Legless cat ready to start new life.

wrote in message
...
Takayuki wrote:

"Christina Websell" wrote:

"Joy" wrote:

I think that with the right owner, this cat could lead a very happy
life.

No. Sometimes it's time to let go. What sort of happy life will a
cat that has no legs have? None.

I wouldn't say that categorically without some more information. This
kitty looks like she's quite healthy, and even fairly mobile. Also,
we have posters regularly overcome great disabilities and challenges
to participate here, even disabilities as severe this cat. Suz, for
example, who I consider a wonderful friend.

I believe there are some people here who would know how to properly
care for a special needs cat like this one. For example, this case
sounds similar to Major Barbara, who was one lucky slave's heart cat.
She needed to be carried from one part of the house to another, and
also relied on her hoomins to potty her regularly.

I agree. In the video, this cat looked like she was getting around
pretty well. There are things she can't do, but plenty of things she
can do. She looked pretty healthy to me, and lively. Does that mean
she's happy? I don't know. But I wouldn't say her life wasn't worth
living, either.


what i do know is that a cat should not be stumping around on inch high
legs inside a house.
That's not what cats should do.

"Christina Websell" wrote:
I know Suz & her disabilities. This is not the same.
Humans can understand why they have disabilities and come to terms with it,
animals cannot.
I do not support keeping a cat alive who has no legs. Whose benefit is that
for, except for the owner who does not want to lose their cat?
You cannot equate Suz with that to make me feel bad, Tak.

Going back to the example of Major Barbara, one thing I was thinking
was, what if the disabled kitty were placed in an indoor only home to
live that lifestyle, in contrast to the indoor/outdoor lifestyle that
Boyfriend and KFC enjoyed?

If you compare the disabled kitty's lifestyle to say, a pensioner's
indoor lap cat, it doesn't seem to me to be a big enough difference to
say that one leads a good life and the other, a bad life.

"Christina Websell" wrote in message
...

"Takayuki" wrote in message
...
"Christina Websell" wrote:
ingold1234[at]yahoo[dot]com (Gandalf) wrote in message
...
On Thu, 12 Aug 2010 11:50:11 -0700, "Joy" wrote:
I think that with the right owner, this cat could lead a very happy
life.

No. Sometimes it's time to let go. What sort of happy life will a cat
that
has no legs have?
None.

I wouldn't say that categorically without some more information. This
kitty looks like she's quite healthy, and even fairly mobile. Also,
we have posters regularly overcome great disabilities and challenges
to participate here, even disabilities as severe this cat. Suz, for
example, who I consider a wonderful friend.


I know Suz & her disabilities. This is not the same.
Humans can understand why they have disabilities and come to terms with
it, animals cannot.
I do not support keeping a cat alive who has no legs. Whose benefit is
that for, except for the owner who does not want to lose their cat?
You cannot equate Suz with that to make me feel bad, Tak.

I suspect that this is one of those subjects, like whether cats should be
kept indoors or allowed outside, that we're never going to agree on, no
matter what anybody says. In each case, those who feel one way have very
good arguments for their feelings, and, IMNSHO, there is no argument that
positively proves one side is right and the other is wrong.

Also, there is the fact that, although we may think we know what we would do
in a particular situation, we don't. I have three examples from my own
experience:

Many years ago, when my daughter was very small, my husband was working
nights. He didn't get home until about 12:30 a.m. I was waiting up for
him, sitting in the living room reading. My daughter was asleep in her
bedroom at the opposite end of the house. I suddenly heard a crash from the
direction of her room. Immediately I "knew" that someone had climbed in her
bedroom window and fallen over her toys. Without stopping to think, I
grabbed the nearest weapon and rushed to her room, weapon upraised, to
defend my child. When I got her, I found her peacefully sleeping - and
alone. Later I found out that the vacuum hose had fallen off its hook in
the closet in the hallway between the living room and her room. I returned
to the living room, my heart rate gradually slowing to normal, and then
looked at the weapon I had been brandishing. It was a flyswatter!

