freediver wrote on Jul 7^th, 2013 at 9:47am:


Of all the cats I've had over the past 22 years, this big black male is the most doting upon me. I don't think he can believe his luck. Someone had made his life a hell by enjoying scaring him out of his wits.

In just the past 5 years my neighbourhood has been invaded by Pacific Islanders. A hundred villas a year have been built in this area, and it wouldn't surprise me if Sooty was a refugee from some Pacific Islander home around here.

Not all cultures are the same.

There's strength in diversity.

We are One but we are Many.

Celebrate our Differences.

Proudly Multicultural because we're not all singing from the same page. The greater the difference from our own moral heritage ~ the prouder we are to host this antipathy to our own values.




 

mantra wrote on Jul 7^th, 2013 at 6:09pm:




I don't think Sooty will ever get over his paranoia, but overall he's a lot more settled than he was at first.

A big surprise to me has been how he accepted my own two cats as 'family'. About a week after he finally came out from under the house, a cat from across the road that's been visiting me for years came strolling into the backyard.

And that's when this new cat 'Sooty' put on a display of aggression like I've never seen before in real life or on film. He made this extraordinary noise that at first I wondered where it came from. It was a full-bodied roaring sound, with spittle flying. His whole body visibly vibrated.

Oscar has been Top Cat in these parts for almost his whole 18 years, but this was something way beyond anything he'd seen or heard before. He shot up a tree and stayed there until dark.

If I could have got Sooty's performance on film, it would have been of genuine interest to zoologists and whoever. I was actually a bit worried for myself for a couple of days. Did you ever see the movie 'An American werewolf in Paris'? That's Sooty when he's a little upset about something. 

But! He has never laid a single claw on me for all the time I've had him here. Every day he hops up on the table with wheels I have here, and eyeballs me only inches from my face with those enormous, golden orb eyes of his that are straight from the forests of primordial pre-history ~ and I'm damn glad he's on my side ...   

mantra wrote on Jul 7^th, 2013 at 6:09pm:


I was wrong to generalise in such a way. On the few occasions that the news has brought stories of cats being set alight, it's been Anglo youths who were the culprits.

mantra wrote on Jul 7^th, 2013 at 6:09pm:


I agree. I think the culture which sees men go out into the woods to shoot deer and whatever else, so they can take photos and hang the heads on their walls ~ is pathetic. I keep getting into trouble with my rightwing compatriots for holding to this attitude.

I say "Grow up! ~ and take a camera, not a gun".

miketrees wrote on Jul 7^th, 2013 at 8:42pm:


Didn't Spain recently announce it was banning it? I'll check with Google later.

As a kid I spent a couple of summer holidays in the south of France with my cousins whose parents owned a vineyard. They would take me to a small town where there would be an annual bull fighting festival all day long. 

What it consisted of was the local youths jumping over the backs of charging cows.  It was dangerous. They were brave kids. Everyone had a lot of fun and a lot of laughs ~ and at the end of the day the cows were bedded down in lush hay until the next festival in a years time.

Lord Herbert wrote on Jul 8^th, 2013 at 9:48am:



They'll be rescued eventually. Even if they do get eaten - there will be another dozen or so trappers to replace them.

We'll be seeing similar in NSW in a few months. O'Farrell seems to rely on the Shooters Party to get his controversial legislation through.

Maybe a couple of them will be gored by wild boar?

Quote:


http://www.animalsaustralia.org/take_action/stop-shooting-in-nsw-national-parks

Qld sucks when it comes to the enviroment & wildlife, but at least we are winning the 'Cat' race.
It has been illegal for several years for any cat to leave their owners property. All cats must be de-sexed, microchipped and registered. If a cat strays out of it's yard it may be 'arrested' & impounded.
Personally I don't understand how a human can declare their love for a cat and then let it out side at all, to risk being run over, getting Feline AIDS, bashed up ect. To me this is  NOT a sign of LOVE or RESPECT.
I fellow who builds (personally designed to peoples needs & house situation 'Happy Cat Enclosures') make me a Koala Joey & Mac Joey area so Powerful Owls, Hawks ect can't get to the little ones, but they can still be outside.

Koala-Kanga-Mumma wrote on Jul 23^rd, 2013 at 8:30pm:


Welcome to Ozpolitic Koala-Kanga-Mumma.

I was nagged into adopting a cat a year ago. I don't love her, but I like her. I let her outside usually when she demands it, because she's extremely intelligent and most of the time obedient. I check on her a dozen times a day and she's always close, even if she's out of sight. She makes a quick appearance to reassure me, then she's gone again.

She has her freedom because I can sense that in her earlier life she was confined to a small space and I know she was starved. In her own selfish cat way - she tries to show me that she appreciates the comfortable life I've given her.

It is extremely cruel to keep cats inside all the time. Some people even de-claw them so they don't mess the furniture up.

She might just get run over one day, or poisoned or trapped by a cruel neighbour, but for the moment she appears to be content and happy. She's a lucky cat though - she found her way to my front door. Even if she's into her last life, I believe it will be a long one.