THE GUILT FREE LASER DECLAW

The extraordinary words of a vet "THE GUILT FREE LASER DECLAW" is the title of his web page. He carries out laser declawing and he wants to promote it. I find this title extraordinary because he goes on to say that he knows cat owners feel guilty because he hears comments all day from customers that tell him that they are feeling guilty about asking him to chop of the last phalange (section of bone beyond last joint) of each front toe.



He is trying to assuage their guilt, make them feel less guilty by saying that the operation is less painful and much better for the cat. The cat gets over laser declawing faster. Not all vets agree. This page discusses laser declawing in more detail.

I just want to analyse the idea that the vet can promote declawing on the back of the customer's guilt! It seems very odd indeed.

He is sure people feel guilty about getting their cat declawed. This tells us that these cat owners know that what they are doing is wrong but can't resist having the operation carried out. The drive to remove the cat's claws overcomes the resistance in knowing that it is wrong.

The vet knows that the customer knows that the operation is morally wrong and tries to convince the customer to go ahead anyway. The vet, in short, is encouraging the customer to do something that the customer knows is wrong. Don't you find this extraordinary? What is also very strange is that the vet does not understand what he is actually doing in promoting laser declawing in this way. This tells us that the vet is stupid (this is my opinion only and not a statement of fact).

It is encouraging to know that people who have their cats declawed do in general (according to this vet) feel it is wrong. They sense it is wrong but bury that uneasy feeling about the operation. This squares up with what the law states in Europe where it is banned. Legislators create law for the people and the law should reflect what the people want. So people in Europe find declawing morally wrong. Americans feel the same way but that feeling is squashed by the promotional activities of vets.

The vets also know it is wrong but in the absence of overriding legislation to stop them they allow their greed to get the better of them. See this classic promotional method.

Declawing cats in the USA is based on greed and expediency. The classic weaknesses of humankind are manifested in this horrible and inexcusable operation. See Cat Declawing.



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Cat Statistics

Feral cats - we need better stats
Photo by dimitridf

Either there are no cat statistics, or they are disheartening cat statistics. In the USA there is a need for a proper government compiled and managed national statistics database on matters pertaining to cat adoption, cat abandonment, cat rescue and cat cruelty.

We need to get a handle on cat ownership in the USA. The same can be said incidentally about most countries. I am mainly writing about the US because that is the biggest domestic cat market and perhaps the most advanced market for companion animals although there are some peculiarities and anomalies in the USA companion animal market. I am thinking of cat declawing (legal in USA, illegal elsewhere) and the huge number of pet tigers (believed to be about 12,000) far more than wild tigers worldwide.

ASPCA provides some cat statistics but says that there is no government body that is responsible for compiling the figures.

What figures we do have paint an uncomfortable picture of a nation that has what could only be described as a dysfunctional relationship with companion animals. Despite the many millions of cat and dog lovers 5 to 7 million companion animals enter animal shelters each year. Seventy-five percent of the cats that enter shelters are killed. ASPCA calls it "euthanized" but with respect to them, this is incorrect. Euthanasia is the humane killing of animals that are sick. Most of 3 to 4 million killed in shelters are not sick. But it appears that we don't know the statistics. The statistics that we have are sometimes estimates. How many feral cats are there in the USA? Seventy million? Maybe. Some say the number of ferals is the same as the number of domestic cats. How many domestic cats are there? We don't know the exact figure. HSUS says 93.6m. ASPCA says 85m. HSUS uses American Pet Products Manufacturers Association, while ASPCA uses Pet Food Institute for these figures.

In a more functional relationship with the companion animal there would be a balance between supply and demand. The number of animals available for adoption (A) would be the same as the number of people who want to adopt (B). Supply (A) = demand (B).

As about 2,600,000 cats are killed each year (75% of of 3.5m estimated in shelters) supply outstrips demand by 2.6m (C).

A = B + C

This is probably incorrect because it does not take into account abandoned cats that die outside after becoming strays. As there are about 70m feral cats which possibly includes stray cats it might be fair to deduce that, of these, about 5 million are simply abandoned strays that do not find there way to shelters where they are killed.

