I never said I spoke English to him…
OK 
Farris, I don’t mean to sound like a coldhearted asshole (even though maybe I am), and I like cats a lot. In fact, I like almost all animals that don’t eat me or sting me.
But we’re still fighting ignorance over here. I respect religious boundaries, and don’t spend a lot of time in Great Debates because of that: debating about matters of faith is interesting, but not always worthwhile.
Having said that, this is NOT a matter of faith, I believe (ha!).
There is no way you could have made your cat realise you were moving out in 2 weeks. Human and feline modes of communication are not compatible enough to achieve this.
There. I’ve said it. I’m sorry for not being able to restrain myself from posting it, and I’m sorry for hijacking such a touching thread.
When I was 15, my dog was hit by a car. It wasn’t much consolation to know that his neck broke and he died immediately. I still cried for weeks. After about a week, there’s a knock on the door. There’s a flower delivery, and a note attached “I am so sorry for your loss. I wish I could undo it somehow.” It was from the guy driving the car. I don’t think anyone has ever done such a nice thing to me before or since.
Crap, now I’m crying again. I still miss my dog, and it’s been over 10 years. Damn.
It’s fine that you believe that, Bullshit though it is. People frequently communicate actual thoughts and ideas to their animals.
A few years ago, my Uncle moved to another city and job. His wife, who worked at home before, had to get a new job as well. They had a Dalmation (very smart animals) which they love more than most parents love their children. Anyway, the dog was used to them being gone all day, because even though she worked at home, she would be gon a most of the day anyway. When she got home after the first day of work, there was vomit everywhere… For weeks the dog wouldn’t eat. They thought he was sick. They took him to the vet (a very prestigious So Cal vet) who ran some tests and asked some questions… The next day, they called the office to find out the results. When the secretary came back, she had to put my Aunt on hold so she wouldn’t hear her laughing: The diagnosis was severe depression and anxiety. The vet and my Aunt and Uncle determined that the reason he was getting sick was because they had TOLD Sebastion (the dog) that she would be gone all day every day thenceforth.
It’s fine that you believe that, Bullshit though it is. People frequently communicate actual thoughts and ideas to their animals. Ask anyone who has ever raised a Dalmation, or a vet. They’re very emotional animals, and are prone to anxiety attacks if you tell them things too far before hand that might upset them.
It’s OK to be a skeptic, but don’t go denouncing a science you haven’t personally researched.
-The Jew
OK, I promise I’ll leave my soapbox home tomorrow.
I can see how a social animal such as a dog reacts to sudden changes in his daily pattern, such as his owner being away when he’s normally there. In extreme cases, I can even imagine that the dog develops physical illnesses because of this. After all, humans develop physical illnesses, caused by psychological trauma, too sometimes. So yeah, animals can get ill because of social changes in their environment.
But merely telling an animal something doesn’t cause shit. Calling the claim that it does cause something a science is even more out there.
Give us some proof.
Michi, do you have any experience with this?
(Farris: Michi is a vet nurse by trade, hence my question)
Zut, I know this is going to sound odd, but you did that animal a favor by killing him or her. The odds that the trip to a vet would even have seen the animal alive are slim to none, and no vet could have saved the kitten then.
Fuckit, this is reminding me of my two dead dogs, neither of whom is my fault. One from cancer, the other because the goddammed person at the place we kept her over vacation didn’t know to put fucking WATER in the food so she wouldn’t get fucking BLOAT. DAMN some people are ignorant.
And no we didn’t sue because at the time we were so shocked.
Ah, fuck it. I’ll wait and see what Michi says, but like I said before. I know what I know. The dog was used to her being gone, and the day after she told him he got sick.
And yes, animal behavioral psychology IS a science, whether you choose to believe it or not.
Your mama…
Man I’m emotional today… probably because I had to give up caffeine this week.
