Are Members Really "Rescuing" Animals?

Life Pets & Domestic Animals
1

First, want to say I know many are doing truly remarkable things for homeless animals that genuinely need the help or would die (i.e. Sugar).

However, in looking for an animal to potentially adopt, I have seen SOOOO many posts over the last several months regarding people who seem to be professional cat and dog rescuers. One person recently wrote they have “rescued” 11 cats in their neighborhood this year. It makes me think people are spending their free time out looking for cats to take and “rescue.” So I wonder, is this really noble?? It’s a genuine question, not intended to offend. I just get the impression some people are taking cats away from their mothers and not actually rescuing them at all. If I see a kitten on the street, am I just to assume it needs to be rescued? Serious question, I don’t know the answer. My neighbor “rescued” a kitten outside his house. For a week the mother sat by his door crying a storm. Ultimately, he let the kitten go back to its mom. Is this right? Must ALL cats be house cats??

A bit cynical, but do some (probably asking the wrong bunch, ha) around here have sort of God complex / hero obsession / need for attention / need to find tragedy in every situation??

Lastly, what if I want a certain type of dog or cat?? I realize I’m the devil if I buy a dog or cat in the eyes of this forum, so I’m trying to avoid it (though I don’t have quite the level of outrage some better-than-thous definitely have on this part of the forum). But I don’t know of anyway I can request the type of dog or cat I want to rescue.

Genuinely appreciate any well considered insight. I’m new to pets in Taiwan, but I think I’d love the company.

2

[quote=“whachuneed”]First, want to say I know many are doing truly remarkable things for homeless animals that genuinely need the help or would die (i.e. Sugar).

However, in looking for an animal to potentially adopt, I have seen SOOOO many posts over the last several months regarding people who seem to be professional cat and dog rescuers. One person recently wrote they have “rescued” 11 cats in their neighborhood this year. It makes me think people are spending their free time out looking for cats to take and “rescue.” So I wonder, is this really noble?? It’s a genuine question, not intended to offend. I just get the impression some people are taking cats away from their mothers and not actually rescuing them at all. If I see a kitten on the street, am I just to assume it needs to be rescued? Serious question, I don’t know the answer. My neighbor “rescued” a kitten outside his house. For a week the mother sat by his door crying a storm. Ultimately, he let the kitten go back to its mom. Is this right? Must ALL cats be house cats??

A bit cynical, but do some (probably asking the wrong bunch, ha) around here have sort of God complex / hero obsession / need for attention / need to find tragedy in every situation??

Lastly, what if I want a certain type of dog or cat?? I realize I’m the devil if I buy a dog or cat in the eyes of this forum, so I’m trying to avoid it (though I don’t have quite the level of outrage some better-than-thous definitely have on this part of the forum). But I don’t know of anyway I can request the type of dog or cat I want to rescue.

Genuinely appreciate any well considered insight. I’m new to pets in Taiwan, but I think I’d love the company.[/quote]

Well done! Way to ensure that the people who can help you will be enamoured to your call. Seeing as how you’ve described so many selfless people here SO nicely, I’m about to write up a 30-page information pack just for you. Yes! Because THAT’S how much you’ve impressed me with your tact and people skills. :laughing:

(Not a devil, by the way – more just a prick who doesn’t even have the excuse of ignorance that she’s helping perpetuate a brutish and cynical trade)

3

Not a devil, by the way – more just a prick who doesn’t even have the excuse of ignorance that she’s helping perpetuate a brutish and cynical trade[/quote]
Ahem, not everyone who pays for a dog is a prick, and it doesn’t have to be a brutish and cynical trade. It’s just that way in Taiwan.

4

Lol… awwww someone’s feelings are hurt. Awesome use of name calling, it really hurts. I know ur like forumosa cool, which is even bigger than hifh school cool, so u told me.

If u have any other insults for someobe who genuinely wanted to be dissuaded from a pisition admittedly cynical but genuine nonetheless, please give them to me in person. Ill be the abc at shilin buying my new dog. Take care.