Some basic cat statistics for USA:

• 2.45 cats per household
• 93.6 million owned cats
• 38 m people want a cat (93.6 divided by 2.45)
• 3.5 m in shelters
• 75% killed (2.6 m)
• 70 m feral - estimate

There needs to be an oversight government body on cat statistics and dog statistics to allow people to formulate an informed strategy into reducing supply and upping demand in the formula above. In addition I would prefer a government department tackling the feral cat problem and irresponsible cat ownership. All this should be supported and instigated through obligatory, nationwide registration of domestic cats. Perhaps one county or state might start a pilot scheme.

Here are some cat and pet statistics from across the world:

• ASPCA Pet Statistics
• HUSUS Pet Statistics
• Animal Cruelty Statistics USA
• Historical Pet Owning Statistics UK (1965-2004)
• Are Pet Owners Happier? - UK 
• Ownership of Cats in the UK
• The best US states for animal welfare laws
• Animal abuse leading to the abuse of people percentages
• Warrior Cats Survey Statistics
• How Fast Do Cats Breed?
• Convictions for animal cruelty UK 2007 compared to 2006
• Domestic cat prey caught survey in Bristol UK
• Most popular cat breeds by vote on PoC
• Prices of tiger parts
• Price of tiger penis

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What Does The New Google Algorithm Achieve?

This is what the Google algorithm looks like to me!
Photo by Zer0Her0 (Flickr CC file)

I am critical of the new Google algorithm but cannot criticize Google. I'll tell you why. Firstly, though I think we need to decide what the internet is for or what it should be for. Taking a broad brush approach, there are three types of website: (1) content sites like this one and PoC, (2) social network type sites and ancillary sites like Facebook and (3) sites that sell products or are fronts for businesses selling products or providing services. I am sure there are other categories. Content sites make their money from advertising and affiliate work (acting as an agent of another online or offline business and directing traffic to it and receiving commission for that).

Another fundamental thing about the internet is that it is all on one "high street". It is very cramped. What I mean is that on the ground, in the land of reality - shops and stores - there are hundreds of thousands of Main Streets or High Streets where there are stores selling things and getting visitors through the door. On the internet, in the ether, when doing a general search there is one high street of 10 stores and it is page one of a Google search result! Most people find sites using Google and most people don't go beyond page one. That is a defect of the internet. Perhaps Google should artificially create many more Main Streets.They are actually doing this by breaking searches down into categories such as video, images etc.

As I understand it the new Google algorithm tackles the deficiencies in the Google search results for content sites. The internet has progressed very rapidly unabated and almost without control for years. It is a semi-anarchic business world. Google is itself a business although with the power that it exercises over the lives of internet entrepreneurs you could argue that it should be a publicly run, unbiased and regulated body that creates a level playing field. It does not do that in my view. Google does things that improves its business. We must never forget that. It is completely to be expected and we can't criticize Google for that. It is normal. So don't expect fair play and an altruistic approach by Google.

Google search for content should find the best content and present that at the top of the search results. The purpose of that objective is not to please people searching for information but to promote Google as the most efficient search engine.

It has not always quite achieved that and it still does not. There have been times when I have clicked on some sites that feature at the top of page one of a search result to find nothing but adverts and some stupid one line piece of content that is nearly meaningless. I have seen sites that are made up entirely of Google-translated into English pages that are almost unreadable and which were getting decent traffic with decent Alexa rankings. If you search Google News for "wildcats" all you get are football and baseball teams! How about the real thing? I have seen and continue to see image searches that produce rubbish images at the top and fantastic pro images well down the listings - not good.

The Google engineers are good though. They are probably the best. But they don't have complete control on how to manage search in an absolutely fair and proper way. The algorithm is very complex we are told and works on assessing hundreds of different criteria.

The new Google algorithm is intended to improve search results, to put the best web page at the top and to cut out the spammy farm sites. These sites use software to dice and slice copied content from the good sites to re-present it and make money through high value advertising. Camera reviews, which are full of hard data that cannot be copyrighted, is an excellent example. The new Google algorithm has been referred to as the "farmer algorithm". Farm sites grow content! They are not written I guess.

