sashimi

You say you "accept" my apology, what's that supposed to mean and then go on to say " I would never join the "kill-the-cats-crowd" regardless of how much more appetising it now looks." Don't get that one either. Either you join them or you don't based on research showing they're not right. Or not entirely right. What incenses me is this willingness to blame the cats, solely, but the unwillingness of the Australians to look at how they're treating and dealing with this delicate environment they have because there's a lot of money to be made out of carrying on as usual instead of thinking about what they're doing and changing it, at least to some extent.

It's not like I'm the only person ever to hold this point of view, and if you'd read my earlier posts you'd see I'm also in favour of keeping my cats fenced in, I don't advocate letting them roam entirely freely as yes, they do kill wildlife. But there are other and more important reasons for why the very special wildlife of Australia is endangered.

MeganEkno

This is not the case. For as long as I can remember growing up in Australia there has been effort made to try and get rid of cane toads (and rabbits etc etc). Perhaps you, or somebody else, could suggest a way that we could successfully get rid of these tough b*stards that are slowly ruining our wildlife rather than throwing your judgmental cr*p our way about what Australia has and has not done to get rid of these vermin???

Jolyn

I remember my mum complaining about the cane toad menace in Queensland in the 1950s/60s. They became a problem as soon as they were introduced and noone has any idea how to stop them as they gradually spread over the country. Many things have been tried. I remember trying to pick my way to the house around the many cane toads on the front lawn of my grandma's house at night.

Diseases have been tried to kill off the rabbits. Cruel deaths and they get resistant anyway. Plus it kills other local species.

Australia is so sensitive environmentally having been separate for so long. It's a bit late to fix a lot of the mistakes but stopping logging native timber and woodchipping it would be a start. Without their habitats many of the native species are doomed.

kizkat

You cat haters ever see pictures of the mouse and rat infestations on Aussie farms, with millions of the little buggers devouring and fouling grain and pouring over the feet of famers in brown waves like floodwaters when shed doors are opened? Think a few cats might be useful there?
http://www.indianexpress.com/fe/dail.../fco04019.html

Also check this out
http://www.expage.com/felinepredation
A brief excerpt;
In Europe, in the Middle Ages, laws were passed which lead to the killing of millions of CATS. It was part of an effort by the Church to wipe out paganism.
Very soon rats started plaguing.
When the bubonic plague was brought back from Asia, the rats spread the Black Death. MILLIONS SUFFERED FOOD POISONING FROM RAT DROPPINGS and 25 million died of the plague. It was the greatest disaster in human history. CATS were reintroduced and bubonic plague was brought under control.

So go ahead, kill your cats and let mice overrun in your homes.
See if we cat lovers will miss you when you get the plague..in the case of Australian rodents, the plague of mouse herpes.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au...E27703,00.html

Seriously, of course cats scratch..they are only 10 pounds or so, you are much bigger than they are and scare them, would you respect them more if they DIDNT defend themselves? And of course cats hunt, that is their nature as carnivores. God made them that way, so bitch to Him if you dont approve. Indoor cats may never kill just like a well trained dog may never kill sheep and chickens, but if their careless owners let them run loose outside they will follow their natures.

Good for you sashimi and ceri and the others who have defended this small fierce independant carnivourous animal. And for the original poster, good for you for caring as well as you could for your "nasty cat" for so long. But you cant take chances with your babys sight so by all means, try to find her a home where she can recover from cancer without children around.
Best of luck, will you let us know how it turns out?
Kizkat

mr mover

mouse plagues in sth australia are totally due to Enviromental factors [mild weather, after good grain harvests] and disappear with the onset of cold weather, more or less cats have on influence on this .............. MM

hevs

can't see a few cats being of any use whatsoever to "millions" of mice anyway unless they were like, super fast alien cats, or something. God Seans right i really am posting crap. Help, i can't seem to stoppppppppppp:scared: :scared: :scared:

bondipom

Governemnt is spending $500,000 a year on something that is threatening the the tourist industry worth billions to the economy. To me that is a token gesture and may as well be nothing.

My fear is that once the geni has been let out of the bottle it is pretty impossible to put back.

I hope it isn't too late for the top end but I fear it is.

Larissa

uhhhh... is it just me or is it totally insane to get so hung up on the topic of cats when there's people starving, kids living on rubbish dumps etc. I felt totally ripped off when I paid £200 to have my cats ears docked (ref beginning of thread) when I was quoted £40 originally. Well, I could have sent that money to an orphanage in India ([email protected]) to support a street orphan for a year. It's a mad world we live in.
Larissa

hevs

hhmmmm cats, starving people, i have a cunning plan!!!!!!

Dinners up David! (or who ever you are in the box over the thames!)

Larissa

needed a laugh

hevs

Thank god! it was only a joke! thought i might get a verbal beating, suppose theres time yet................

Bobbi

Or alternatively (plug,plug) donate to the children in Belarus affected by Chernobyl living in the 30,000 orphanages in Minsk alone (www.leaves-of-hope.co.uk - charity close to my heart)

okay shameless plug over and done yes I am a cat lover - also a responsible cat lover ;-)


Bobbi

PeteY

Sash.

Why is it propaganda when it presents a case against what you beleive, but genuine information (you cite Ceri) when it holds up your opinions?

PeteY

I'd like to see the cat that could make a dent into a plague of 10 million ickle mice. Maybe you own a new breed? Supercat?

As MM said.....its an environmental thing.

The very root of the problem is that most owners, and i do mean MOST, allow thier kitties out. And NO, its not natural. Natural for the cat maybe, but not natural for the local wildlife.

Have you guys ever heard of predator-prey relationships? They are basically one of the key things that makes the world go round. Now....you get a load of ickle mice, and then the cats think hey!! Bonza!! loads of grub. So the cats all eat up and have lots of babies. Mummy cat and all her babies then eat the mice and the mouse population drops, because there are now too many cats to be sustained by the mouse population. Hence....some of the cats die. The mouse pop can now grow again and the cycle continues etc etc etc.

Now.....the problem with cats is that they don't die when the mouse pop drops (btw.....im useing mice as an example...) because Felix can pop home and have himself a tin of kittykat.


I personally have no problem with people owning cats......i just don't think they should be allowed outside. Eh? Inhumane you call me? Well.....whats your need to keep a pet animal anyway? Bit selfish really is'nt it? Be honest......

Inhumane? Pah. Tell that to the next Bilby your cat brings in and deposits next to his untouched can of catfood.

MORAL of the story?

Keep your cat inside. (And your dog too if you can't control it).

Larissa

Just an update on Nasty cat.... meow!!!

Despite the fact she can be bloomin' nasty, we waited.... gradually nipper has learnt not to bundle her, I bought her a lovely new cosy cat basket (put up on the top, out of sprog's reach) and we have decided to take her to Aus... she has softened up! It suddenly occured to me that she could develop melanoma anyway, that I could never be sure that her new owners were really looking after her well & that we could keep her in during the real heat of the day (kinda like a housecat, but can go out at other times).
Here's a piccy of the old gal (Mo's her name)... for those who haven't read the thread, her ears were docked due to melanoma. She doesn't seem to bothered to be without them, but does look a bit weird!