HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: cldavies@nyx.cs.du.edu (cindy davies)
Subject: Re: DECLAWING?
X-Disclaimer: Nyx is a public access Unix system run by the University
	of Denver for the Denver community.  The University has neither
	control over nor responsibility for the opinions of users.
Organization: Nyx, Public Access Unix at U. of Denver Math/CS dept.
Date: Wed, 30 Dec 92 15:48:53 GMT

In article <1669.110.uupcb@hal9k.ann-arbor.mi.us> laurel.schippers@hal9k.ann-arbor.mi.us (Laurel Schippers)  writes:
>from  bron@iastate.edu
>---
>96% of the feline owners giving up their cats for scratching problems
>will NEVER own another cat.  The most common reason is the problems they
>had with their previous cat, and they don't want to try again with a new
>one.
>---
>
>Hm, interesting.  I have two questions about these owners:
>
>1) Why didn't they get the cats declawed BEFORE taking them to
>an animal shelter?

Agreed, but with so much anti-declaw retoric out there, they might have bought
into the notion "better dead, the declawed".  Besides lots of people tell
themselves clever little lies... She's such a nice cat.  I'm sure someone will
want her.
>
>2) Why didn't they try claw-clipping or behavior training first?
>
>It seems to me that if your cat is an incorrigible scratcher,
>you get the cat declawed--you don't take the cat to an animal
>shelter to be killed.  Sounds like those owners didn't want to
>be bothered by owning the cats anymore, really.

No, you don't understand, if you can't train your cat in two easy lessions, you
have failed as a cat owner,  If you arn't lucky enough to get a cat that can
be trained easily, you should live with shreaded drapes, children etc. ;-)
>
>Sure, it would be better if the HS offered low-cost declawing
>and spaying as well.  But the problem seems primarily to be
>dumb owners.

Are you kidding?  Many shelters make you sign an oath in blood, that not only
will you not get this cat declawed, you will never declaw a cat in the future,
have never declawed on in the past (or are really really really sorry if you
did) ...

I am currently owned by  two cats and two dogs.  Non of my animals have been
subjected to surgury for "cosmetic" reasons.  The cats have their claws, the
schnauzer has his ears.  However.  If I did not own my own home and had to
deal with a landlord, or if every stick of furniture I owned didn't already
look like I lived in a house owned and operated for the comfort of the 
animals I would certainly be willing to have a cat declawed if it was the only
option.  I would also consider declawing if I were unlucky enough to get a
"mad slasher" cat again.  Last time I had one of those he was schedualed to
be fixed and declawed when he clawed the catsitter, escaped from the house
and was run over...If he hadn't had claws.. who knows.  He might still be with
us.


--

TNSTAAFD -- There's No Such Thing As A Free Dog.

cldavies@silver.sdsmt.edu        cldavies@nyx.cs.du.edu
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
From: wd6cmu@netcom.com (Eric Williams)
Subject: Re: Meaning of tabby cats
Organization: Netcom - Online Communication Services  (408 241-9760 guest) 
Date: Tue, 22 Dec 1992 19:25:08 GMT

jhoskins@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (James M Hoskins) writes:
> 
> 
> What are the characteristic, defining markings of what are
> called tabby cats?
> 
> Also, can anyone comment on coloration and markings of "tortise-shell 
> tabbies" and "mackerel tabbies"?

From one of my many books:

  Basically, the mackerel tabby has stripes all over with a connecting
  line running down its spine (hence, mackerel); and the classic tabby
  has stripes on its legs, head and tail, but the rest of it looks, as
  one breeder aptly puts it, "like a marble cake in the middle".

And from a TICA pamphlet:

  There are four tabby coat patterns: "Mackerel" which has vertical
  stripes running from its back down the sides; "Classic" which has a
  bulls-eye pattern and swirls; "Spotted" and "Ticked".

