Cat News Stories Can Be Drivel

How many stories about cats have you read that are quite frankly drivel. The cat is not only vulnerable on the streets of many cities, it is also vulnerable to exploitation by news media. I think this is an extension of the celebrity cat phenomenon. It all started off with funny cat videos and LOL cats. When is it going to end?

In this instance, we have a local British newspaper called the Norwich Evening News reporting "Aylsham residents terrorised by attacking cat". It is almost as if we have been transported to the midwest of America describing a mountain lion prowling around the suburbs of some nondescript town terrorising God-fearing residents. But no. This is a small, black and white domestic cat, possibly unneutered, who spends a lot of time outside, as often happens in Britain.

We are informed that there had been two cat attacks in this sleepy town. In one, an old lady was knocked over in her back garden by this "aggressive animal" who bit her leg. The cat was probably defending himself. Domestic cats don't attack people without reason.

Helen Copperthwaite, who is 65 years of age says:

“I have seen the cat around in my garden and was amazed at how aggressive it was. It turned on me and started to hiss and growl like it was going to fight.”

The cat is described as being distinctive having white paws and white chest. This is not a distinctive domestic cat! This is a standard black-and-white cat - a tuxedo cat, in fact. Often the paws of the cat are white when the cat carries the piebald gene which is also called the white spotting gene.

I'm afraid that I agree with one of the visitors who has commented on this article in which he stated that it is drivel. It is simply the case of a newspaper that has temporarily run out of something to say and in these situations both the domestic cat and the big cat tends to pop into the minds of reporters.

In America they would probably have euthanised it for being rabid.