days work we all went back to our own respectful homes.
A nurse friend of mine, who lives down the road, asked me the next time she saw me at work, what did I think I was trying to do chasing down that G. I just shook my head and went on..the story needed not be told for the umpteenth time ever again till today..the neighbors nor I discuss this episode of our lives, even on most boring days by the pool…:o) OH there are other things I could tell you on my pets..but you would just have to just buy the book…:o)
Brenda, when I finished laughing, I had to send this to my mom. When she was a kid, she had to “tend the geese” that ate the weeds in the small cotton patch the family had. I’ve heard my mother describe some of the G stories – but none quite as dramatic and funny as yours. She will particularly appreciate it coming from where you live!
Actually, Kidspeak, one just had to be there to trully appreaciate the acutally happenings of it all. It is just that I never have much time to speak of all the trully wonderful things that go on around me in my life. I have learned to appreciate them always…:o) AT the time, it was not funny but to look back on the whole affair, I split a gut just thinking about it.
well, kidspeak, I am actually a Yankee, who has moved south for the fun of it…well, so I think…anyhow. I am from southern Il. I am a country girl, but never have I had such an experience as with this G! Good heavens. I never want one again either…:o) G’s so not get respect from me for they are terrible negotiators
Yes, I remember that you are a transplant. Doesn’t matter. My mother actually has a framed print of a little girl, all dressed up in bonnet, etc. directing a few geese ahead of her with a stick. She said to me, that of course, if the kid were actually in charge of the geese, her hat would be long gone, her dress ripped and dirty, and the birds off each in a different direction!
absolutely correct!!!!!!!!! I can atest of that personally!!!!!:o)
And like Ductape’s New Year’s feast, this would make a great children’s book.
Susan,
you scared me for a second there. Somehow when I first looked at the beginning of this all I saw was your name and the words, “I got a pair of them”. I had to rub my eyes and do a double :oP take. I won’t share what my initial thought was either, but you’re pretty tough so you know….either way :o)
We have a cat that we got from a woman that my wife met at her job last year. Her name (the cat) is Lilo. Sounds like Leo :o) Apparently though as a kitten she was removed from a home where the owner kept her in a smallish kind of bird cage that was always covered with a blanket or towel. The cat never recovered really from this treatment and is very shittish and completely over dependent to the point that the second it sees anyone it starts meowing in the most pitiful and for me as a non-pet, let alone cat person, annoying, persistant, brain piercing way. Honestly if it were just me I would put it up for adoption or put it on a plane to Port Angeles ;o) But my girls love it so much so I guess I’m stuck with it (sorry).
I just thought I’d share my cat story with you and hope I haven’t blown any perceptions you might of had of me :o)
LOL. Glad I’m not the only one who had a, uh, ssstrange, initial thought about that!
All of my past dogs (we are currently dogless) were adopted from an animal shelter. All lived to a ripe old age in relatively good health. I recommend a “pound puppy” for anyone.
Tobi, a special needs shelter cat that lived 2 years in a shelter because he was so mean no one could touch him….I took him home only to nurse him back to health (foster program/volunteer) from IBS and when I took him back, they told me if I did not adopt him he would live his live out in a cage. I had no choice. Now of course he has turned into a lover, but still bullies the two dogs!
what a cutie he is. He looks so secure in your enviroment for him. I am glad you kept him. Thanks for showing his pix to us.
Looks like an angel but he is a stubborn little boy! Always seeing what he can get away with, he had all the staff at Save-A-Pet afraid of him including me when he was at the shelter! Love works miracles.
{{{ Love works miracles. }}}
you bet it does!!!! cats are great. I think they know it too…:o) I know mine have me wrapped around their little paw all the time.
TOBI! You’re precious! Give your Mattes a big hug for saving you from being in a cage.
Maybe someday you can give tobi a pet. If I ever head up to PA, I hope we can meet and have some lunch!
Please don’t uniformly condem all dog breeders. There is a place for well-bred pure bred dogs.
Because I keep livestock, I can’t risk having a random bred dog – whose temperament can be as veriable as his or her genes.
Great Pyrenees/Pyrenean Mountain Dogs, like my Luna, have a 4000 year old linage as a livestock guardians. Which is why I have one, and come next heat, will be breeding mine to produce puppies for similarly inclined families.
Pure bred animals are more consistent in type and temperament, and for some people that’s very important. And to my way of thinking, a good “match” between dog and owner goes a long way towards making both happy, and eliminating discarded, abandoned, or simply unloved animals.
Besides, you have no greater alies in the fight against puppy mills, backyard breeders and people who don’t spay or neuter, than those people who responsibly raise animals that they truly adore. And we’re not as rare as you might think.
Keres, you’ve taught me something. Thank you. I hadn’t thought of the necessity of having certain breeds.
And you’re an eloquent advocate.
I’m thrilled you’re so opposed to puppy mills.
We like to get cat food from pet stores since grocery store food is of such poor quality, but we won’t buy from stores that also sell pets (well, amost never — sometimes I don’t have a choice since the closest store that doesn’t sell animals is 20 miles away. And I’m worried for them since Petco is going in right near them. )
Since this is an open thread, I want to inform others of the follow-up I did this morning with the DHS that I contacted and got the Armed Forces branch: REF: the death of female soldiers from dehydration, fear of being raped. Dianna Tabler, medical division, sent this on to an associate, Dave Morrison, to follow up on with. The Miles Foundation is doing work on this issue. I understand from what she said, that Ms. Karpenski(sp?),herself, has reported it to the correct persons and depts. to investigate into as well.
Just to let you all know that I am not dropping this. I will follow-up on this till I can’t go any futher
Oh and btw, her attitude with me was much more serious than before when I made my initial contact. She thanked me for the follow-up and noted that it would take some time for appropriate investigation. to stay in touch with her and she would let me know of further details coming out, if I so inclined to do…I thought was might nice of her to talk with me in such a manner..not so condescending either, as in our prior conversation.
Thanks for “bird-dogging” this Brenda, much appreciated.
Thanks, Kidspeak. I do not mind one bit doing my civic duty. NOt only this, but I am very upset over this. I intend not to let this fall thru the cracks. I will follow-up till I can no longer get any answers.
And why in the hell don’t people adopt cats and dogs from shelters . . . most especially the adult ones that almost no one wants because kittens are “cuter.”
Timely advice. After Lightnin, our older cat, died of an hereditary kidney disease, I was planning to adopt a kitten from the shelter. Based on your advice, I will get an older cat. Thanks for making me think about it.
Ohhh. There’s also a practical reason. I once had a kitten who wanted to play ALL NIGHT long! And I had to sleep to go to work the next morning. If I closed my bedroom door, he’d mew and scratch at the door. Oh lordie … adult cats aren’t like that. They like to crawl in bed and fall asleep too.
If you see a shy one who otherwise appeals to you, I’d recommend them. It’ll take sometimes months for them to come out of their shells but, boy, when they do, they are the most loving. They’ve usually had something traumatic happen, and need to learn that you’ll never be mean to them, and then they’ll be okay.