  Torbies [tortoise-shell tabbies] have a tabby pattern with
  tortoiseshell overlay.

-- 
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Eric Williams     wd6cmu@netcom.com  |  Never attribute to malice that which
WD6CMU@WD6CMU.#NOCAL.CA.USA.NA       |  is adequately explained by stupidity.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: ramones@andromeda.rutgers.edu (E. Ramones)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: Re: Xmas tree is Down
Date: 22 Dec 92 04:43:23 GMT
Organization: Rutgers Univ., New Brunswick, N.J.


   The best I could do was to take a cinder block in,
and literally tie the tree in its stand to it
with lots of cord then also run a cord to the nearest
window to further reinforce it. This by the way will
prevent the tree from actually falling over but
not from having cats perch in the tree,
knock over ornaments, eat the tree and
anything else they can find and in genereal
be as spiteful as they can be, but it
does help. Right around now my tree looks a
little sparse like it need help (itsbeen up
since thanksgiving weekend) but alas
what can one do
From: dan@msen.com (Dan Sugalski)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: Re: Xmas tree is Down
Date: 22 Dec 1992 05:50:48 GMT
Organization: Msen, Inc. -- Ann Arbor, Michigan
NNTP-Posting-Host: garnet.msen.com
X-Newsreader: TIN [version 1.1 PL8]

Louise B. McFeaters (lm00+@andrew.cmu.edu) wrote:


: Yes, the Christmas tree has been knocked over twice by my 4 month old
: kitten, and I was wondering if there was a surefire way dis interest the
: cat in the tree. Any suggestions? Thanks for responding

Last year some friends attached their tree to the ceiling with wire. 
Their 4 year old abby had decided that the top of the tree was *the*
perfect vantage point.  :)

Karen
From: klier@iscsvax.uni.edu
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: Re: House plants
Date: 31 Dec 92 10:37:51 -0600
Organization: University of Northern Iowa

In article <1992Dec28.104831.12243@thelema.uucp>, STella@thelema.uucp (STella) writes:
> In article <18911@mindlink.bc.ca> Jack_Webb@mindlink.bc.ca (Jack Webb) writes:
>>Cat Fancy magazine of May 1988 has a good article on cats and houseplants...
>>here is a list of some of the more poisonous plants.
>>
>>Amaryllis               Arrowhead vine/Nephthysis       Asparagus Fern
> 
> Asparagus fern?  I've been using asparagus ferns as the one plant the
> beasts can munch for ages with no ill effect, had seen other articles
> on dangerous plants that had it as an OK bush, and have given
> asparagus ferns to other knowledgeable catfolk's kitties as a present
> without the kitties' people objecting.  My old vet, back in Ann Arbor,
> would plop an asparagus fern on the exam table to distract kitties
> while the shot went in.

'S fine.  It's a close relative of the vegetable asparagus, and
can cause allergic reactions in some critters/people, but then so
can almost anything.

> I didn't see coleus on that list, and it's one of the ones I won't let
> in the house....

Naw, coleus is OK, too.  It's a reasonably close relative of catnip.
In fact, I can't think of anything in the mint family (Labiatae or
Lamiaceae) that IS toxic.  (Plant ID hint: the mint family has
square stems and opposite leaves.  If you see that, look at the 
flowers.  They should be bilaterally symmetrical, and there should
be 2-4 "seeds" produced per flower.  If you've got a plant with
square stems, opposite leaves, bilaterally symmetrical flowers
and LOTS of seeds produced per flower, you've got another plant
family (probably the Scrophulariaceae, the snapdragon family).

Kay Klier  Biology Dept  UNI
From: lianne@bcarh17e.BNR.CA (Lianne Barre)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: Re: Behavior problem:litter
Date: 21 Dec 92 14:25:51 GMT
Reply-To: lianne@bcarh17e.BNR.CA (Lianne Barre)
Organization: Bell-Northern Research Ltd.

