This is a video of a lion pawing vigorously at a perspex window to try at get at a child, it seems to me. The interesting thing is this: there is no sound of claw against perspex. It is just the paw pads. Do they declaw lions in zoos like this? Is this lion declawed or is it me being too suspicious?
Sunday 8 January 2012
The Crazy Human-Cat Dichotomy
This really annoys me. On the one hand we have millions of funny cat videos. We have millions of funny cat cheeseburger pictures (pictures of cats with funny captions). Yet on the other hand we have millions of cats deliberately killed at cat shelters. We have millions of miserable, short-lived feral cats that should have been domestic cats. We really don't do it right, do we?
We cannot have fun looking at cats doing what we consider to be crazy things and at the same to kill them in the millions. We shoot them in the USA and skin them alive in Asia. Funny cat videos are an abuse on that basis. If we had everything in order, no abandoned cats, no cats being killed at shelters, no abuse, no shelters in fact, then we would have a right to laugh at cats on a YouTube video.
Until then we haven't. And Google are accessories to this ugly fact because their highly paid Ph.D. scientists who work at Google in their thousands decide what websites should be listed in a Google search and they find, and rank highly, funny cat videos. Also Google owns YouTube. Google needs to take responsibly. It is time to act more responsibly.
If a Google employee reads this, I want to say that I respect Google and their free applications but you should understand that it is you who, more or less, govern the internet despite the fact that you are a profit making business and have shareholders.
We cannot have fun looking at cats doing what we consider to be crazy things and at the same to kill them in the millions. We shoot them in the USA and skin them alive in Asia. Funny cat videos are an abuse on that basis. If we had everything in order, no abandoned cats, no cats being killed at shelters, no abuse, no shelters in fact, then we would have a right to laugh at cats on a YouTube video.
Until then we haven't. And Google are accessories to this ugly fact because their highly paid Ph.D. scientists who work at Google in their thousands decide what websites should be listed in a Google search and they find, and rank highly, funny cat videos. Also Google owns YouTube. Google needs to take responsibly. It is time to act more responsibly.
If a Google employee reads this, I want to say that I respect Google and their free applications but you should understand that it is you who, more or less, govern the internet despite the fact that you are a profit making business and have shareholders.
Friday 6 January 2012
When do kittens open their eyes?
ANSWER: Kittens open there eyes at seven to ten days normally. It can occur at 2 days of age and as late as 16 days of age. Genetic and environmental factors affect the time when a kitten's eyes open. These include:
- gender of the kitten;
- parenting;
- exposure to light;
- age of mother at the time of giving birth (parturition).
How to reduce cat allergies
How to reduce cat allergies? Here are ten tips:
- Male cats should be neutered. Male and female cats that are neutered/spayed have similar levels of Fel D1 allergen but unneutered males are the worst.
- Thinking long term, if a child is exposed to a domestic cat he or she has a lesser chance of being allergic to cats when older. There are resistant to it. Conversely adult people who are first time cat caretakers are less resistant (half as resistant) especially people with allergies to other substances1.
- Cat avoidance measures should be taken. This is rather self-defeating though. Keeping your cat out of the bedroom at night helps.
- You can more or less ignore stories of certain cat breeds being hypoallergenic. There are a lot of claims on the internet all of which are scientifically unsubstantiated.
- Use a HEPA filered air purifier.
- Use the best type of vacuum cleaner with a HEPA filter.
- Wash your cat's coat once a week. I think this is not that practical to be honest.
- Wash your hands after handing your cat. Once again somewhat self-defeating.
- If you have a large enough home, keep one room for your cat where he can go so that you can gain some respite from the Fel D1 allergen.
- Continual close exposure to Fel D1 can sensitise the person even though there was no sensitivity previously. Points 8 and 9 help to reduce the speed of this process.
Tuesday 3 January 2012
Old Style Siamese Cat
The "old style Siamese cat" is a purebred Siamese cat of moderate proportions or body conformation. The terminology "old-style" is one more of a long list of terms to describe the spectrum of appearances of the Siamese cat. At one time, pre-1950s, there was one type of Siamese cat and that was the same appearance as the original imported Siamese cats from Thailand.
There is a lot of debate and dispute as to what the original appearance was and should be today. All this has caused confusion to people outside the cat fancy. You will read about:
So, the old style Siamese cat is in between the traditional Siamese and the slender show cat, the modern Siamese, in terms of body conformation. The term "Thai cat" was, in my opinion, a mistake as it introduces yet another label for the Siamese cat. But breeders of the Thai cat will strongly disagree with that. For them the Thai is not a Siamese cat although it definitely looks like one!
In my view the traditional Siamese sometimes referred to as the "Applehead Siamese" (a derogatory term made up by some breeders who don't like the cat, I suspect) is near the true appearance. You only have to look at old photos to see that. But here is the complication. The original Siamese cats must have varied in appearance and some would be similar to Thai cats (old style Siamese cats) and some similar to traditional Siamese cats.
But none would be similar to the overbred, overly slender, modern show Siamese with unnatural oversized ears. This cat breed is a mistake and the CFA only recognize this odd looking cat. Odd that.
Old Style Siamese cat to Home page.
There is a lot of debate and dispute as to what the original appearance was and should be today. All this has caused confusion to people outside the cat fancy. You will read about:
- Traditional Siamese cats
- Applehead Siamese cats
- Classic Siamese cats
- Thai cats
- Old style Siamese cats
- Modern Siamese cats
- Contemporary Siamese cats
So, the old style Siamese cat is in between the traditional Siamese and the slender show cat, the modern Siamese, in terms of body conformation. The term "Thai cat" was, in my opinion, a mistake as it introduces yet another label for the Siamese cat. But breeders of the Thai cat will strongly disagree with that. For them the Thai is not a Siamese cat although it definitely looks like one!
In my view the traditional Siamese sometimes referred to as the "Applehead Siamese" (a derogatory term made up by some breeders who don't like the cat, I suspect) is near the true appearance. You only have to look at old photos to see that. But here is the complication. The original Siamese cats must have varied in appearance and some would be similar to Thai cats (old style Siamese cats) and some similar to traditional Siamese cats.
But none would be similar to the overbred, overly slender, modern show Siamese with unnatural oversized ears. This cat breed is a mistake and the CFA only recognize this odd looking cat. Odd that.
Old Style Siamese cat to Home page.
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