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Open Thread
Posted by YesBiscuit on August 29, 2015
https://yesbiscuit.com/2015/08/29/open-thread-176/
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The views expressed in this blog are the opinion of the author.
YesBiscuit
Kathryn Hargreaves
/ August 29, 2015mikken
/ August 29, 2015What is this, Kathryn?
Kathryn Hargreaves
/ August 29, 2015A doggie who was killed even though he had multiple rescuers.
mikken
/ August 29, 2015Where and when?
Clarice
/ August 31, 2015This was at the Devore “shelter.”
Clarice
/ August 31, 2015Click on the “f” shown in the right hand corner of the video and you can read the comments.
Kathryn Hargreaves
/ August 29, 2015Oops, I thought the video link included the comments. Now I can’t find the FB post. Maybe delete this?
KateH
/ August 29, 2015Does anyone have any experience living with (or knowing someone who has lived with) a cat with cataracts? I’m working with a very over-extended woman who does a bit of cat rescue work and one of the three kittens I’m taking to the low-cost speuter clinic on Monday morning appears to have congenital cataracts. I have no idea how much surgery could cost, but as I’m paying over $250 for these kittens to get into adoptive homes, I can’t come up with any more any time soon to even start helping with surgery. If the kitten has to wait too long for surgery it will probably end up blind and I’m concerned about his adoptability AND adaptability. He’s so damn sweet, will come up for petting and playing, purring like a Masarati, AND he likes dogs who like cats! I would adopt him in a heartbeat, but two of my dogs think small critters are to be played with until they stop squeeking permanently.
Clarice
/ August 29, 2015I have lived with many cats and worked in a cat clinic, but have never seen a cat with cataracts, so I can’t help. You may want to call a cat specialty clinic and ask about cataracts in cats. The link has some basic information regarding cataracts in cats.
http://www.vet.cornell.edu/fhc/health_information/cataracts.cfm
Casey
/ August 29, 2015With kittens, it tends to be ulcers on the corneas – damage from an untreated URI. We’ve seen a number of them in the shelter and have adopted out a few blind kittens without issue. They adapt very well and seem to get on just fine as long as no one goes moving the furniture on them or anything.
In fact, we just adopted out a cat with NO EYES (found as a stray, if you can believe it). And we have a kitten now with one missing eye and the other needs to be removed.
Blind kittens do great – we try to give them “chirpy” toys and jingle balls so they can track the toys, but other than that, they need very little accommodation.
You may want to ask if there’s a veterinary optometrist in the area who can help you – some cats do well with medicated eye drops to help clear things up a little, but optometrists are not cheap ime. Maybe they’ll give you a rescue discount.
Here’s Oskar’s FB page – https://www.facebook.com/BlindOskar?fref=ts (he’s not the cat we adopted out, he’s just the internet’s most famous blind cat!)
KateH
/ August 29, 2015Casey, do you know how to find adoptive (or even foster) people who would want a kitten with eye issues? I’m so concerned that the woman who has said she may be able to find homes for these three kittens is over-extended as it is, and as I have to take the kittens after their surgery to a dog boarding kennel, that they will be sitting there for a long time (which I also don’t have $ for!), which isn’t the best place for them to get the attention of adopters, of course.
KateH
/ August 29, 2015Casey, I should have mentioned, I’m in the eastside of Cleveland suburbs, so not too far from you.
Casey
/ August 29, 2015Well Kate, I’m not exactly inside the rescue community, but you may want to contact the admin of Urgent Ohio Cats on Facebook. They will often courtesy post for folks looking for adopters/fosters. That’s how I got my very first foster, Prudence (and her three kittens). Rescue Me Ohio may courtesy post as well, I’m not sure.
Casey
/ August 29, 2015I just realized that I hadn’t seen a post from Urgent Ohio Cats in a while – I went and checked and now I’m not sure that the page is still active. I know that the admin had kids and was doing her own rescue work, she may just not have time for the page, too. RMO may be able to help at least direct you. I wonder if One Of A Kind Pets in Akron would take a vision impaired kitten for you…the fact that you’re vetting them would help. Sorry I can’t be of more help!
