Got the cat!

[Ophelia]

<snip>

I wouldn't be surprised.

Daughter collected a stray Akita, scanned it and found it was chipped. Called the number registered, the owner answered, they explained the dog had been found and was well and safe and where to collect it they said 'Keep it'. Apparently it was a beautiful temperament dog in good condition and worth a thousand pounds or more!

I believe, after the two week wait, one of the Council workers gave it a good home.

Quite.

Unfortunately, you will find that many people are very confused re their attitudes towards animals. They will spend *thousands* of pounds keeping their aged pet alive whilst at the same time tucking into a steak, escargot or Foie gras (or 'Fat Liver' as it is translated). The only way they can do that is because a perfectly healthy and often young animal has been bred, kept and slaughtered or been exploited in some other way.

I find it difficult to understand this disconnect for supposedly caring but only for a sub set of animals?

Like it's ok to kill and eat a baby sheep but not a baby dog? OK, I know they do such things in other countries / cultures but this is a UK newsgroup so ...

It's like the story of the 3 legged pig.

'Our farm house caught fire and the pig came in, woke us up and we were all able to get out alive'.

Oh, so is that how it lost it's leg, in the fire? ;-(

No, you can't eat a good pig like that all at once can you?

This really seems to show just how little respect some people have towards some animals?

Cheers, T i m

=====

Ugh!

I must admit I now eat very little meat. We live in a big farming area and as I see them...

Our girl has to eat some meat and that is what helps me!

I cannot eat any young animal.

[T i m]

<snip>

That's good. It's one of those 'every little helps' things. ;-)

That was what started our daughter becoming a veggie, living in a house in Scotland with cows in the field at the bottom of the garden. Some would come over as soon as she appeared and most enjoyed some head scratches. ;-)

She was very sad when one day the cows were gone (but nothing more than she expected etc). From that day on she decided not to be part of that process (as much as realistically possible).

Your girl is also an omnivore and many can go vegi. However, in the wild they would eat what they could kill so them doing so is about all they can do. We have evolved to be able to make a compassionate / better ecological choice (~18% of the (worst) greenhouse gasses come from cattle for example (methane)).

We have never been big meat eaters and even before we became Vegi - Vegan, I can't remember the last time we had steak or chops etc.

We are still using up stuff from the freezer so tonight we had a small chicken and veg pie each. It would be even more of a waste of that animals life to have thrown them away.

Slowly slowly ...

Cheers, T i m

[Steve Walker]

Because there is a difference between an animal bred for food and a pet. Not a difference in the animal itself, but because people have an emotional bond with their pets. I could happily eat lamb (as it happens, I don't, but that's because I don't like it), but would not want to eat a particular lamb that we had kept as a pet. Similarly for rabbits.

It is not a disconnect. It is simply a different relationship - just like people are upset by the death of a friend, but the news reporting the death of a person that they do not know means far less, even if they do feel for the family.

Similarly, those of us that eat meat can care about how the animal is cared for and we want it to have a good life, but we can accept it being a short one, as it is not one of our pets.

As for cats and dogs, people in the UK are surrounded by them specifically as pets and so we don't think of them as food. A better example would be horses - then it becomes a case of what you are brought up with.

That's just an old joke. There is no meaning to it.

SteveW

[spuorgelgoog]

:-)

Eating meat does not mean disrespecting animals.

I'd be morally happy to eat human, but most animals look nicer.

Owain

[Ophelia]

<snip>

That's good. It's one of those 'every little helps' things. ;-)

That was what started our daughter becoming a veggie, living in a house in Scotland with cows in the field at the bottom of the garden. Some would come over as soon as she appeared and most enjoyed some head scratches. ;-)

Hmmm I live in the Scottish Highlands and farms are all around! I think you have got it :))

She was very sad when one day the cows were gone (but nothing more than she expected etc). From that day on she decided not to be part of that process (as much as realistically possible)

I know what you mean. My husband likes his meat, but I cannot bear to cook young ones .. ie lambs, calves etc:((((

Your girl is also an omnivore and many can go vegi. However, in the wild they would eat what they could kill so them doing so is about all they can do. We have evolved to be able to make a compassionate / better ecological choice (~18% of the (worst) greenhouse gasses come from cattle for example (methane)).

We have never been big meat eaters and even before we became Vegi - Vegan, I can't remember the last time we had steak or chops etc.

We are still using up stuff from the freezer so tonight we had a small chicken and veg pie each. It would be even more of a waste of that animals life to have thrown them away.

Slowly slowly ...

Cheers, T i m

Yes:) I am doing it slowly, slowly whatever I cook :)

Cheers, O

[Ophelia]

Because there is a difference between an animal bred for food and a pet. Not a difference in the animal itself, but because people have an emotional bond with their pets. I could happily eat lamb (as it happens, I don't, but that's because I don't like it), but would not want to eat a particular lamb that we had kept as a pet. Similarly for rabbits.

It is not a disconnect. It is simply a different relationship - just like people are upset by the death of a friend, but the news reporting the death of a person that they do not know means far less, even if they do feel for the family.