5

Not a devil, by the way – more just a prick who doesn’t even have the excuse of ignorance that she’s helping perpetuate a brutish and cynical trade[/quote]
Ahem, not everyone who pays for a dog is a prick, and it doesn’t have to be a brutish and cynical trade. It’s just that way in Taiwan.[/quote]
Taiwan’s what I’m talking about.

6

But why buy a dog in Taiwan for 25000NT or more when you can get them for free anyway? That doesn’t make sense to me.

7

Jeez, man you ARE stupid if you’re buying a dog in Shilin. It’s like buying automobiles from Russia, or babyfood from China, except you get the added bonus of “helping perpetuate a brutish and cynical trade”. I’m guessing you’re fresh out of school? 24, 25 years old, and real smart, right? :laughing:

8

Erm. No, they’re not. Simply a response to a rude and ignorant post. Post like a prick and that’s how people will likely respond. :unamused:
Enjoy your new dog. Hope it doesn’t die too quickly.

9

Post like a prick = hit a lil too close to home. Lol. Takr ur cape off hero. I was genuine in my post n not a prick. I qualified everything stating i was unsure and wanted comment on my sense of what some r doing. Heaven forbid i even question rescuing 11 cats in a year. I know, how dare i rationally ask a serious question that may be a bit uncpmfortable.

I think ill actually buy two now. One named sandman in ur honor. Congrats. Who knows maubr i csn get a two for one deal in case one dies on yhe ride home.

10

Stop trolling, please. There is a lot of accumulated wisdom and good sense in the forums if you have the sense to listen.

11

It’s funny. I actually did not see the first post as a troll. I think it is a legitimate question. I have always had a problem with the term “rescue” when dealing with animals. I also have friends who had to go through the agony of the death of a diseased stray adopted from a shelter THREE times. They finally caved and bought a healthy kitten from a breeder.
So I have heard this topic discussed before.
But it is something that people have strong feelings about.
I would have liked to see it discussed properly here.

12

I know what you mean. I’ve been having doubts lately if having a long life locked indoors is better than a short life outside.

Most animals I’ve taken off the street were sick at the time. Cats especially tend to have Calicivirus (you can see strays with runny noses, black discharge around the nose, eyes) and it takes a long time for them to die once they get really sick. Many cats have the virus, but it’s the strays that aren’t fed properly, or enough daily, that get the devastating symptoms.

ALso, by taking a cat off the street it stops it from breeding and sending more breeders out there.

I don’t think getting a stray/buying a pedigree makes any difference in the health issue. There are many strays that have issues that will only surface later, same with pedigrees. You can’t know exactly what the animal was given when it was small.

I haven’t seen one happy cat out there…one of the dogs I have with me now loves going into a dark room by himself and just sleeping. I think this is what is lacking when dogs/cats live on the streets…a nice relaxing sleep. They can never truly relax.

13

[quote=“twonavels”]
I would have liked to see it discussed properly here.[/quote]
It’s still open for discussion. :thumbsup: What’s your opinion, Ms Navels?

14

I have. In my old neighborhood by the rivers all the cats looked lean, tough and very satisfied. There was an abundance of lizards, snakes and rats for them to eat. I never saw the point of rescuing wild cats as they can’t be socialized. I did rescue a kitten who had been dumped in a box by someone but that is different. And actually my current cat Ping was “rescued” by the manager at a place I worked a few years ago though he really didn’t have to be. His mother was around. But anyway I have the best cat in the world so I’m not complaining.

I think we are saying the same thing though. Leave the normal ones and concentrate on the sick or injured.

To the OP, many people make specific requests for a certain breed of dog. No one thinks this is wrong. Stray and I were trying to catch the pipe pups mom last year as he knew someone who specifically wanted a border collie.

If you want a certain breed, the pounds are certainly going to have them.