A few weeks ago, my fiancé and I were driving on a Pasadena freeway when we passed a large, stunned-looking dog huddled up against the wall by the far left lane. It completely silenced both of us when we realized he was alive, had his head up, and was looking at us. It made me sick to consider the poor fellow’s situation–he was crouched in about a foot of space between the wall and the fast lane, and was pathetically trapped. What made it worse is we knew there was nothing we could do; we couldn’t possibly have pulled over, as there was no shoulder to place the car. It would have invited tragedy for us. (Not to mention the dog was on a turn of the freeway–we barely saw him before we whizzed right by him. It wasn’t until after we’d passed him that we realized he was alive.) Regardless, I wanted to help the poor fellow, and called various numbers alerted area police of the dog’s precarious situation (not to mention the risk he was to motorists). This story was actually the catalyst for my “When have you had to call 911?” thread. The dog was removed, but I have no idea in what condition. I can only hope for the best.
I’m with Satan (there’s something I never thought I’d say–nothing personal, Brian, just the whole identifying with the Lord of Evil and all…) on this one–there is no way I would have had the courage to do what you did. It makes me sick to even think about it–but kudos (and a big hug) to you for doing what was right.
Sheezo, I’m going to go hug my cat.
To be perfectly hoonest, I have never heard of an animal having a reaction to something just because it was told about it. (By this I mean telling the dog you are going away to college. I do not mean simple commands that animals are trained to respond to).
It is quite common for animals to react to changes as they happen, as has already been discussed (changes in work schedules, things like that). But I don’t think my cats are going to be much affected by me going up to them and saying, “I’m going on vacation for 2 weeks.”
OK, I know I’ll be called a heartless asshole for this but I am the original Dr. Kovorkian (sp?) of the animal world.
I love animals, big and small, and I would never dispatch one just because it wasn’t wanted, but I have no trouble putting an injured creature out of its misery.
Everyone I know brings their injured and suffering animals to me because they don’t “have the heart” to do it.
I end it in the quickest and most painless way I know, a .22 cal. bullet in the base of the skull. Even our local Vet has said that he has no drugs that are better, faster or more humane.
I don’t enjoy this roll, but I enjoy it more than seeing a hopelessly injured creature lying in agony for hours. If I were in the same position, I only pray that someone has the compassion and balls to do the same for me.
That said, you did the best thing for that poor kitten that you could zut, and you are to be commended for it.
Who the hell is your local vet and what does he use to euthanize animals??? Geez, Euthasol is VERY humane and the animal is gone before we are done injecting it. It takes a whole 2 seconds to do, and I would take that ANY day over SHOOTING an animal, unless I had NO OTHER choice.
I once saw a cat get hit just as friends were dropping me off in front of my house. It wasn’t killed, but it was just lying on the shoulder. I carried the poor thing to the house and set it on a blanket in a box. I was only 12, so I couldn’t really tell whether it was gravely injured or was just resting. A few hours later, I noticed that it stopped breathing. I dug a hole and buried it out back, marking the site with a crude cross.
Later that night, a young woman came by asking if I’d seen a cat wandering around. Her description fit the cat I buried. I told her what had happened, and she burst into tears. She walked off before I had a chance to tell her about its grave.
I totally agree… Sorry, if I didn’t make it clear in earlier posts, zut, but you certainly did the right thing.
I only hope that if you ever accidentally run over me, you’ll have the same compassion and whack me over the head with that crowbar.
As for the other thing… look, I’m not a nut. I’m not saying I put Sassy in a chair and said, “Now, kitty… I’m leaving… No, don’t cry. It’s for the best. Please, it will all be ok.” But the bottom line is, he knew, somehow. I can’t explain the psychology or biology of it, but they can just tell.
-The Jew
One Saturday morning, I heard a loud tire screech from the road (yes, the same one as my previous story). I went out to see a high school girl crying because she’d just hit a neighbor’s dog. The dog was lying in the road panting, and the owner, a classmate of the driver, was looking over him. She was apologizing profusely, and he took it in stride. She offered to take him to the vet, but he said that it didn’t look good, and he’d take care of euthanizing him.
Later that day, I saw the same dog running around his yard. I went over to see what was going on. My neighbor said he took the dog out back to put it out of his misery. He layed him down, then went to get his shotgun. When he came back, the dog still looked like he was on his way out. My neighbor cocked his shotgun and took aim. The dog then looked up at his master pointing the gun and then took off running.
