I went to see the Lippizzan Stallions last summer, and got crap on my facebook page from someone who decried the "cruelty" of their restricted lives. Someone whose cats have never been outside. #peta
If Peta really is protecting cats to death, which is a sort of misleading header, then that would reveal their secret ultimate agenda finally to stop all exploitation of so called companion animals by making it practically impossible to take care of them in a natural way. this woman was likely driven bats by the cat's behavioral problems indoors, probably the main reason cats or dogs are given up for death by impoundment in kill shelters or to be killed by helpful vets. most people don't really strike me as particularly worthy to be responsible for the lives of animals. they should get stuffed toys or robot animals instead. #peta
@Lydia Jenkins Netzer: There is an ethical and philosophical argument that goes into some detail about the slavery of 'pets,' but it is almost as extreme as the formerly unpopular opinion that women should have equality under laws...The world may become more radical about animal liberation as time goes by, but I think it could be a very lonely and bereft place. #peta
King Solomon arrived moments too late to ask who wanted which half of the cat. Sobbing, Netzer said, “I would’ve wanted the ass. Cat anuses are so cute!” The King sighed, because then he knew. #peta
It is the height of selfishness to have your pet put to sleep because you are afraid someone might take it away from you. If the cat had its druthers, I think it would have chosen to, you know, live.
And also...it is NOT GOOD for cats to be outdoor cats. Outdoor cats live a third as long on average as indoor cats because outdoors they are exposed to all different ways to die along with a host of diseases from other cats. I come from a family of veterinarians and have seen and heard horror stories about what happens to cats and dogs allowed to roam free.
If a cat is spayed/neutered and raised indoors, it should have no problem being a perfectly happy indoor cat. It seems the problem in this instance was the cat was allowed to roam outdoors in the first place and then freaked out when that was changed.
I think PETA is screwy in many ways, but in this case I think they had a point. Keep your cats indoors unless you want them, chances are, to meet an early death. Most reputable shelters will not allow people to adopt a cat unless they pledge to keep it indoors, and there is a good reason for that.
@Atilla the Bun: One has to also think of quality of life over quantity; some cats are not okay as indoor-only cats and are extremely unhappy at being cooped up inside. Animals at the zoo tend to live longer than those in the wild but that doesnt mean its the best life for them.
@monsters_and_dinosaurs: I've rarely heard of an indoor cat that has always been an indoor cat and has been so upset by being indoors that its quality of life has greatly suffered. Give an indoor cat enough food, toys, and places to sleep, and they tend to have just fine quality of life and they don't have to worry about getting mutilated in some terrible outdoor accident. Keeping a cat indoors is simply not comparable to keeping, say, a 500lb wild lion in a small enclosure at a zoo. #peta
@Atilla the Bun: Actually, my cat was pretty plainly depressed until I let her go outside. Then her whole personality changed -- she became more relaxed, less hyper, more affectionate -- she was a different animal. She was clearly much, much happier, and once I started letting her out she was miserable being cooped up. It did foreshorten her life, but I'd decided that she had the right to have the life she wanted, as opposed to a longer one that seemed like purgatory to her. If it had been up to me I'd have kept her in, but I felt as if I were torturing her by doing so.
I've now had for eleven years two cats who are happy to be inside and have never shown the least interest in going outside (as opposed to the other one, who was always trying to escape ever before I started letting her out). This is a huge relief to me, but I still don't feel I did the wrong thing with my first cat, whom I still love and miss. #peta
@MissNormaDesmond: There are going to be those exceptions where a spayed/neutered cat that has never been outdoors nonetheless goes nuts indoors. But I think it is much more common for people to just let their cat outside because they don't consider the consequences that may have on the cat. Bottom line: if possible, keep your cats inside. Most cats don't "need" to go outside to be happy cats, and they are exposed to a myriad of dangers out there. #peta
@comrade tacky: They had announced they were going to remove him if they saw him outside again, and keeping him inside was not an option. At all. He was losing his mind in cataclysmic proportions.
They were keeping cat food on their porch, he was obsessively stalking the door, and it was only a matter of time before they "saved" him, and I would never know what was happening to him or where he was. They don't have a great track record with the animals they rescue. #peta
@Lydia Jenkins Netzer: While I appreciate you posting in this thread, I still don't think it was the best course of action.