Has the new algorithm worked? There are many webmasters who are frankly p*ss*d off because for them it has not worked. They have the opportunity to vent their frustration on this page at Google. At the date of this post there are 43 pages of submissions! Mine is one of them. There are a lot of people who feel unjustly adversely affected by the new Google algorithm because they have made great efforts to produce the best possible content. Yet Google has downgraded their search results in respect of these sites. Some farm sites are still growing their crops successfully.

The same has happened, albeit on a relative smallish scale for PoC - Pictures of Cats.org. I have lost about 10% of traffic at least from day one of the change: 24th February 2011 (the figures are from the host server not Google Analytics). I am referring to the main site. There are satellite sites, which are Google blogger site subdomains. The satellite sites have not lost traffic. This indicates that the satellite sites have had an impact on the main site. About.com a nice site has lost 10% traffic - this is strange as About.com is a genuine site and a very large site.

PoC is all hand written content. 2,500 pages of a total of 6,500 pages is unique in terms of topic (all the pages are unique in terms of content) as it is the thoughts of visitors reciting their experiences. My content is carefully researched often from bought books and research papers and I also add value through my analysis and assessment. I don't just say the same stuff. I am doing what Google wants me to do and getting punished for it. Well that is what is feels like. I think that you will find that the techie sites have done well out of the changes and the second level topics such as domestic and wild cats have not. Promoting techie sites promotes Google. Also Google favors its own products. If you use a Google product it will probably do better after the algorithm changes.

So, in conclusion, the Google engineers have not quite got it right in my view for the rest of us but it has got it right for Google (to promote themselves). I love Google and their products but right now I am a bit fed up with them. PoC has added 2,500 pages over a year and gets less traffic now than a year ago! Sure competition is fierce but to compete with Google as well as the rest is too much. What is the point I have to ask?

The internet is still not regulated carefully enough. It is still too anarchic. You have to allow the best to succeed and at the moment too many parasites and scammers are allowed to thrive. We need a proper worldwide oversight body that regulates the search engines and which is far stricter on the bad boys of the internet. Or the search engines need to behave even more altruistically and objectively. Note: Google provide a host of excellent free apps that I use extensively. We must praise them for that generosity.

For as long as content is assessed by a computer program directed by a "bot" how will it be able to conclusively decide what is the best content? It can only assess on the basis of how many people see it and for how long but that is not conclusive evidence. Computers can't yet read and decide what is quality writing.

In my case what may have caused a 10% drop in traffic is that I have a blogger site (this one, which as mentioned is a subdomain) which on rare occasions discusses similar topics to the main site. Also this site seems to have taken traffic from the parent site because the new algorithm favors Google products. For example, YouTube is featured more at the top of page one of search results. Google owns YouTube.

That said no one knows exactly what is really going on. All the websites discussing the new algorithm are in the dark if we are honest.

Update: Here is an interesting observation. A search for "oriental shorthair" results in a Flickr photo taken by me coming high up in a Google search result. My original page which is comprehensive in describing the Oriental Shorthair cat (entitled "Oriental Shorthair Cat") is listed below this single photo taken from a Flip camcorder video (in respect of a text link).  Flickr is owned by Yahoo. Why is Google keeping Yahoo happy? Note: Google has listed an image from my site at the top.

It appears that the new Google algorithm is trying to consolidate the internet because it is too big. It seems to be favoring the big sites and it likes new work (although About.com has lost 10% of traffic due to the new algorithm and that is a nice large site). It seems to want to constantly turn over the internet an give other sites a chance as if it is gardening it. It doesn't matter if the new stuff is awful or stolen. No doubt these super engineers will be fine tuning the changes to improve things.

Update: i hate the internet. It appears that the new Google algorithm cannot tell when a person steals text and photographs in breach of copyright. Many people steal my work and the photos of Helmi Flick. Google lists these sites above mine sometimes - the stolen material is ranked higher by Google than the original work or on a par with it. I have to make complaints to Google. When will Google be able to tell who publishes the original work and who copies it? If Google could do that it could de-list the copiers from search results or delete web pages if it was a Blogger site, without first receiving a complaint.

Update 1st May 2011: Google's new algorithm prefers a 20 line page on cat history on this Blogger site subdomain that is a Google translation from Wikipedia France (a poor page) to my page on the same subject and same title that is comprehensive. Perhaps Google doesn't like links on pages. But when you have a big site you have to have links on pages!