KateH
/ August 29, 2015Casey, thank you VERY much for the advice. I have gotten some helpful advice from the shelter and have a better feeling about the possibilities for this kitten, going forward. I hope the two ‘normal-eyed’ kittens will be easier to adopt, even though they are both more shy than the other one.
Casey
/ August 29, 2015Don’t be so sure! Blind kittens hit all the “aw poor baby” notes that make some people want to “save” them, first! My shelter takes in hoarding cases and whatnot, so we end up with a lot of less than perfect animals – and we adopt out all kinds of less than perfect animals! The three legged ones, the blind ones, the wobbly ones will tend to actually be adopted faster than the “perfect” ones. Especially if they’re good with other animals (i.e. don’t have to be the only pet in the home).
Socialization is THE BIGGIE. If you’ve got a super friendly blind kitten, that kitten WILL be adopted, trust me. We had one like that named Brad – little black kitten, blind. But Brad was a lover and all it took was one photo of a staffer cuddling him like a baby (and a note that he came with his favorite chirpy cricket toy) for someone to be there first thing in the morning to adopt him!
So you put LOTS of effort into making that kitten as friendly and outgoing as you can and believe me, that kitten will get a home! (maybe sooner than the others!)
Kathryn Hargreaves
/ August 29, 2015I had a kitten who looks like he has a cataract in one eye, not in the middle. It’s a congenital condition where the fibers don’t recede (or something like that). That eye is a little dry.
That said, a Google search (which you’ve probably already done) of “cataracts in young kittens” yields some interesting things.
Clarice
/ August 29, 2015PBS is hosting a 3-night television and online event celebrating a wildlife success story and marine animal phenomenon: humpback whales, blue whales, sea lions, elephant seals, sea otters, great white sharks and more all convene in Monterey Bay once a year. It begins August 31st at 8pm ET.
http://www.pbs.org/big-blue-live/home/?utm_source=previews&utm_medium=email&utm_term=bigbluelive&utm_content=previews1&utm_campaign=bigbluelive_2015
Arlene
/ August 29, 2015I am really tired of animal shelters who are anything but shelter! This place needs to file charges, not just fire staff!
http://www.examiner.com/article/stokes-county-animal-shelter-faces-inhumane-euthanasia-and-cruelty-complaints
mikken
/ August 30, 2015New technique may help save coral reefs –
http://tinyurl.com/ntuwpx6
Original URL – http://www.nytimes.com/2014/11/25/science/a-lifesaving-transplant-for-coral-reefs.html?action=click&pgtype=Homepage&module=c-column-middle-span-region®ion=c-column-middle-span-region&WT.nav=c-column-middle-span-region&_r=0
mikken
/ August 31, 2015Because how else is your pig supposed to get to sleep?
Karen F
/ August 31, 2015Wow. Video of the day!
db
/ August 31, 2015I saw this video – amazing!
YesBiscuit
/ August 31, 2015Me, entering shelter: Please take me to your Pig Petting Kitty section.
Anne Thomas
/ August 31, 2015If the kitten has corneal ulcers, they are usually treatable. However, the treatment involves using antiviral ointment every day for weeks, so either adoption would be delayed or the adopter would need to continue the treatment.
kstclarekathryn
/ August 31, 2015Two stories that need to get out to the world:
http://snocoreporter.com/longview-texas-scrapes-the-bottom-of-our-abusive-animal-shelter-barrell/
http://snocoreporter.com/edmonds-animal-shelter-contract-given-to-a-convicted-animal-abuser/
db
/ September 1, 2015Well, Michigan is back in the news . . . Branch County, the last animal control to use a gas chamber for killing, has decided to reinstate its use. Most of us were hoping that, after a fire earlier this year, the damn thing was destroyed. However, the local sheriff has announced it works and they will continue using it. Last county in the state to kill using this barbaric and horrific way to kill animals. https://www.facebook.com/MforSP?pnref=story
YesBiscuit
/ September 1, 2015Question I don’t want to know the answer to: How does he know it still works?
db
/ September 1, 2015Not sure, but they’ve had it since 1933 apparently, so it’s an oldie but a “goodie”. Some folks have suggested putting the powers that be in for a test run . . . and if they survive, good to go. I really suspect it’s just a matter of time before it joins the other “euthanasia boxes” at the scrap dealer.