That being said, I'm extremely sorry for your loss. I have two cats and feel for you. The idiocy of PETA trumps your mistake in my mind, for sure. #peta
This reminds me of when my sister-in-law came to visit. She was so angered by the sight of our neighbor's cat sauntering down the sidewalk that she wanted to knock on their door and demand that they bring their cat inside. I had to beg her not to. For one: I don't see the harm in the cat being outdoors -- we live on a very quiet street, and two: I thought she should mind her own business.
The funny thing is that my cat loves to sun herself on our deck but has always been too timid to venture further. Well, the one time she did she got stuck inside a prickly bush, which I think scarred her for life. #peta
Hoity is now haunting the PETA intern house, leaving spectral cat poo everywhere.
Ms. Netzer should have simply bought a dart gun and put a few PETA assholes to sleep. There is no more loathsome organization allegedly dedicated to a good cause. #peta
Confining a cat indoors is about the cruelest thing I can imagine short of subjecting it to a vegetarian diet. Cats like to prowl. They like to kill things. It's what they do. It's how God made them. If PETA has a problem with that, tough shit. #peta
@HurtsSoGood: I can't make my cats go outside. They'd rather sleep on my bed instead of under a bush, eat Fancy Feast instead of killing small rodents, and poop in a box than dig in the dirt.
I did grow up with an indoor/outdoor cat, but we also lived on 10 acres. And as much as I love animals and want all the animals, Fuck PETA.
@HurtsSoGood: PETA gets made when cats act cat-like and kill birds. There was an article somewhere about this recently- a new push to keep pet cats inside. Fucking losers. #peta
@HurtsSoGood: Cats do just fine indoors. It's actually safer for them to be inside, since they won't get attacked and killed by predators, fight with other cats, get hit by cars, stolen, poisoned, shot, etc. A lot of people also don't want their cats outside, killing the wildlife. It's really not that hard to keep a cat happy indoors, but depending on the cat, it may take some work, and some people are just too lazy to deal with it. So they take it to the pound and have it put down, instead of finding another home for it or something rational. #peta
@HurtsSoGood: Also there are some pretty sick people who like hurting cats. I've heard of people "catnapping" pets that have been let outside and selling them to labs or using them in dog fighting rings as bait. In an urban area, letting your cat outside is pretty dumb. #peta
@HurtsSoGood: There is nothing cruel about keeping a cat indoors. But allowing a cat to get hit by a car, mutilated by a fan belt, eaten by a dog, or any of the other host of things that can happen to an outdoor cat is kind of cruel in my estimation. Dogs were made to roam around free in packs, too, but they tend to live longer and have a better quality of life if they are not allowed to do that, either. #peta
@Atilla the Bun: I'll go ahead and disagree with you about the quality of life part as it pertains to cats. In my extensive observations, cats who are kept indoors tend to go absolutely bonkers from boredom, and there is only so much that cat toys and such can do to alleviate that. #peta
@HurtsSoGood: I have had many a cat in my life and observed many an indoor cat brought into my dad's vet clinic, and I've never had, heard of or seen one going "bonkers" from being indoors if it was a neutered/spayed cat that had not previously lived outdoors.
However, I have seen cats with their legs chopped off from getting caught in a fanbelt; with abscesses on their head that went to their brain from being in a cat fight with the neighborhood tom; with gashes into their skull from the thrasher; with painful acute kidney failure from drinking anti-freeze; with their bodies torn limb to limb because they were attacked by a dog; and the list goes on and on. Cats do not inherently need to be outdoor cats to live happy lives. There are some exceptions, but to say they as a species "need" the outdoors is simply incorrect. And I guarantee you most vets would agree with me on this.