In article <1992Dec11.124927.9740@dorsai.com>, blade@dorsai.com (Terry
Hoffman) writes:
|>Hello, Can someone help me with a problem my new cat has? He builds
the litter
|>up into a little mound in the box. He raises dust by doing this and also it's
|>irritating to hear him in there scratching and scratching. He does this with
|>clean litter (I just got some of that scoop a'way and it's an interesting
|>product). He also did it previously with regular clay litter. Could it be
|>because he's upset to be sharing the litter box with my other cat?

This sounds completely normal to me. Salvador isn't too bad, but Guinness
piles all the litter up into a mound. And only at the front of the litter
box. They're both serious diggers, so I expect they prefer a deeper pile of
litter to play with, rather than the thin layer I provide. The only solution
I can think of is to try different types of litters to eliminate the dust.
Not all scooping litters are so dusty; the one I buy is quite coarse and
clumps very well. And I think all cats love a clean litter box. Mine go
crazy when I refill it, and play in it like a sandbox when done.

|>He's a unnuetered male(not for much longer though) that is NOT 6
months old as
|>I first thought..but is 1.5 to 2 years old according to the vet. He looks
|>awful small to me and especially compared to Tommy.
|>They both seem to be improving slowly, Charlie(might change this) has
taken to
|>following, chasing Tommy from room to room with Tommy hissing at him
|>occasionally. I would REALLY like to get this cat to eat dry food(He likes it
|>when I show it to him) but when I feed Tommy canned food..he insists
on having
|>some..any ideas on how to get each of them to eat their own food?
|>Thanks for any advice!
               
One of the laws of cats is that they'll never eat from their own bowl. It's
the "grass is greener" syndrome. The other bowl has to contain better food.
One way to solve this is feeding them in separate rooms, and not leaving the
food out when they're done. 

- Lianne -
From: alclark@rwasic27.aud.alcatel.com (Amy L Clark)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: good customer service
Date: 23 Dec 1992 10:45:01 -0600
Organization: UTexas Mail-to-News Gateway
NNTP-Posting-Host: cs.utexas.edu

I thought this would be a good place to relate how well I
was treated by the heinz company.

I usually feed the kitties a tablespoon of 9-lives cat
food in the morning as a type of treat.  One morning
I opened a can of the tuna and started spooning the
food into the bowl as usual.  I saw something other
than the usual fishy looking stuff(ugh) in the can.
I picked it out and it turned out to be about a one-
quarter inch pointy bone.  Needless to say, I was very
concerned since a bone like this could lodge itself in
a cat's throat and do serious damage.

The 9-lives can had a toll free number on its side, so
I called.  I kept the can, but unfortunately had already
thrown the lid into my recycle bin with all the other
lids I had discarded previously.  I talked to a woman
who told me that the bone definitely exceeded their
quality control standards.  She asked for the lot number
off of the can.  I looked for it, but it must have been
stamped on the lid that I had discarded.  She then
proceeded to ask numerous questions about the food and
what the bone looked like.  She was extremely apologetic
and concerned.  She told me that the cats probably would
have eaten around the bone if I had not seen it and had
put it in the bowl, but she said that the company didn't
like to take those kind of chances.

Anyway, after she got all of the information she needed,
she offered to replace the can by sending me a free
coupon for some 9-lives cat food.  I told her that I
hadn't used all of the can yet, but she insisted on
replacing it since the can I possessed wasn't their
usual quality.

About a week later, I received the letter from the Heinz
company.  They had thanked me for calling and they had
enclosed five coupons for free cans of cat food.

I didn't like the idea of finding the bones in the cat
food, but Heinz went to great lengths to reassure me that
this wasn't the norm and to let me know that my kitties
and I are valuable customers.

(Oh, yeah.  Donchu is about 6 years old, and I've been 
feeding him 9-lives all this time.  This is the first
time I've ever found anything wrong with the cat food).