Page one Google Search 1st May 2011.

Is Google trying to force us to use Adwords? Is this a way to push people to sign up to Adwords to recover lost traffic? Just a thought.



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Rhinestone Cat Collars

Here's a nice selection of rhinestone cat collars brought together on one page. They look particularly good on wildcat hybrids. I am thinking Savannah cats in fact, F1 Savannah cats in particular. Cat collars should be the type that release if they get caught as there have been cases of cats being injured and hanged by cat collars.

Cats can get feet and legs caught in them too. Please take precautions and chose wisely if you buy a rhinestone cat collar. They look classy on the right cat but there is a health issue. Collars can become too tight if the cat is growing up. This is another thing to factor in when buying.

Personally I wouldn't buy one but I respect peoples' choice and preferences as long as they are sensible and show concern for the cat as well.

Rhinestones are fake diamonds. They are made of glass, rock crystal or acrylic.

As for the Amazon UK market, I don't see rhinestone collars. One of the nearest to this type of cat collar is a glitter one!



Next are a series of links.

There are some really fancy Rhinestone Cat Collars at Here Kitty Kitty (USA market):

Fancy rhinestone cat collar perfect for a Russian Blue cat

See a full selection on this page.

The reason why this particular cat collar would suit a Russian Blue is because they have gooseberry coloured eyes and those eyes would go really well with the colours of these stones.

Pet Jewelry & Collars do some nice safety rhinestone collars in a range of 11 colours (USA market):

See their full selection on this page.

Next on the USA market I would like to introduce a Ragdoll cat breeder who sells rhinestone cat collars. They are called Willow Tree Rags and they have some great collars:

 

Cat collar from Willow Tree Rags.

See their full selection on this page.

What about the UK and India (India are a growing marketplace for people who are interested in keeping domestic cats)?

India is a source of low cost consumer goods much like China. So, although there is probably only a very small domestic market for cat collars there are a good number of manufacturers who supply internationally. One is Lotus Handicrafts who don't make rhinestone collars as far as I can tell but they do make customized collars to order.

Designer on Flickr - click on pic.

As for the UK market, this has proved very disappointing. On a Google search I did find UK websites selling cat collars but it appears that rhinestone collars are not a favorite in the UK as none appeared!

It may be that the rhinestone is more a part of American culture resulting in the wide range on Amazon.com (north American market). Although originally, they were "rock crystals gathered from the river Rhine"¹ in Germany.



Associated Pages:

• Cat Collars
• Cat Shock Collar

Note:

1. Wikipedia authors.



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Lynx Kittens Fight Each Other

Lynx kittens fighting
Photo by Joachim S. Müller (Flickr)

Lynx kittens of the same litter fight each other spontaneously and in a manner that is so violent that it can cause serious injury and even death. What is going on?

Anastasia Antonevich and Sergey Naidenko are conducting research into this phenomenon that goes far beyond simple sibling hard play and rivalry. These are serious unprovoked attacks by one sibling on another.

They have observed sudden attacks by one kitten on another. The mother has to beak it up. Injuries can be serious and include bites to the paw and neck. Sometimes limbs are broken and a cub is occasionally killed.

The fighting has been observed between 7 week old Eurasian lynx cubs (60% of time) and can go on for several days. "Almost all of the litters.." of the Iberian lynx fought in this violent way. The fights occur once but the hostility can last for several months.

The research investigates why lynx kittens fight each other so violently and how these fights affect the development of the cubs. They are not motivated by shortages of food.

Bobcats apparently also demonstrate sibling aggression. It is not known whether the Canadian lynx litters engage in these fights.

The fights occur in the wild and in captivity. My observations? Well I am not sure. It seems that the young lynx starts to prepare for independent survival at a very early age. When adult these siblings will have to survive in competition with each other. Perhaps the competition starts at 7 weeks of age for the lynx and the sooner one can dominate and even eliminate another so much the better for the winner.

See also rewilding of lynx wildcat.



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Tabby Cat Personality

Tabby British Shorthair cat sleeping on grey cat litter
in his cage at a cat show - Photo by Michael

There is no such thing as a tabby cat personality. There really can't be. The tabby cat is not a breed of cat  - see Tabby Cat Breed. The tabby cat is a cat with a tabby coat and this coat type is found on a large number of different cat breeds and is the most common type of coat for random bred cats (mixed breed cats).

