Why I hate cats

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Tempus @ Jan 11 2007, 10:15 AM) [snapback]374181[/snapback]</div>

You are using a reductionist arguement. The problem is much more complex than one solution for all. Washington DC or NY is MUCH different than Payette, Idaho or Sacramento Ca.. In your case cats could be benificial. In my case not so much since rats are not a big problem here. So your solution could be to let em live and kill rats. My solution could be to have the Bush Admin. label cats as a terrorist group and ship them off to Cairo or Guantanamo en mass. <.... I hear they have rat problems there too.

 

F8L,

There is a better way than "trap and kill" - it's counter productive. (more info at www.alleycat.org )

Feral cats reproduce faster than Animal Control can put them down. It's kind of like what happened in Iraq - trouble filled the vacumn, but in greater numbers. Neutered feral cats keep the stray population down.

In San Diego, they started "trap, neuter, return", and halved the stray population (and city expenses). It was the initative of www.feralcat.com based there.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(hill @ Jan 11 2007, 12:32 PM) [snapback]374151[/snapback]</div>

but dog and cat doo is bad for lawns because they are carnivores.

While it's maybe not "good", isn't bird poop at least not as bad on the lawn? There must be some sort of fertilizer element to it. They use bat guano, after all.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(hill @ Jan 11 2007, 01:32 PM) [snapback]374151[/snapback]</div>

I use a motion-detector sprinkler to keep critters out of my garden. I don't see why it wouldn't work on birds, too.

 

Like dogs, some cats are very tame - others have issues. Some pit bulls are very nice - some are trained by crack addicts to be nasty guard dogs.

 

Feed a dog, and the dog thinks, "that guy must be God".
Feed a cat, and the cat thinks, "I must be God".

 

I actually don't mind cats. My friends had a cat that didn't like them much, but whenever I went over to visit that cat would be in my lap inside of 10 min. Had a purr so loud you could hear it across the room. It didn't purr for them.

I've never had a cat so don't know that much about them except that I like dogs better.

Dogs grovel. Dogs fawn all over you. Dogs don't hold grudges. They're not sneaky. A dog will just bite you. A cat will pee in your shoes. A dog will at least act guilty and be remorseful. A cat will act like the Shoemaker's Elves came in and did it.

I love dogs. They'll eat everything you put in front of them and NOT complain but let you know it was delicious and they enjoyed every bite.

When they look at you, it's never "oh, gained a little weight, have we?"; it's always "My, don't you look great in that outfit."

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Godiva @ Jan 11 2007, 02:51 PM) [snapback]374271[/snapback]</div>

:lol: Or in the words of Bill Cosby "Cats have never done anything for anybody except sit on your sofa, and shed, and make you sneeze."

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(JackDodge @ Jan 11 2007, 03:03 PM) [snapback]374284[/snapback]</div>

Bill Cosby is part owner in a dog that won one of those dog shows they have on Animal Planet.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(JackDodge @ Jan 11 2007, 02:03 PM) [snapback]374284[/snapback]</div>

Imagine your farming ancestors - who kept the granaries safe from mice?

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Delta Flyer @ Jan 11 2007, 04:03 PM) [snapback]374325[/snapback]</div>

Actually, Cosby had a reply for that one too: "they catch mice anyway"

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(JackDodge @ Jan 11 2007, 03:11 PM) [snapback]374331[/snapback]</div>

So saving your ancestors from famine was not important....



Better get along with this one...

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Delta Flyer @ Jan 10 2007, 09:32 PM) [snapback]373968[/snapback]</div>

How does that bring the native songbirds back to my neighborhood?

I can't put Cayenne pepper in my kid's sandbox where the cat loves to crap and piss.

How do I feel about dogs? I encounter enough abandoned dog crap and incessant barking, off leash dogs in the park with my two year old daughter who is severely allergic (at least one ER trip so far), that I feel they are absolutely useless. I used to be completely indifferent, but at this point I would fully support a ban on domestic animals.

Did you ever notice how EVERY time you hear about a dog mauling or dog bite the owner will explain to you how their dog is a good dog, and it's not the dog's fault?

I've had to call the police on my neighbor TWICE because she wouldn't stop her dog from barking. She threatened to get a restraining order against me just for asking. The cop came by and chewed her out for being that stupid (I kid you not). "Ma'am, he has a right to ask you to quiet your dog. I seriously doubt a judge will grant you a restraining order in this case." At this point he issued her a verbal warning. The next time, the police issued her a written warning. After that, she brought the dog inside.

If you were a dog owner, would you pen it in a 6-foot pen for 14 hours a day on your front porch and let bark? That's downright abuse of an animal, I don't see why the woman wasn't arrested on the spot.