Just thought I'd share my experience. (I also have a
story about some nasty cat food (another company) that
was consistantly bad, but I guess I'll have to relate
that later).

If I don't get to talk again:  Happy Holidays, Ya'll.

Amy
From: laurel.schippers@hal9k.ann-arbor.mi.us (Laurel Schippers) 
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: RE: DECLAWING?
Date: 29 Dec 92 14:32:00 GMT
Distribution: world
Organization: HAL 9000, W-NET HQ, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
Reply-To: laurel.schippers@hal9k.ann-arbor.mi.us (Laurel Schippers) 

from  bron@iastate.edu
---
96% of the feline owners giving up their cats for scratching problems
will NEVER own another cat.  The most common reason is the problems they
had with their previous cat, and they don't want to try again with a new
one.
---

Hm, interesting.  I have two questions about these owners:

1) Why didn't they get the cats declawed BEFORE taking them to
an animal shelter?

2) Why didn't they try claw-clipping or behavior training first?

It seems to me that if your cat is an incorrigible scratcher,
you get the cat declawed--you don't take the cat to an animal
shelter to be killed.  Sounds like those owners didn't want to
be bothered by owning the cats anymore, really.

Sure, it would be better if the HS offered low-cost declawing
and spaying as well.  But the problem seems primarily to be
dumb owners.
                                                               
----
+------------------------------------------+-----------------------------+
| HAL 9000 BBS +1 313 663 4173 or 663 3959 | Four 14.4k v.32bis dial-ins |
| Public Access QWK-to-Usenet gateway      | With PCBoard 14.5aM & uuPCB |
+------------------------------------------+-----------------------------+
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
From: MISAXM1@kentvm.kent.edu
Subject: Re: gunky eyes
Organization: Kent State Univ.
Date: Wed, 30 Dec 1992 15:00:37 GMT

 
I have two persians, blue pt. himalayan and one black persian.
This is a very common trait in persians.  I have read this,
my vet has told me this and my cats both get discharge from
their eyes.  Ususally it is sort of reddish/pinkish when
wiped off on a white tissue.  Shadow the black persian has
a lot of discharge, she is very sensitive especially in
the winter when the house is closed up and more dust is
in the air.  Tara has a little everyone once in awhile
which she keeps clean herself, Shadow needs her eyes wiped
off daily.  You may still want to check with your vet if
this is a fairly recent development and he/she hasn't been
in for a check up since it occurred. When I got Tara at
3 months old she had discharge more frequently but as she
got older it seemed to get better (she's 1 1/2 yrs. now).
Shadow always had discharge since I got her at 6 months.
Like I said if this has just come up you may want to have
the vet check her because as someone else said it can
indicate a upper respiratory infection too.
 
If this happens to turn out to be a trait of your kitty and
not a cold or something their is an ointment my vet gave me
for Shadow that helps when she gets bad and sometimes they
can flush out the tear ducts with saline to help.  My vet
said this problem is a result of the pushed in face of a
persain and the tear ducts getting sort of misplaced from
where they normally would go.
 
Good Luck!
 
          Toni,
  /\ /\   Tara &      /\
 ( o o )  Shadow     / /
  \ ~  \____________/ /
  (                  /
   \ _  _______  (   |
   || ||       || | /
   "" ""       "" ""
From: judy@evolving.com (Judy Bettinger)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: Re: Question
Date: 21 Dec 92 19:31:13 GMT
Organization: Evolving Systems, Inc.

Laura Bassi writes:

>  I recently caught a bit of a news piece that was saying something about
>  pregnant women and cat litter.  Apparently, contact w/ cat litter (used, I
>  assume :), is dangerous to the developing fetus. Anyone hear of anything
>  about this?  Thanks.

Yup.  Cats can carry toxoplasmosis which is way bad news if you're 
pregnant, although I have also heard that undercooked meat is actually
a more common source of it.  (Can anyone confirm this?)  If you've had
cats all your life, you may have already been exposed and be immune.  If so,
the danger is past.  A blood test can verify your immunity.  I know all this
because when I had a bad case of giardia (shudder), toxoplasmosis was
one of the things they looked for.  

-- 
#include <std_disclaimer.h>
Judy Bettinger  (judy@evolving.com)
Evolving Systems, Inc.
Denver, Colorado
Xref: sparky rec.pets.cats:15517 alt.drugs:20328
From: bchurch@oucsace.cs.ohiou.edu (Robert Church)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats,alt.drugs
Subject: Re: Cats and LSD
Date: 30 Dec 92 00:25:52 GMT
Organization: Ohio University School of Art. Athens

In article <5fpr+7b@lynx.unm.edu> ledlow@triton.unm.edu (Michael Ledlow PHYS) writes:

>The cat didn't consciencely choose to take LSD, his careless owners provided
>him the opportunity to do so.  Cats being curious creatures will play 
>with about anything.  To say that the cat did this of his own accord is
>ridiculous.  If you leave poison out on the table, and the cat ingests it
>do you say the cat committed suicide??  


Now I'm curious. If you could train a cat that "this is lsd and you remember
what happened last time" I wonder how often they would opt for it? The problem
is that setting up the experiment would be inhumane. 
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
From: hughes@dogwood.botany.uga.edu (Wayne Hughes)
Subject: Re: Kitty Valium
Organization: Botany Department - U of Georgia, Athens
Date: Fri, 1 Jan 1993 06:13:57 GMT

In article <1992Dec31.133149.9609@iscsvax.uni.edu> klier@iscsvax.uni.edu writes:
>In article <1hnm1iINNe94@usenet.INS.CWRU.Edu>, ah881@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Joyce Brabner) writes:
>> 
>> Who has been giving this to their cats?  Why?  Any problems or
>> successes noted?  The drug was suggested as way to help deal wi/
>> some behavior problems ( not *MY* cats!  they are perfect! ;-) 
>> RUTH has three little monsters, and it's been suggested that she
>> ask her vet about this drug)
>
>By kitty valium, I guess you're talking about acepromazine, which
>is the most common tranquilizer for cats around this neck of the
>woods.  It's chemically related to the human tranquilizer chlorpromazine,
>not to valium.
>

  We have on one occasion had real human valium prescribed for 
  a cat, at the 1 mg level.  When Mac was in his terminal
  feline leukemia phase, he had no interest in food.  The valium
  gave him the munchies, much as pot does to humans.  It worked
  for a couple of days, but then that was it.
  
  Wayne


Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats,alt.drugs
From: phz@cadence.com (Pete Zakel)
Subject: Cats and LSD
Organization: Cadence Design Systems
Date: Mon, 28 Dec 1992 21:17:52 GMT

In article <1992Dec17.200748.16776@hpcvaac.cv.hp.com> billn@hpcvaac.cv.hp.com (bill nelson) writes:
>mary@zmax.com (Mary Papp) writes:
>: 
>: This may seem like a very stupid question, but why was this posted to
>: rec.pets.cats?  Cats don't take LSD unless someone forces it upon them and
>: IMHO that seems very cruel and inhumane.
>
>I know one cat who enjoys lsd. Yes, the cat is bright enough to know what
>it is getting - and asks for its share.

I remember visiting someone's house one time and the person living there
warned me to be careful of the cat.

Seems the cat made off with some LSD (blotter) that someone had left lying
on the coffee table and has never been the same since.  It made the cat
somewhat unpredictable in behavior (not that cats are necessarily predictable)
and he would as soon slash your hand as let you pet him.

In this case the cat definitely had taken the LSD of his own accord.

