Daddy's Boy blues

[Guest guest]

On Monday, January 5, 2004, at 05:45 PM,

wrote:

 

> Message: 11

> Mon, 05 Jan 2004 20:32:04 -0000

> " Feral " <terebinthus

> chipped blocks

>

> , The Stewarts <stews9@c...>

> wrote:

>

>> My Darling, surely his response is predicated on

> the cat being able to do > this.

>

> No way to tell this from what he said, but your defense

> of your son is charming. I'd respect it more if he'd join

> us to defend himself, though I know his genius level

> academics keep him mighty busy.

 

I've sent him your quibbles and have asked for a response. We'll see.

>

>> A de-clawed cat, for example, would stand no chance.

>

> Not true. I am the guardian of a declawed cat.

> The goddess Fiona is declawed and catches snakes

> and mice quite well; she even climbs trees better

> than my clutsey clawed friend, goddess Latte the

> sockmoney. However, I would not want her eating

> only mice and snakes to get her nutrition.

 

Interesting, i hadn't known they could do that, although I am aware that

the hunting skills in cats vary widely and, as far as attack / kill ratio,

aren't very good on the animal scale, even for big cats.

>

>> Most domestic

>> cats, however, continue to hunt and kill. The level

> of domesticity is > often more in the humanoid's gaze

> than in the cat's heart.

>

> Not really. If you have ever seen the negative effects

> of the forced feral existance upon domestic cats you

> would also disagree with your statement. Their quality

> of life is horrible and their mortality rate very high.

> They are more fragile than you have been lead to believe.

 

I've experienced feral cats and you're quite right, their lives are nasty,

brutish, and short. However, that's natural. Domesticated cats put into

feral situations would be worse off, I agree.

>

>

>> You can't force a cat to do a damned thing, unless you

> knock it out first.> lol

>

> Cats can be trained, but indeed they are more stubborn

> than dogs.

 

Even when trained, they only do what they want, when they want. As a cat

person you surely know this. Your familiars have distinct personalities

and one even hid, n'est pas?

 

> However, my point was that if you force the cat

> (by not giving them other food sources), to live only on

> the food they manage to hunt, you are doing them a huge

> disservice and treating the inhumanely; I still stand by that.

 

I would agree. Farm cats are fed. Dishes are maintained for them. I've

never known a farmer to let the cats go -- if they become entirely feral

they become a danger to chickens, toddlers, and the odd eyeball.

>

>

>> I'm absolutely sure my son would never let a cat starve

> simply because it > was a klutz hunter, nor would he have

> meant that.

>

> Again, I was only going by what was typed... and this is

> your second charming display of Da-ism. *lol*

 

Would you hae me do otherwise, milady?

>

>

>>>>> Certainly, though, you should think before you act.

>>> And if you have a > > cat -- keep the cat, and feed it, too!

>>> (You shouldn't get rid of the > > poor unethical beast!)

>>> We should stop trying to force a cat into the same

>>> category as humans in regards to ethics; calling them

>>> an " unethical beast " because they are naturally

>>> carnivorous is just silly.

>> No, it's called joking. The element of silliness is part of the

> humor.

>> Settle down, girl. lol

>

> I was only going by the typed word and saw no indication

> of implied humor.

 

The quotation marks set it apart in classic style, as a rhetorical

flourish. He is Classical in most things. lol

 

> I just wanted to be clear to him that it is

> silly to apply human ethics to cats.

 

Or to humans, for that matter, but yes, I agree. *kiss*

 

> I am glad he was merely

> joking and not seriously doing that. BTW, this is #3. *lol*

 

Three's a charm, n'est pas?

>

>

>>> Make sure you provide for all of their essential needs

>>> and give them regular check-ups. If they hunt for additional

>>> food outside, make sure they get wormed on a regular basis

>>> as they will get deadly parasites from eating mice or moles.

>

> You ignored my above statement. No domestic cat should live

> or could live soley on hunted food.

 

Uh... I'm not entirely sure that's true. As I say, cats range widely in

their abilities and inclinations, and some go feral. I've had pet cats

that simply went wild, and chose, despite wonderful care we offered, to

live in woods near our house. They'd leave dead moles and things for us,

almost as if taking care of US, but they would not consent to be house or

even yard cats. No idea why, and no, we didn't have a dog at that time.

 

> Sure they would live for a

> while, but they would get diseased and full of worms,

> and thus their quality of life would be next to nothing

> of what it should.

 

You sound like the Sierra Club excusing hunting as humane for the poor

deer and elk. lol

 

> It would surely be nowhere close to treating

> them in a humane " vegan " standard.

> I grew up around dairy farms where the farmers would

> typically have a whole passle of near feral cats in the barns.

> They would daily slop them some milk and stale bread and

> the rest of the " food " they were to hunt themselves.

 

Many farmers know a cat will automatically go after vermin, but some think

they have to keep them hungry to motivate them. Also, the farmers I grew

up with along the Brandywine were careful to get their cats checked

regularly by visiting vets, and to get them shots, etc.

 

> They were generally straggly, pathetic and sickly beasts

> with all too short lives.

 

That isn't good, but it is Nature.

 

> They didn't typically get the medical

> care they required.

 

That is a foul oversight on the part of the farmer.

 

> I was a very sensitive child and seeing them live

> like that caused me sadness.

 

We are empaths and yes, it's horrible.

 

> This is likely why I didn't find

> Jr. Stewart's ideas as inspired as some of the rest here

> have found them. But still, your defense of them is cute and

> understandable.

 

Also accurate and true, my love.

>

> ~ feral ~

>

Now, GoVeg.com says she couldn't imagine changing her name back saying,

" To be named after the number one website for vegetarian information --

what could be better? "