The dog lived the rest of his natural life.
Well, sure, you put out signals. You pack all your stuff, things like that. Animals know something is up.
I’m so sorry this had to happen to you zut but you did the right thing. When I was 7 years old I saw my cat get hit by a car. Our family was coming back from grandma’s house and we had just pulled into the driveway and my cat saw us and started walking across the street towards home. A car was coming down the street and ran over my cat and just kept driving!! I remember him laying in the middle of the street, his little paws flailing around. My dad got his shovel and knocked him over the head a few times and then we buried him in the backyard. I cried for days, I was so traumatized!
Another time, when I was 15, we lived right off of the Interstate and 3 horses had gotten loose and were running around on the road. The horses were from a farm about 3 miles away. A semi truck hit 2 of the horses killing one instantly and seriously injuring the other… this happened right in front of our house. We got the third horse contained in our backyard, unharmed. It was about 2:00 in the morning and the truck driver came knocking on our door to ask us to call the police. The police came out and contacted the owner. After the owner arrived and examined the injured horse they decided they needed to shoot the horse and put him out of his misery, there was nothing they could do for him. Well, the cop got out his gun and aimed right between the horses eyes. He shot the horse one time and then waited. That poor horse reared up his head and was trying desperatly to get on his feet and then sank back down to the ground. Then the cop shot again until the gun was empty and the horse was dead. I wish he would have done that to begin with instead of shooting once and waiting! I stood outside watching this, crying my eyes out. That was one of the most horrible things I think I’ve ever had to witness in my life!!
I don’t think I would have had the courage to do what you did. Maybe if I were actually in that situation I would but I’m not sure. You were very brave.
Zut, I empathize completely
When I was a tree surgeon, I was cutting down a big (dead) tree, limbing it out. I cut off one huge branch, it exploded when it hit the ground, and there was a family of squirrels, 3 of them. They were obviously injured beyond hope. The ground man who was working with me wouldn’t/couldn’t put them out of their misery. I had to climb down out of a tree and do the deed myself. Tree work being the he-man work that it is, I waited until I got back up in the tree before I cried. And then I said a little prayer-thing with every limb I cut for a long time afterwards, proving again that there are no atheists in foxholes.
Shitty as you may feel - and I felt shitty for the poor squirrels, for me for having had to do it, shitty all the way around - I found some solace in the fact that I did feel shitty; there was something affirming in that, although I can’t put it into words right now.
Jake
Ayep. I think I know exactly what you mean. Even without the words.
Michi
I knew I’d catch some flak for posting that, so let me try to clarify things a bit.
I never said Euthasol was less humane, I just said that a properly applied bullet is just as much so. In either case death is almost instantaneous. I’ve never undergone either treatment so I can’t debate the amount of pain involved, but I’m sure it’s less than what they are induring at the moment.
I live in a rural area and most of the folks around here are farmers who would not shell out the cash to have a Vet put the animals down. If they prefer a Vet thats great by me. As I said, I don’t enjoy doing it and I don’t advertise, most of them call me because they know I’ll do it rather than see the poor thing suffer.
When my sister took her cat to the Vet to have it “put to sleep”, she mentioned that she couldn’t stand the thought of having me shoot it and he told her that in his opinion, a bullet in the head was just as fast and painless as what he could do.
If you care to drop me an e-mail, I’ll give you his number so you can fight it out with him.
Anyway, the animals that I see have no other choice, its suffer or a bullet. I know which one I would choose.
Large animal medicine is different from small animal. Large animals are not considered pets, aren’t treated as pets. They are viewed from a strictly monetray point of view, so I understand that most farmers would rather shoot an animal than pay for vet care. I don’t LIKE that, especially since there are plenty of large animal vets out there, and I don’t believe in the layman practicing medicine.
As to your sister’s vet telling her a bullet to the head would be just as good, no thanks, I don’t want his number, he sounds awful. (I hope he didn’t say this at the exact time your sister was euthanizing her cat?)
The vets at my hospital are so horrified when someone says they would rather shoot their own pet than pay for euthanasia, we usually end up offering it for free.