Home vet care...

[Homesteadmom]

Beekissed, he is a gorgeous cat! We have 2 cats that were strictly indoors for a few yrs as we had a dog that killed cats & we needed them in our house to keep the mouse population down. When we had to put the dog down we waited a few months & then started letting them outside(they were scarred at first). When we were moving into our new house we couldn't find one for about 3 days then he showed up limping & he was loosing a lot of weight, he really injured his hip or leg badly & so he is now an indoor cat again to keep him safe from any predators(dogs, coyotes, etc). No declawing for us it is cruel in my book. So this cat will live out the rest of his days pampered & inside to keep him safe as he can't run. It is a personal choice for us to make & I know there are people who would opt to put the cat down, but he is so lovable that I can't do it.
I also agree with you on abortion, why aren't those babies lives worth something to some of these people who think animals deserve the best of everything? My animals mean a lot to me & they are all treated very well, but my children come first. Keep up the good work with your cat is he feeling better?

 

[FarmerChick]

He's a nice cat...yea he does look suicidal..HA HA HA HA HA---don't jump off that log!! HA HA

I had a fat orange tabby named Fat Cat. Lived about 14 years and passed away on the back porch. Poor kitty but he lived the good cat life, caught many critters for me at the barn! He was never to the vet and I did all his care.

 

[patandchickens]

Sorry Beekissed, I don't think I explained myself well. I did NOT think you were out there kicking cats! , I was just responding by-the-by to a comment that 'it's legal to kick a cat'. Perhaps there are some places where it is, but not most places. Enforcement is of course another issue.

The difficulty about sticking person A's nose in person B's business is that many people feel that there is a line beyond which it becomes a person's responsibility to stop real wrong from being done. For instance if I saw somebody torturing a baby, I would feel responsible for stepping in and doing whatever I could to stop it, not just shrugging and saying 'well, it's their choice what to do, none of my business'. Some Germans and other Europeans thought it their responsibility to step in and shelter Jews from the Nazis, and good thing they did, too. Etcetera. I would guess that MOST of us have SOME line beyond which we think we should intervene or at least SAY something. Not so much "our business" as "our responsibility", you know?

Problem is just that different people have their lines drawn in different places. So person B is not always going to agree with when person A feels compelled to speak up.

Now, yes, a lot of carping about things that people do is not related to this kind of 'line in the sand' morality thing. Like, if someone's neighbor, who doesn't like them anyhow, complains about their laundry hung on the line In Full View Of THe Neighbor's House, Shock And Horror!, that is not likely to be a strongly held ethical position so much as petty sniping or perhaps just selfishness.

But, especially where a person's or animal's pain is involved, it can be hard to DEFINITELY know a person's motivation for speaking out. (Incidentally, I know a number of people who are MUCH more animal-rights-y than me, and they are also anti-abortion, though how would you know unless you asked them?). So I am just trying to promote erring on the side of giving people the benefit of the doubt, you know?

Just 'cuz we don't like the things people say about us (obviously, like anyone else, I've been on the receiving end of that sort of thing too) doesn't necessarily mean it is unfair or petty of them to say it. People can legitimately have deeply-held beliefs and if so they SHOULD stand up for them, no?, just as at some point I expect you would stand up for yours. It is possible to disagree with what someone is saying, without necessarily thinking badly of them for saying it.

Probably having made things worse, but ,

Pat, who has spoken up many many times in the past to try to dissuade people from continuing things that are really really harmful to horses, and will continue to do so, even though I am quite aware that some people think it's none of my business

 

[PotterWatch]

Pat said it for me again. I also did not actually think YOU have been kicking your cat. I was speaking in generalities that I don't agree that just because someone owns a pet, it means they are allowed to do whatever they want to/with it.

edited for spelling

 

[Beekissed]

Pat, I just think there is a little too much of meddling in other people's business, especially when it comes to animals. Yes, if someone were hurting a baby, I would step up. An animal? It would depend on the degree, I guess. Even then, an animal is property, not a human. People's property is their business. I just happen to come from a culture that believes that our business is ours and we don't inflict our culture on others as well. I know its become very politically correct to stick one's nose in, with self-righteous flags aflyin', but I don't hold with that, especially with someone's property that they bought and paid for. I am not responsible for their actions in regards to their property...that's between them and God, I should hope. How I treat my animals, short of starving or obvious infliction of severe beatings for no reason but for the pleasure of it, is largely my business. Too much of this whistle blowing now days and it makes for hard feelings and misunderstandings all around. Over an animal. Sorry, but I would prefer to maintain good relationships with my neighbors and, if that means keeping my opinions to myself (which they are...just that...opinions, not necessarily the truth or the right...just feelings and thoughts really), then I will do so. That also means the neighbors on this forum and others. Is expressing one's opinion and always trying to be right worth alienating someone or making them feel small? I don't think so....but then, that's just my opinion. :/





Well, you can all relax with the thought that I won't be torturing my cat today. I couldn't find a suitable agent to induce the level of unconsciousness I needed, so no home vetting for us.

The vet said it was a dislocation and it would cost $600-$800 to fix. Needless to say, Ol' Spike is now going to be a 3-legged cat. Very sad all around.

I can't keep him inside, he wouldn't stand for it, and our rental agreement does not extend to animals inside the house anyway.

We can close the thread now and let me mourn my beautiful, free-spirited boy....I hate to see his perfection marred by this, but I love him all the more for his independent nature.

We have opted out of putting him down, as the vet says it probably doesn't hurt him much now anyway and that he will adapt.

 

[heatherv]

awwww... I hope your pretty kitty heals and adapts quickly. :aww

 

[patandchickens]

Well, some of us don't consider animals just property (even tho I know that's what they legally are, in many but not all respects) any more than we consider people of other ages or races to be property. (However, I see nothing at all wrong with your wanting to treat the cat yourself, under the circumstances, either). And that's all I'm going to say.

I'm sorry to hear it's not something you can fix yourself, but I will be thinking all the best thoughts for him getting used to his new state and getting around ok. As long as he can keep out of coyotes' way he may be fine, animals can be amazingly adaptable.

Best wishes,

Pat

 

[FarmerChick]

6 to 800 is incredible price. WOW

Don't worry at all.....my friend Barb owns a dairy farm and had cats with dislocations also and they get along fine....seriously, aniamls adapt to whatever is...they know the present and live with things easily actually.