People are constantly bringing their dogs to innappropriate places, Home Depot, the farmer's market, etc. I once was on a plane with a woman who had smuggled her dog on board in a hand bag and then placed it on the seat next to her. The flight attendant was irate, and ordered the woman to put it back in the handbag. The woman did so, but then took it out everytime the flight attendant left.

The ironic part is that I am kind to animals, and they generally like me very much, even the most ornery of cats will choose me as their bed when I'm at my friend's houses (which they all think is hilarious since I don't like them back).

One of my neighbor's cats freaked out once and he called me to help subdue it because he knew that I could calm the cat down (ironic, I know).

Overall, about half of the dog and cat owners I know are great with their animals, they manage the barking, the feces, urine, wandering, etc. The other half are just plain awful, treating their animals as some sort of superior creature worthy of worship and admiration above human beings. Maybe it's a Boulder thing because I don't remember this being the case in Michigan, but either way, at this point I feel the world would be a better place if people got rid of their pets and cared more about their fellow man.

Don't even get me started on horses...

Nate

 

Couple of years ago, there was a great PBS documentary on raising/training seeing-eye dogs. The 1st two months is very critical to the disposition of dogs and cats. Reputable breeders will spend a lot of time - backyard breeders will neglect them. Some people spend time with their pets and they tend to behave better than the onces that lack much positive attention.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(naterprius @ Jan 11 2007, 06:28 PM) [snapback]374398[/snapback]</div>

Alright, I won't. Thanks for the warning.

If I might make a more serious suggestion about your lack of birds, you could try putting up a birdfeeder, and building some birdhouses appropriate for the native birds you wish to attract.

 

Delta,

This is absolutely true. I also find that most people are not inclined to "work" with a difficult animal. They're far too lazy and usually want instant gratification with an animal.

Animals are just like us....they come equipped with a range of emitional/social issues. One poster's cat reminds me of one of my cats that passed away. When I found it as a stray, it was very affectionate until I brought it in my house and it had to cope with my other cats. This cat would sit and wait for me to get out of the shower and attack my ankles. It took me three years of working with this animal to gain my trust so that she didn't feel the need to attack me.

Right now I have an adult cat that was weaned from it's mom too early and I found it as a stray at about 4 weeks. I never saw a cat actually spit before, but this is what this kitten did to us when we took it in. Today, he remains a wild cat. I usually cannot even pet him unless I catch him sleeping. He "packs' with my other two quite readily, however.

This all brings me around to the original topic of this thread in that a lot of the problems with animals can be solved if people would be more responsible and considerate to those around them (I'm talking about the furry little creatures too).

If consideration, compassion and responsibility were applied, there would be a lot less stray animals running around with personality defects.


<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(hyo silver @ Jan 11 2007, 06:58 PM) [snapback]374409[/snapback]</div>

Proper landscaping will bring them in as well. For the first time I had a bunch of Cedar Waxwings feeding in my yard this year. Cool looking birds. At first glance, one would believe this to be an introduced species.

 

I don't think you understand... the reason we don't have very many native birds anymore is because my neighbors, the "animal lovers", let their fully clawed cats roam the neighborhood, killing any bird they can catch.

If that weren't bad enough, THEN they put up a bird feeder, which attracts the birds to where the cats can kill them. They all admit this is a problem, but don't think that their one cat should be forced to stay inside when the rest of the neighbors are letting their cats roam freely as well.

I finally convinced one of my neighbors to raise his feeder above the height that the cat can jump (she had it low so she could see the birds in the window) and to get a feeder that was pigeon-proof.

It seems that all we have in the neighborhood for animals is cats, dogs, and pigeons.

I shoot the pigeons every chance I get (pigeons are feral, by the way). Things got a lot better last year after I shot and killed a mother pigeon on a nest that had three eggs in it, and at the same time, advised my neighbors about their feeders. After that, the pigeons have diminished somewhat, perhaps relocating to the other side of the neighborhood, it's hard to say.

Anyway, thanks to all of you who follow the leash laws, pick up after your dog, own a bark collar, keep your cat inside, etc. I really appreciate it.

Nate

 

You've got me wrong. I recognize how badly outdoor cats are affecting our native bird populations and agree they should be kept indoors or penned in where they can't harm wildlife or venture into neighbor's yards becoming a nuisance. That's why I don't let mine roam freely.

If you're going to look to a huge culprit of declining numbers of native birds, look no further than man, however. We fragment, destroy and alter their habitats to their demise. Also, we've introduced a couple non native bird species that out compete our native species for nesting space. If you research the House Sparrow and Starlings, you'll find vast evidence of this.

It's not enough to declare that we reign in our cats and say it will solve the problem. But, again, I'm not saying that this isn't a problem. I'm personally glad to hear that others than me care, even if your neighbor doesn't understand.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Delta Flyer @ Jan 11 2007, 04:03 PM) [snapback]374325[/snapback]</div>

Well, wolves eat a lot of mice. Dogs are descended from wolves. All of my dogs have been "mousers".