-Pete Zakel
 (phz@cadence.com or ..!uunet!cadence!phz)

Emersons' Law of Contrariness:
	Our chief want in life is somebody who shall make us do what we
	can.  Having found them, we shall then hate them for it.
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
From: ramirez@julia.math.ucla.edu (Alice Ramirez)
Subject: formerly (Will they Ever Learn) now City Pet Limits
Organization: UCLA Mathematics Department
Date: Mon, 21 Dec 92 21:13:20 GMT

In L.A. , The City decrees 3 animals per household.  However, enforcing
this ordinance is well-nigh impossible.  Probably more easy to do with
dogs, which tend to be conspicuous creatures who need to go out than
with cats.

I mean, unless you are creating a nuisance or very conspicuous in the
number of cats you have lounging around your place, how is anyone really 
to know?  Back when I had six, while The Elders were still alive, I'd 
only let 3 go out at a time.  Now, what with the increase in traffic and 
general urban nastiness, I don't let any of them out.  Who's going to 
know HOW many live in any given house?  I think these ordinances are in 
place so  a city can cover its behind and do something if someone is 
creating a serious nuisace. (Like my crazy cousin in San Juan P.R. who
is alleged to have 800 cats). Otherwise, my city at least, has other, 
more important priorities than harrassing some otherwise law-abiding soul
who happens to have 5 or 10 too many cats.  

(And at the risk of being flamed, let me say that I'd find a neighbor with
10 cats to be less of a nuisance than a neighbor with the same number of
children!)
From: nvonstein@memstvx1.memst.edu
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: Pet store vs shelters
Date: 29 Dec 92 16:15:02 -0600
Distribution: world
Organization: Memphis State University

Every now and then we see a posting about animals  in pet shops versus pets
from shelters or other sources.  While this group is about cats, this is an
encouraging story about a puppy farm in Eastern Arkansas. The owners were
arrested and the dogs confiscated by the SPCA.  The dogs were in small cages
and stacked on top of each other, literally 5 and 6 dogs deep.  Some were seen
eating their own feces.  

I hope that the dogs are in good enough shape that they can placed for
adoption.    

Nancy
From: nvonstein@memstvx1.memst.edu
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: Re: Meaning of tabby cats
Date: 28 Dec 92 14:01:08 -0600
Organization: Memphis State University

In article <1h9tclINN787@uwm.edu>, hcrain@convex.csd.uwm.edu (Helen C Crain) writes:
> From article <1992Dec22.160649.15563@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu>, by jhoskins@magnus.acs.ohio-state.edu (James M Hoskins):
>> 
>> 
>> What are the characteristic, defining markings of what are
>> called tabby cats?
>> 
> Well, for one thing, tabbies have a little "M" over their
> eyes.
> 
>> Also, can anyone comment on coloration and markings of "tortise-shell 
>> tabbies" and "mackerel tabbies"?
> 
> I thought the distinction was between mackeral and the so
> called classic, or bulls-eye tabbies.  Mackeral tabby
> markings are basically linear, and the classic markings
> occur in circular patches. Doesn't the tortise-shell simply
> refer to a fairly specific combination of colors?  ?Black,
> orange, and white?
> combination

One of my tabbies (Chili) is long haired and I believe to be a tortoise shell. 
What is most distinctive about her, though, is that on her tummy she has a
reddish blonde patch with a white splotch in the middle.  She is very pretty
and her fur is so long and fluffy.  When she was younger, she was pretty bad
about not grooming herself much, so she was often seen with little dust bunnies
in her fur.  I would her call her The Nitty Gritty Dirt Bag, which later became
Dittums.  She is as sweet as she is lovely, and is truly one of my best
friends.  Her mission in life is to guard me from that "damn dog" that lives in
the house (Josh). Josh doesn't bother any of the cats; Chili just sees him as a
territorial threat.  

Nancy 



> -- 
> Helen C. Crain             hcrain@convex.csd.uwm.edu 
> UWMilwaukee Nursing                   Wisconsin, USA
> "There is more of good nature than good sense at the
> bottom of most marriages"    HD Thoreau