Similarly, those of us that eat meat can care about how the animal is cared for and we want it to have a good life, but we can accept it being a short one, as it is not one of our pets.

As for cats and dogs, people in the UK are surrounded by them specifically as pets and so we don't think of them as food. A better example would be horses - then it becomes a case of what you are brought up with.

That's just an old joke. There is no meaning to it.

SteveW

===

I am pleased to hear that!

[Ophelia]

<snip>

That's good. It's one of those 'every little helps' things. ;-)

That was what started our daughter becoming a veggie, living in a house in Scotland with cows in the field at the bottom of the garden. Some would come over as soon as she appeared and most enjoyed some head scratches. ;-)

She was very sad when one day the cows were gone (but nothing more than she expected etc). From that day on she decided not to be part of that process (as much as realistically possible).

Your girl is also an omnivore and many can go vegi. However, in the wild they would eat what they could kill so them doing so is about all they can do. We have evolved to be able to make a compassionate / better ecological choice (~18% of the (worst) greenhouse gasses come from cattle for example (methane)).

We have never been big meat eaters and even before we became Vegi - Vegan, I can't remember the last time we had steak or chops etc.

We are still using up stuff from the freezer so tonight we had a small chicken and veg pie each. It would be even more of a waste of that animals life to have thrown them away.

Slowly slowly ...

Cheers, T i m

=====

Understood!

[R D S]

As stated earlier we are planning a 'catio', should give the bugger enough outside space but we'd rather he wasn't out roaming freely (our last cat was run over).

[R D S]

Yeah, why?

[Mathew Newton]

One of ours was once, but luckily survived following a great deal of surgery. We still have him, and every cat since, freedom to go out though as given how willingly often they do despite being fussy buggers they clearly want to.

[T i m]

<snip>

But isn't that like saying 'A stranger is only a friend you haven't met yet'?

Quite, so why the differentiation? Is it an 'out of sight so out of mind sort of thing'? Is it something we should be allowed to turn a blind eye to, 'these days'?

I bet it is for many.

I would reckon the vast majority couldn't eat meat if they had to pull the trigger and watch the process themselves.

But the question is, 'should it be'?

Of course, a disconnection.

Yet still a living creature?

Sure.

I know, I just told it?

Whilst there may not have meant to have been any meaning in it, it does reflect the attitude it seems many have with various animals, without there being any real logic to it.

Well, I know why, it's because that's what they have always done and prefer not to think about it in any detail.

Our daughter summed up the issue when she was very young. She said she didn't want to eat animals any more (we never pressed the case, this was her doing, we were all omnivores at the time) but I still want to eat McDonalds'.

As I have mentioned elsewhere, I used to love a crispy bacon toasted sandwich with brown sauce and a mug of tea but now I can't help thinking how that bacon got there and prefer not to go there.

If we have to have licences to fly quadcopters and similar, why shouldn't we acquire a licence to eat the various meats by observing the production process?

It's not just the taking of one animal, I've read that on average we each eat around 4000 animals over our lifetimes. ;-(

Like our attitudes to all sorts of things is changing, I foresee a time when this will be a much bigger issue, but maybe only when the environment issues come back and bite us (harder).

Cheers, T i m

[ARW]

Don't you know a funny joke when it comes stomping into view?

NT started wearing condoms when cats got HIV.

[Richard]

+1 ?

[T i m]

It means disrespecting their right to live? To breed and keep them (often in way less than optimal conditions) simple for the purpose for us to kill and eat, treating them like a product, rather than a sentient entity.

Really? With most animals you have to remove loads of hair, horns, scales, fins, feathers hooves and thick skin to get to the meat? ;-)

Cheers, T i m

[ARW]

You would keep 6 foot away from that.

[Robin]

That makes the decision harder. I'd just offer the thought that the way the NHS look at patients and treatments can be bent to the problem: quality-adjusted life-years. So at one extreme never going out is perfect for the quality of life of a cat whose idea of a perfect day is

23 hours sleeping on the sofa + 1 hour eating. But for another cat a month spent climbing trees, chasing squirrels and bringing home mice & voles may be worth a year safely shut in. I suspect you'll discover fairly quickly which way the fur inclines.

[Steve Walker]

More to the point, why do vegetarians and vegans insist on trying to convert everyone else? I can get on with eating a diet including meat and have no objection to other people doing otherwise.

Which is nothing to do with meat consumption and everything to do with overpopulation.

SteveW

[Steve Walker]

If we were not farming them to eat, they would not be living at all and their fields would be growing crops for humans.

I am all for keeping them in good conditions and I would prefer to see local slaughter instead of transporting them to the large, central abattoirs that various legislation has pretty well mandated. Live transport for export should not be allowed either, except for the stocking of farms.

SteveW

[Fredxx]

That isn't my experience. Many respect my choices. They might have more of an issue with Halal and Kosher slaughter.

The argument going is that we wouldn't be over-populated if we exchanged meat production for veg.

[Richard]

That's a stupid f****ng argument then: