Cat Lovers in India are a little scarce it seems but growing in numbers (I hope - am I wrong?). While I am building the Pictures of cats.org website and this website (a Blogger subdomain), it has become increasingly apparent that the cat fancy (cat breeders and cat lovers) is confined to certain countries and I would dearly love it to be much wider.India is a growing country and a world force economically and becoming increasingly westernized. Yet as far as I can see the vast majority of Indians see the cat as a bad luck omen and a link to witchcraft. Am I misinformed. A person left a comment to say that I was.
It also seems that another reason why the cat is not that popular is that people in India seem to prefer companion animals that are utilitarian. The companion animal needs to perform a service of some sort and dogs being bigger and stronger can at least protect people (note though that cats are great for keeping the rodent population down so they do have a use). You can tell that Cat Lovers in India are few and far between because you can't even buy cat food in India, never mind other cat products (this is incorrect apparently as cat food is currently - at 2009 - available but I feel far from the same level as in the USA for example).
There would seem to be a long way to go before India has a cat fancy by which I mean a cat association or associations and cat shows etc. (wrong? - please correct me). I'd have to guess and say that there are no cat clubs in India. I'd bet that you could count the number of purebred cats in India on one hand (this seems to be incorrect but purebred cats are much scarcer it seems).
The slight lack of interest in the domestic cat extends to their wild cousins, the Bengal tiger. This seems to be an undervalued yet beautiful wildcat that is gradually becoming extinct in the wild in India despite the much heralded Project Tiger and million pound funded project to save the tiger that is simply failing.
When you do a search of the major newspapers of India for stories on the domestic cat, nothing comes up except stories about the domestic cat in North America!
So, Cat Lovers in India, both of domestic and wild cats, are fairly scarce as far as I can see. I think that there needs to be an awakening and an awareness. The domestic cat is a great companion. Your cat companion will change your life and you'll start a trend that will benefit the domestic cat in India and the people.
One last point. Please neuter all domestic cats. You don't want a feral cat problem (have you already got one?!). But don't, don't be cruel to them, please. When we are cruel to animals we damage ourselves and the world. The world becomes a worse place.
Picture: by sallylondon -- feral cat in India surviving against the odds. Published under a Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs creative commons License
Cat Lovers in India to domestic cat
what a load of shit..the tiger is India's national animal and is held in high regard..pure breed cats are on a rise in the major cities and i personally own and know tonnes of people who own pure breed cats..u need a lot more fingers to count their numbers..have u even researched availability of cat food india..major brands like royal canine,top cat,whiskas,maxx etc are freely availble in all cities as are a whole variety of cat products..please get ur facts right!
ReplyDeleteWell, the tiger may be held in high regard but it is being poached to extinction in your country! Not much regard there is there?
ReplyDeleteAnd there is no cat association in India that I know of. Are there breeders of purebred cats and could you name me some?
I am not talking about domestic cats generally but purebred cats so mentioning cat food is irrelevant.
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ReplyDeleteI changed it to make it softer. I like India and the people. It is a great place but I wish the tiger was better protected and the humble feral cat better respected.
ReplyDeleteI have to agree to most of what is written in the article!
ReplyDeleteI actually don't like the idea of neutering the cats though.. They are so few in India, and a feral cat colony would be more tolerable than colonies of rabid dogs mauling people as and when they want.
Recently, there was an article that Royal Canin has changed hands with ownership and that they have changed formulations of their products too. And this comes as a horrid surprise, and true to that. There have been many reports and complaints (you can check the RC Complaint Board for proof of this) that Dogs and Cats have had convulsions, seizures, renal infections recently after purchasing the new stocks of RC. RC agrees that they have changed formulations, and included Chicken By Product meals instead of Chicken meals and it is all 'the same'. But, in reality, this means 'beaks', 'tails', and even chicken feces may be added to the food. Would you feed your cat this?
ReplyDeleteThe only reason, I followed my gut to do a thorough research on this is because my cat has stopped eating well and is getting thin by the day and he loved RC so dearly and suddenly is showing an odd repulsion. It is true, that cats sense the difference before anyone does. My mother also suspected an odd smell that was never there in stocks purchased of RC since the past two years. I am in vain as my cat turns his head away from Whiskas, IAMS, and other cat food brands.
Although, my cat is in good health. You might know that cats are incredibly resilient animals and can hide their pain or changing bodies very well, so it is hard for us pet parents to know if something is in fact wrong.
It's easy for us to lay back and just say that 'we'll make do with what's there/best in India' or 'my cat seems to be doing fine'. But, long term health is key.
I wrote a request to Wellness Core (the best and the most appreciated cat food brand in the world) to introduce their brand in India. But, you know these things don't happen without persistence and reasoning.
Urge you to create more awareness on changing scenarios with what cat food brands today are stuffing our cats to reduce their costs.
Urge you to start a movement where the Best makes it's way to India. We Indians Love Cats as much as Dogs too. If there is ample choice for Dogs, why not for Cats?
Ayesha, thank you very much for highlighting this problem. It sounds very distressing. I'll check it out myself and probably write a page about it. Thanks again.
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