If you had asked me fifteen or twenty years ago if I'd ever spend $5,000 on
treatments that might or might not work for a cat, I'd have said no way!
When Nanki-Poo was diagnosed with cancer a few years ago, I spent almost
$10,000 on radiation treatments for him.

All of my cats have always been indoor-outdoor. All but one of those I had
were used to being outdoors before I got them. At one point, I tried
keeping two of them inside, and they were miserable, so I unblocked the cat
flap. If you had asked me then, I would have said all cats deserve the
freedom of going outside, and that, given the choice for myself, I'd choose
a possible shorter life span with freedom than a longer life as a prisoner.
I now have two indoor-only cats. They were three years old when I got them,
and had never been outside in their lives. I feel they are safer, since
they never learned how to cope with the outdoors.

I think all of us think we know what we'd do if one of our cats were in such
a horrendous accident, but some of us probably wouldn't behave the way we
think we would.

Joy

"Christina Websell" wrote:

wrote in message
...

I agree. In the video, this cat looked like she was getting around
pretty well. There are things she can't do, but plenty of things she
can do. She looked pretty healthy to me, and lively. Does that mean
she's happy? I don't know. But I wouldn't say her life wasn't worth
living, either.

what i do know is that a cat should not be stumping around on inch high
legs inside a house.
That's not what cats should do.

Well, I mean certainly, it would be preferable for a cat to get around
on four fully formed legs, but...

"Joy" wrote:
All of my cats have always been indoor-outdoor. All but one of those I had
were used to being outdoors before I got them. At one point, I tried
keeping two of them inside, and they were miserable, so I unblocked the cat
flap. If you had asked me then, I would have said all cats deserve the
freedom of going outside, and that, given the choice for myself, I'd choose
a possible shorter life span with freedom than a longer life as a prisoner.
I now have two indoor-only cats. They were three years old when I got them,
and had never been outside in their lives. I feel they are safer, since
they never learned how to cope with the outdoors.

I think all of us think we know what we'd do if one of our cats were in such
a horrendous accident, but some of us probably wouldn't behave the way we
think we would.

Honestly, I can't say for certain either what I would do if one of my
cats ended up like this. With a kitty horribly injured, and probably
due to wake up from surgery in pain, and with no limbs, it's likely
that I'd let her go to RB.

At the risk of being hypocritical, I'd feel differently if I were
presented with a such a kitty that had already survived this ordeal,
and was otherwise in good health, and not in pain.

"Takayuki" wrote in message
...
"Christina Websell" wrote:
I know Suz & her disabilities. This is not the same.
Humans can understand why they have disabilities and come to terms with
it,
animals cannot.
I do not support keeping a cat alive who has no legs. Whose benefit is
that
for, except for the owner who does not want to lose their cat?
You cannot equate Suz with that to make me feel bad, Tak.

Going back to the example of Major Barbara, one thing I was thinking
was, what if the disabled kitty were placed in an indoor only home to
live that lifestyle, in contrast to the indoor/outdoor lifestyle that
Boyfriend and KFC enjoyed?

If you compare the disabled kitty's lifestyle to say, a pensioner's
indoor lap cat, it doesn't seem to me to be a big enough difference to
say that one leads a good life and the other, a bad life.

So, imagine the litterbox situation with a cat with no legs. and if you
aren't around to take care of that.

In article ,
"Christina Websell" wrote:

"Takayuki" wrote in message
...
"Christina Websell" wrote:
ingold1234[at]yahoo[dot]com (Gandalf) wrote in message
...
On Thu, 12 Aug 2010 11:50:11 -0700, "Joy" wrote:
I think that with the right owner, this cat could lead a very happy
life.

No. Sometimes it's time to let go. What sort of happy life will a cat
that
has no legs have?
None.

I wouldn't say that categorically without some more information. This
kitty looks like she's quite healthy, and even fairly mobile. Also,
we have posters regularly overcome great disabilities and challenges
to participate here, even disabilities as severe this cat. Suz, for
example, who I consider a wonderful friend.