15

I agree, just seemed like the OP knows this website too damn well. It’s not like he/she is wrong. But even if the OP is FS or SJ or TC in disguise, I agree with twonavels, it’s a legitimate question.

And my two cents is if what you’re doing improves the life of the animal, then it’s a good thing***. It’s sad and all with the parents and family thing, but there’s a certain amount of anthropomorphism going on here with interpreting just what the animal is thinking, and how long and how much emotional pain they’re in. When you add to that the much better life they’re likely to have, and much longer life in all likelihood - e.g when they get sick they get a doctor, they never have to want for food, and they don’t turn/join feral and get shot at by preachers with bb’s - just seems like a no-brainer.

*** note to political opponents: this does not translate to adopting humans

16

I don’t think the OP is asking in good faith, as evidenced by the ‘god complex’ insults and the subsequent tone of his or her posts, and I don’t feel a response is deserved.

But since our good friend twonavels asks, I know that when we took Chico in at about 2 months, he found a loving home, and a future with a safe place to live, free from disease, hunger and abuse, and free of the danger of getting run over by cars, or picked up and destroyed at a pound. He also got neutered, which helps control the stray population. We don’t even know that his mother was still alive at the time, and I don’t believe that the possibility of severing the temporary bond they may have had outweighs all the benefits of taking him in. I don’t feel that our cats are ‘locked in’; we have a big place, and they have plenty of company, affection, and toys. They are a domestic species of cat, after all, not a wild species.

I know that Maya would not enjoy the quality of life she has now, with regular medical care for her condition, if she had been left howling in misery out in the streets. Thanks, BuLaiEn, for making the effort to help her find a new home!

I know that when three kittens were found, shivering in a cardboard box abandoned by someone on a scooter in Xinzhuang, and we got the call (from a friend of the person who discovered them) to help try to keep them alive, it was a choice between that and letting them die, not between rescuing them and returning them to some unknown mother cat.

People know we know how to and have the flexible schedules (well, had, until recently) to provide the intensive care which newborn kittens need if they are separated from their mother. So we’ve had many people, including our vet, ask us to help out in this way. This is one of the reasons we’ve had so many rescues this year.

I have never separated newborns from their mom, myself and would not advise doing, actually. I would advise people to leave the newborns in place and back off to observe for a while to see if mommy cat returns; they’re better off with her colostrum and milk for the first few weeks, IMO. If no mommy cat returns, she may have been run over or hauled away by the pound, and then it’s a simple choice between letting them die and rescuing them.

Once they reach a certain age and wouldn’t be amenable to socialization, I think they’re best off left alone (of course CNR is preferable, if possible).

17

[quote=“jimipresley”][quote=“twonavels”]
I would have liked to see it discussed properly here.[/quote]
It’s still open for discussion. :thumbsup: What’s your opinion, Ms Navels?[/quote]
Yeah, when the guy is being called a prick or stupid, there can hardly be any discussion.

18

[quote=“igorveni”][quote=“jimipresley”][quote=“twonavels”]
I would have liked to see it discussed properly here.[/quote]
It’s still open for discussion. :thumbsup: What’s your opinion, Ms Navels?[/quote]
Yeah, when the guy is being called a prick or stupid, there can hardly be any discussion.[/quote]
Well, I see the discussion has continued quite amicably with some excellent posts.

19

[quote=“jimipresley”][quote=“igorveni”][quote=“jimipresley”][quote=“twonavels”]
I would have liked to see it discussed properly here.[/quote]
It’s still open for discussion. :thumbsup: What’s your opinion, Ms Navels?[/quote]
Yeah, when the guy is being called a prick or stupid, there can hardly be any discussion.[/quote]
Well, I see the discussion has continued quite amicably with some excellent posts.[/quote]
You miss my point, but that’s alright.

20

To the OP. Here’s an example of a rescued dog:

Lucky’s mouth was rotting away when I found him (this pic is after a couple months of care). He looked like Two-Faced Harvey. There was no question, it was get him medical care, or abandon him to a certain and painful death.