@HurtsSoGood: People who say black & white things like this on either side of this issue have no clue about domesticated animals and should probably just keep their opinions to themselves. Some cats or dogs are more active than other cats or dogs. If PETA or you have a problem with that, tough shit. #peta
Or she could have tried going to the police or even suing her neighbors for nuisance. One scary letter from a lawyer may have been enough to get them to stay off her property. #peta
I empathize with Ms. Netzer. When I read that more than 70 percent of all prostate cancers are diagnosed in men over the age of 65, I shot my Grandpa in the face with a revolver. I really had no choice. #peta
i honestly think i'd rather put my beloved cat to sleep instead of giving him to a local shelter or PETA, where god knows what may happen.
these PETA folks have a good message, but they have to recognize that their methods need adjustment and are a tad too much occasionally. #peta
@squeakel: On top of which in this case, these PETA kids didn't even understand that that cat probably had a good life to begin with. Some cats cannot function inside like that because it's their nature to spend time outside, doing what cats do. And I agree w/ Jim-- many older cats are euthanized rather quickly even in shelters that brand themselves as "no kill." Eventually, they do. #peta
It's true that the demand for puppies and kittens is higher, but I worked in an animal shelter and we did 50-70 adoptions a day and most of them were adult animals because younger animals are more scarce. Kittens also have a season, so they're not available most of the year. #peta
@squeakel: If you ever want to see what it's like in probably 50-75% of animal shelters in this country take a trip to the Carson shelter in Los Angeles.
I threw up and cried in my car the first time I went there....mainly because it wasn't the first I had seen that was so bad. #peta
@Tiger Lourdes: Zombie Hunter: Oh, God, don't remind me. I adopted two kittens from there who died of distemper. It was a nightmare. They didn't want to know they had distemper there, the bastards; I'm sure dozens of cats died. #peta
@MissNormaDesmond: Same thing happened to a friend who adopted a dog there. The place is teaming with distemper and they do not care. I offered to volunteer my time to help clean up and was flatly refused. They said that was their job. Great, you collect a check and I'll be over here NOT KILLING ANIMALS.
@If_I_Had_a_Poodle: Why would you keep a cat indoors -- or, more to the point, why would you not let it out if we're talking about country/suburb cats, and not city cats? Seems cruel not to. Cats like to be cats. They go out, do their cat things and, if you're lucky, at the end of the day she leaves you a sweet dead mouse-gift on your doorstep when she comes home. #peta
@hilikusopus: I'm not defending PETA, but no, it's not cruel to keep a cat indoors. I've had numerous former strays, and none of them had a problem adjusting to indoors only. Cats that go out kill songbirds, damage property, and, most important, are at high risk of being killed or injured by cars, sadists, and other animals. #peta
@hilikusopus: I'm not a cat person, but I believe that the sickness, danger, etc., issues make the indoors only requirements a good thing for city cats and suburban cats. Country cats are maybe another story, but I side with the "inside for their own protection" approach.
The average dog would enjoy being a free range creature, too, but we keep them inside or on a leash or under supervision for their protection. #peta
@quotidian: You raise a good point about the wanton killing of wild birds by tame housecats. Cats who are fed and cared for kill wild birds for fun. This is not cool.
Is a fat cat a satisfied cat? Apparently not when it has birds nearby. According to a recent report by Wisconsin researchers, free-ranging domestic cats destroy millions of birds in that state each year.
Many of these tubby tabbies kill for fun rather than for food. Unlike wild predators, domestic cats hunt whether they are hungry or not. Professor Stan Temple of the University of Wisconsin (UW) calls cats "subsidized predators" because they receive a steady supply of food at home. "Pet cats can hunt longer and are less susceptible to disease than many wild predators," says Temple.
Also, I'm a major major bird lover. I don't keep cats, but I do keep two awesome birds. I don't clip their wings, because I want them to feel like birds. I guess I'd want a cat to feel like a cat, too, but I don't want them decimating wild bird populations either. At all. #peta
@hilikusopus: Yeah, I really don't understand that either. If I didn't live in the city I'd let my cat out all the time. Cats have good instincts. Yes, they can get hit by a car and die, but so can a cyclist. Maybe we should all stop riding bikes. #peta
@quotidian: Songbirds are like Doritos. Let your cat hunt all the birds she wants; God'll make more. Seriously, hippies driving Volvos probably kill more birds with their air pollution than my three cats combined. #peta
@If_I_Had_a_Poodle: The indoors only life may be a good thing for suburban cats, but it is really hard to enforce. Cats are wily bastards, and unlike dogs they generally don't feel compelled to come when they are called.