I know Suz & her disabilities. This is not the same.
Humans can understand why they have disabilities and come to terms with it,
animals cannot.
I do not support keeping a cat alive who has no legs. Whose benefit is that
for, except for the owner who does not want to lose their cat?
You cannot equate Suz with that to make me feel bad, Tak.

On the other hand, animals don't understand what disabilities are. They
just get along with what they have, usually without the grieving or
social problems that humans have when they become disabled.

I agree with those who wouldn't have put her through the amputations,
but I don't feel that she has no quality of life now. She has a
*different* quality of life, which mustn't be confused with a poor
quality of life.

--
minnow ^..^

http://twitter.com/taheenahana
http://www.flickr.com/photos/minnow/

wrote in message
...
Takayuki wrote:

"Christina Websell" wrote:

"Joy" wrote:

I think that with the right owner, this cat could lead a very happy
life.

No. Sometimes it's time to let go. What sort of happy life will a
cat that has no legs have? None.

I wouldn't say that categorically without some more information. This
kitty looks like she's quite healthy, and even fairly mobile. Also,
we have posters regularly overcome great disabilities and challenges
to participate here, even disabilities as severe this cat. Suz, for
example, who I consider a wonderful friend.

I believe there are some people here who would know how to properly
care for a special needs cat like this one. For example, this case
sounds similar to Major Barbara, who was one lucky slave's heart cat.
She needed to be carried from one part of the house to another, and
also relied on her hoomins to potty her regularly.

I agree. In the video, this cat looked like she was getting around
pretty well. There are things she can't do, but plenty of things she
can do. She looked pretty healthy to me, and lively. Does that mean
she's happy? I don't know. But I wouldn't say her life wasn't worth
living, either.

I would. She cannot even toilet herself, go out or enjoy anything cats like
to do.
What does her life consist of except being alive to make her humans glad
that she is?
I'd be ashamed if I did that to my cat.

Takayuki wrote:

"Christina Websell" wrote:

I know Suz & her disabilities. This is not the same.
Humans can understand why they have disabilities and come to terms with it,
animals cannot.
I do not support keeping a cat alive who has no legs. Whose benefit is that
for, except for the owner who does not want to lose their cat?
You cannot equate Suz with that to make me feel bad, Tak.

Going back to the example of Major Barbara, one thing I was thinking
was, what if the disabled kitty were placed in an indoor only home to
live that lifestyle, in contrast to the indoor/outdoor lifestyle that
Boyfriend and KFC enjoyed?

If you compare the disabled kitty's lifestyle to say, a pensioner's
indoor lap cat, it doesn't seem to me to be a big enough difference to
say that one leads a good life and the other, a bad life.

Exactly - indoor-only domesticated cats' lives are already somewhat
limited by that fact. That doesn't mean their lives are miserable.
This cat's life is more limited, but she might not be miserable, either.
I'll trust her human to know if her cat doesn't want to live, and I
hope that she would have the sense to do what's right if that were the
case.

This might be a bit harder for Tweed to relate to since so few UK
cats are indoor-only, but it very common in these parts.

Joyce

--
I care not for a man's religion whose dog and cat are not the better
for it. -- Abraham Lincoln

Takayuki wrote:

Honestly, I can't say for certain either what I would do if one of my
cats ended up like this. With a kitty horribly injured, and probably
due to wake up from surgery in pain, and with no limbs, it's likely
that I'd let her go to RB.

At the risk of being hypocritical, I'd feel differently if I were
presented with a such a kitty that had already survived this ordeal,
and was otherwise in good health, and not in pain.

I don't think that's hypocritical. You can only make choices based
on the situation you're presented with. And these two situations are
different. One is an otherwise healthy cat with 4 amputated legs.
The other is a severely injured cat, suffering and in pain, recently
traumatized, and having to go through a lengthy recovery process. I
might well make different decisions if given each of those scenarios.

Joyce

--
I care not for a man's religion whose dog and cat are not the better
for it. -- Abraham Lincoln