The tabby cat coat is everywhere. The tabby coat is found on a large percentage of wildcats too. In fact nearly all the wildcats have tabby coats. If there are 500 million domestic cats in the world, about 300 million would be tabby cats!

It is absurd to think that these 300 million cats all have the same or similar personality and also odd to think that the type of cat coat also dictates the cat's character. Also if there was such as thing as a tabby cat personality the wildcats would have the same character as the domestic cats.

People also think that calico cats have the same personality. Calico cats are also not a cat breed. "Calico" is the American name given to cats with a totoiseshell and white coat. I don't think that the calico coat affects the personality.

It is possible that people search for tabby cat personality thinking that the "tabby cat" is a cat breed - it is not. It is a very ubiquitous cat coat, no more, no less. It is worth pointing out that the difference is personality between the cat breeds is quite small. Most are in the middle ground. There is a difference between the most static (e.g. Persian) and the most active (e.g Bengal) but most are in the middle.

If you would like to read more about the tabby cat coat and see a wide range of photographs of different types of tabby cat, please go to this page: CAT COATS TABBY.

Even if there was such as thing as tabby cat personality, the character of individual cats would have a greater impact on behavior. Individual cats have quite a wide range of personalities.




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Feeding A Stray Cat

I am feeding a stray cat and I am becoming frustrated and irritated. I'll explain why. About 3 years ago he walked into my life through the back door cat flap. He was skinny, underweight and very light. He was athletic and adventurous. And he was and is unneutered.

Today, he is a bit overweight, less athletic, lazy, demanding food that he does not need while giving me ringworm and massively itchy skin because I am allergic to him (see cat allergen Fel D1). He is on my bed about a yard from me as I write this and I itch. He has also acquired two cat abscesses through fighting over territory that I have fixed by trips to the vet.

All my life I have never been allergic to cats. But I am to Timmy, the name I gave him.

Timmy - the man after eating 5 sachets of cat food.

He gives me ringworm because he carries the fungus although I can't see it on him. Perhaps he just carries it and transmits it. It seems like that. It means that when he comes up to me in the early hours of the morning for food, I have to put on trousers as he rubs against my legs and delivers the ringworm that way. Or he head butts my arm and gives me ringworm there too.

I have two domestic cats, Binnie and Charlie. Binnie is about 19 years of age and Timmy's presence makes her insecure. That is another downside. Charlie is OK with Timmy but all in all there are a pile of downsides and irritations but I love him and cannot "get rid of him", however you do that. Because I have no idea really how to stop him coming in.

I could put in an electronic cat flap and put activating collars on Binnie and Charlie. That would stop him getting in. But, I don't want to do that because Timmy relies on me now and it is a big complication. Also, it is my fault, entirely. I have created this dilemma.

And this post is about "the dilemma". When you can't turn your back on a cat in need you create for yourself a potential dilemma because at some point in time you have to stop.

And that time has come for me. I have had one cat for many years. That is about fine for me. Then I took on my mother's cat, Charlie, after she died about a year ago. I don't want to care for a third cat who gives me diseases and raids my wallet.

That said Timmy does not stay. He comes, eats, sleeps and goes to where he came from if there is one place. God knows where that place is. I have seen him cross the busiest of main London main roads. One day he'll get hit. But he has survived thus far. That is another downside - the worry.

Feeding a stray cat, you see, can bring with it a lot of problems. Timmy gets the same high quality food as the others and demands it now. When he first turned up he ate all the left overs and rubbish. Now he wants boiled fish and prawns and looks at me plaintively if he hasn't been served it. And if he dains to eat cat food he can eat more than a person at one sitting - 5 sachets of 100 grams each! His belly swells up as if he is pregnant. He gets through a lot of what you see below:

Cat Food - don't buy Iams by the way
as they animal test

I can't afford him. I can hardly touch him. I need to get him to the vet to treat his ringworm and to be neutered. But I don't want the hassle, can't really afford it and in any case he hates being put in a carrier and I would hate to have his balls cut off.

Feeding a stray cat? Think about where you are going. It's a dilemma.



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