We recently lost our favourite cat after a fall from a tree (heartbreaking) and vowed never to let the other 2 out again. We quickly caved, however, when leaving the house every morning became a military-style excercise in order to keep them from escaping between our legs, or *climbing our backs and launching themselves through the door*. They are much happier when they can get outside, roll in dirt, and industriously dig up all the freshly planted bulbs in the garden. It is their way. #peta
@If_I_Had_a_Poodle:
@quotidian: Hmmm, it's rather counterintuitive until you look at it like that. Thanks.
Also, I'm a major major bird lover. I don't keep cats, but I do keep two awesome birds. I don't clip their wings, because I want them to feel like birds. I guess I'd want a cat to feel like a cat, too, but I don't want them decimating wild bird populations either. At all. #peta
@quotidian: My cats now have had no issue being raised as indoor cats, but others I've tried to raise indoors from birth, even, have been strongly opposed (adamently, non-negotiably opposed).
Some cats, like some people, are content to spend their time indoors. Some are not.
Bethatasitmay, this lady is even more reprehensible than the sort of person who would put their cat to sleep because they got a new apartment with hardwood floors. #peta
@KikiCanuck: Oh my God, I laughed out loud at the image of your cats flying out the door. I'm a big believer in keeping cats inside to prolong their lives, but I acknowledge the reality of Cats Who Will Not Be Fenced In. PETA people willfully ignore the fact that some cats are like Steve McQueen in the Great Escape. I've been lucky: Not only does my cat not try to get out, I can't even convince her to venture into the outside hallway of our high-floor apartment building. #peta
@thisiswhatweknow: Yes, this all depends on the cat. You see people sometimes walking their cats outside on leashes in the city but I can think of many cats I've met who'd lose their minds if you tried to do that to them. It's not a black & white issue and erring on the side of caution in an urban or suburban area is the side that most animal rescue groups and vets take. Supervised outside time, like with dogs, seems totally fine though. #peta
@MissNormaDesmond: That is the problem with this issue, there are the people who rant about how "cruel" it is to have an inside cat, and then the people who act like all cats are easily kept inside and show no interest in the outdoors if you just teach them right. This is nuts to me, different animals have different personalities and you need to do the right thing for what that animal is interested in. Giving a cat who wants to go outside some supervised outside time is totally fine as is keeping a cat who doesn't even want to enter a hallway inside is totally fine. I don't get why this is a controversial opinion. #peta
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Indeed touching. A latter-day version of Goldsmith's "The Deserted Village." #gourmet
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What kind of vet would do this? Did I miss something about the cat's health and well-being, other than the threat of the PETA interns? #peta
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I couldn't stand the people telling me to put my cat inside, so I killed it. WHA? #peta
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It is the height of selfishness to have your pet put to sleep because you are afraid someone might take it away from you. If the cat had its druthers, I think it would have chosen to, you know, live.
And also...it is NOT GOOD for cats to be outdoor cats. Outdoor cats live a third as long on average as indoor cats because outdoors they are exposed to all different ways to die along with a host of diseases from other cats. I come from a family of veterinarians and have seen and heard horror stories about what happens to cats and dogs allowed to roam free.
If a cat is spayed/neutered and raised indoors, it should have no problem being a perfectly happy indoor cat. It seems the problem in this instance was the cat was allowed to roam outdoors in the first place and then freaked out when that was changed.
I think PETA is screwy in many ways, but in this case I think they had a point. Keep your cats indoors unless you want them, chances are, to meet an early death. Most reputable shelters will not allow people to adopt a cat unless they pledge to keep it indoors, and there is a good reason for that.
Okay, rant over... #peta
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I've now had for eleven years two cats who are happy to be inside and have never shown the least interest in going outside (as opposed to the other one, who was always trying to escape ever before I started letting her out). This is a huge relief to me, but I still don't feel I did the wrong thing with my first cat, whom I still love and miss. #peta
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They were keeping cat food on their porch, he was obsessively stalking the door, and it was only a matter of time before they "saved" him, and I would never know what was happening to him or where he was. They don't have a great track record with the animals they rescue. #peta
11/05/09
I've always read that cats live longer and are healthier when they live indoors.