YesBiscuit
/ September 1, 2015The actual unit is from 1933? I can’t imagine the thing would pass whatever inspection is required by the state to operate it. It can’t possibly be up to code for worker safety, etc.
mikken
/ September 1, 2015True that. Do they have CO monitors around the thing? Geez.
If you’re using equipment from 1933, it may be time to think about joining the rest of the world. But people who use gas chambers use them because they’re “easy”. Like pressing a button and you can just kill a whole bunch of pets – easy.
db
/ September 1, 2015Apparently at some point, someone said they do sedate the animals before they go in the killing box. DUH! If you’re going to give them an injection anyway, at least let them die peacefully, not in that box of horrors. It’s just hard to get my head around. There are a lot of folks who are working on getting this scrapped; in fact I believe there is a meeting tonight in Branch County.
db
/ September 3, 2015Correction on the date of the box – 1993. Didn’t read carefully enough, I guess. Still . . .
KateH
/ September 2, 2015Sedating an animal before putting into a gas chamber mostly just makes it a longer process, therefore wasting that sort of expensive CO2. Wasteful and even crueler, as death takes longer, all the while the animal’s lungs *try* to get in air, but can’t, since their breathing is shallower. It is a horribly awful way to kill anything. The only thing that is *better* because of sedating first is the thrashing, howling, and dying gasps might be less noisy, thereby allowing the workers to ignore more easily. Sadly, I do know what happens to critters in gas chambers and it is NOT a kind way to die. Anyone still using one is either a sicko or possibly works at a lab with rodents and is doing mass kills for convenience (yet another reason why animal experimention is wrong).
Clarice
/ September 1, 2015Police officer shoots dog in the owners yard as the family watches.
http://journalstar.com/news/local/family-wants-officer-fired-for-killing-their-dog/article_26d90383-126e-5abb-a00a-0e644e52db2b.html
Karen
/ September 1, 2015I was just going to post this. Ugh.
mikken
/ September 1, 2015Geez. It sounds like he intended to kill the dog from the start.
Probably had his gun out the whole time. Wonder if he was wearing a camera?
YesBiscuit
/ September 3, 2015I have been this overdue for a haircut before:
http://news.nationalpost.com/news/world/thirty-sweaters-worth-of-wool-shorn-from-overgrown-sheep-found-wandering-the-australian-wilderness
sarahjaneb
/ September 3, 2015There’s some really cool stuff here, like which animals stay longest at Austin Animal Center based on color, age, breed, etc. Every shelter and rescue should have something like this. Apparently the software is FREE for small non-profit rescues!
http://fetchitsoftware.com/metrics/metrics.html
Lisa B
/ September 4, 2015I’m a little late to this open thread party, but I just wanted to share that Cleveland County Sheriff’s Department is raffling off a puppy: https://www.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=874979119238396&id=157039237699058
YesBiscuit
/ September 4, 2015It looks like they are getting slammed in the comments but no indication they’ve read them.
db
/ September 4, 2015There’s a link to the sheriff’s department that you can send your comments to, also.
Clarice
/ September 4, 2015Posted on FB: The Cleveland County Sheriff’s Office has cancelled the raffle for the German shepherd puppy that was going to be raffled at the Cleveland County Fair. Our original post did not state that in the past years we have required the person that won the drawing to be subjected to Cleveland County’s Animal Adoption Policy. Due to the overwhelming outcry we have teamed with a reputable 501.C3 animal rescue that has agreed to help in finding a suitable owner for this puppy. The animal rescue is also in discussion with Highland K-9 in Iredell County to provide training for the puppy. The Sheriff’s Office will be looking into other fundraising projects to help support our K-9 program. If you purchased tickets you will be contacted and your money will be refunded.
db
/ September 4, 2015I am surprised, but so very happy to read this. I guess there are some folks who are willing to listen . . . oh, if only there were more.
Clarice
/ September 4, 2015The world’s first cat’s eye view street map website has been launched in Japan. It is similar to the google street view maps, only it is from a cat’s perspective.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/japan/11843337/Japan-has-invented-a-Google-Maps-style-street-view-for-cats.html
YesBiscuit
/ September 4, 2015Puppy is a good sport:
http://onemorepost.com/newborn-photoshoot-with-their-dog/
mikken
/ September 4, 2015Aw, he got his daddy’s facial fur!