A 12-year-old "outdoor" cat might have difficulty adjusting, however.
Is there a tort of "civil harassment"? #peta
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That being said, I'm extremely sorry for your loss. I have two cats and feel for you. The idiocy of PETA trumps your mistake in my mind, for sure. #peta
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The funny thing is that my cat loves to sun herself on our deck but has always been too timid to venture further. Well, the one time she did she got stuck inside a prickly bush, which I think scarred her for life. #peta
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Ms. Netzer should have simply bought a dart gun and put a few PETA assholes to sleep. There is no more loathsome organization allegedly dedicated to a good cause. #peta
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I did grow up with an indoor/outdoor cat, but we also lived on 10 acres. And as much as I love animals and want all the animals, Fuck PETA.
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However, I have seen cats with their legs chopped off from getting caught in a fanbelt; with abscesses on their head that went to their brain from being in a cat fight with the neighborhood tom; with gashes into their skull from the thrasher; with painful acute kidney failure from drinking anti-freeze; with their bodies torn limb to limb because they were attacked by a dog; and the list goes on and on. Cats do not inherently need to be outdoor cats to live happy lives. There are some exceptions, but to say they as a species "need" the outdoors is simply incorrect. And I guarantee you most vets would agree with me on this.
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Only I would have told them in the most polite way possible to go f*** themselves. #peta
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these PETA folks have a good message, but they have to recognize that their methods need adjustment and are a tad too much occasionally. #peta
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What might happen would be that your cat could be adopted into a good home. #peta
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People want kittens and puppies not cats and dogs.
It happens, two of my cats where older once I got them (I adopted them from a friend) but Im the exception to the rule. #peta
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It's true that the demand for puppies and kittens is higher, but I worked in an animal shelter and we did 50-70 adoptions a day and most of them were adult animals because younger animals are more scarce. Kittens also have a season, so they're not available most of the year. #peta
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I threw up and cried in my car the first time I went there....mainly because it wasn't the first I had seen that was so bad. #peta
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Sorry, still makes me stabby. #peta
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Also: Defensively euthanizing your cat? Cruel and insane. #peta
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The average dog would enjoy being a free range creature, too, but we keep them inside or on a leash or under supervision for their protection. #peta
11/04/09
[www.dnr.state.mn.us]
Is a fat cat a satisfied cat? Apparently not when it has birds nearby. According to a recent report by Wisconsin researchers, free-ranging domestic cats destroy millions of birds in that state each year.
Many of these tubby tabbies kill for fun rather than for food. Unlike wild predators, domestic cats hunt whether they are hungry or not. Professor Stan Temple of the University of Wisconsin (UW) calls cats "subsidized predators" because they receive a steady supply of food at home. "Pet cats can hunt longer and are less susceptible to disease than many wild predators," says Temple.
11/04/09
Also, I'm a major major bird lover. I don't keep cats, but I do keep two awesome birds. I don't clip their wings, because I want them to feel like birds. I guess I'd want a cat to feel like a cat, too, but I don't want them decimating wild bird populations either. At all. #peta
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We recently lost our favourite cat after a fall from a tree (heartbreaking) and vowed never to let the other 2 out again. We quickly caved, however, when leaving the house every morning became a military-style excercise in order to keep them from escaping between our legs, or *climbing our backs and launching themselves through the door*. They are much happier when they can get outside, roll in dirt, and industriously dig up all the freshly planted bulbs in the garden. It is their way. #peta
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@quotidian: Hmmm, it's rather counterintuitive until you look at it like that. Thanks.
Also, I'm a major major bird lover. I don't keep cats, but I do keep two awesome birds. I don't clip their wings, because I want them to feel like birds. I guess I'd want a cat to feel like a cat, too, but I don't want them decimating wild bird populations either. At all. #peta
11/04/09
Some cats, like some people, are content to spend their time indoors. Some are not.
Bethatasitmay, this lady is even more reprehensible than the sort of person who would put their cat to sleep because they got a new apartment with hardwood floors. #peta
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