Exotic animals? Hmm. Want some fish??
story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=s … olphins_dc
Aquatic mammals, fish, whatever. They all look alike to me. 
[quote=“Kenny McCormick”]Due to the numerous gou rou can ting, this problem doesn’t exist in China.
[/quote]
No. And due to the efficiency of the Gong An Ju there is no gambling, prostitution, or drugs either.
A western aquaintance of mine bought a cat in Korea. The seller asked “You want me to butcher that for you?”
His sense of outrage was tempered by his fury when the poor little bugger crapped on his new white trousers. This persons response was to throw his new pet out of the window - from the fourth floor!
Sure, the Taiwanese need educating. So do a lot of other folks.
Considering the first posts for this thread were last year, things must’ve gotten worse.
There is a pavilion in Chiayi county, along the 159jia road, where three-legged dogs hang out. They’re pretty near a village which has rather unfriendly dogs so I figure these were thrown away as they weren’t perfect. The female has a foot missing, while one male has an infected fractured foot, and another a broken leg. Two others look ok but all are really thin. Despite this they’re very well-behaved. They don’t bother you for food even if you have some.
The local night market has gone one-up on this. There is a booth selling dart games for NT$30, and the prizes are birds; adult birds if you get enough points, baby birds otherwise. You can accumulate points and I’d estimate 3 games would get you enough points to get the cheapest birds. It doesn’t seem very responsible to me to foist birds on people who aren’t really prepared to look after them, particularly the babies which don’t even have feathers yet.
Are there any animal rescue associations in South Taiwan?
I spent last December in Taipei, teaching seminars to people interested in learning about training their dogs.
Have you heard of ‘clicker training’? This is the same method used by Dolphin trainers.
I met many concerned people, working hard to change the situation of dogs in Taiwan.
I am now finding out about opening a branch of the SPCA in Taiwan.
I live in Canada, but am likely going back to continue teaching, and giving seminars.
Vicky
Is there anything like ‘clicker’ training for cats?
I do have them trained a bit. When I say ‘hungry mungry?’, they know they’re getting canned food that day. But otherwise, they’ve trained me. 
Vicky, it would be brilliant if you could open SPCA here in Taiwan. Let me know if you need any help with anything. I just can’t believe there’s no Humane Society branch here either.
I mean, with the tallest building in the world (this week), you’d think people could learn to be proud of important things, rather than only superficial ones…
Some day?
I met a Shiba puppy yesterday named Money and it was the most adorable little creature I’ve ever seen. I fell madly in love with this breed. Wonder if my cats would mind…
Sorry if 2 messages arrive. I am new to this. To answer the question, “Can you clicker train cats?” Yes…I have worked with a grizzly bear, a lynx, monkeys, horses, and other animals.
Re helping me…yes…your employer may wish to find out about sponsoring a seminar.
My goal is to reduce the number of homeless animals. I find the best way to make changes is through education, not through shaming anyone.
I have a discussion list, which anyone can join. I have no idea if it is possible to find my e-mail address here, although I did click ‘make my e-mail address visable’ when I joined this list.
I would be happy to correspond privately to those who wish to be involved. For now, I think it best not to put my address here, but if you can find it…do contact me. As I said, I did click on ‘make my address visable’.
Vicky
Absolutely. My guy puts me in a good mood the minute I get home.
[/quote]
I suppose Maoman you have a reason for keeping your dog in a cage? :shock: Really going native there, eh?
First of all, I don’t “keep” him there. Most of the time he stays in the buxiban with us - the kids love him, and he has a mat behind the front desk where he can hang out and keep an eye on things, or if he wants to crash, he can go into my office and snooze on the big floor pillow there (if I’m not already on it!)
Second of all, are you not familiar with crate training? It is without question the best foundation for training your dog. Gustav loves his crate - we don’t even need to close the door when it’s bed time. We just say “kennel up” and he trots right in - no hesitation. In the morning he stays there until we talk to him - he’ll stick his head out the door to sort of test the waters and if we don’t greet him, he retreats back inside. On the few occasions when he’s not with us and must stay alone, we lock him up for his own good (and for the good of our personal possessions). He’s a pretty smart dog though, and has figured out how to open the crate’s double latch door, even though it latches from the outside. We must know padlock it or come back to a house that looks like a whirlwind hit it! Last time we forgot to padlock his crate, we came back to find that he had dragged a bottle of champers from the kitchen to the master bedroom, along with a brand-new package of Tim-Tams. He polished off the entire package of Tim-Tams, had chewed off the tinfoil on the champagne bottle and had almost succeeded in getting the wire off the cork. The blankets on our bed had chocolate stains all over them. Man, this dog knows how to live! We’re lucky though that he didn’t get poisoning - chocolate can be deadly to dogs, depending on the size of the dog, and the nature and amount of the chocolate consumed. Anyway this kind of behaviour is to be expected from a puppy - Gustav is only 10 months old. By the time he’s two, we can expect more responsible behaviour from him.
Here are some good links on crate training:
http://www.perfectpaws.com/crt.html
http://www.inch.com/~dogs/cratetraining.html
http://www.siriusweb.com/AAD/crate.html
http://www.ddfl.org/behavior/cratetraining.htm
http://www.cuhumane.org/topics/crate.html
http://www.doglogic.com/cratetrain.htm
http://www.barkbytes.com/training/crate.htm
http://www.canismajor.com/dog/crate1.html
Gustav is about the best-mannered puppy I’ve seen in Taiwan. He knows exactly what’s expected of him, and he does what he’s told. When he screws up, he knows it too, and is appropriately guilty for at least half an hour. 
First of all, I don’t “keep” him there. Most of the time he stays in the buxiban with us - the kids love him, and he has a mat behind the front desk where he can hang out and keep an eye on things, or if he wants to crash, he can go into my office and snooze on the big floor pillow there (if I’m not already on it!)
Second of all, are you not familiar with crate training? It is without question the best foundation for training your dog. Gustav loves his crate - we don’t even need to close the door when it’s bed time. We just say “kennel up” and he trots right in - no hesitation. In the morning he stays there until we talk to him - he’ll stick his head out the door to sort of test the waters and if we don’t greet him, he retreats back inside. On the few occasions when he’s not with us and must stay alone, we lock him up for his own good (and for the good of our personal possessions). He’s a pretty smart dog though, and has figured out how to open the crate’s double latch door, even though it latches from the outside. We must know padlock it or come back to a house that looks like a whirlwind hit it! Last time we forgot to padlock his crate, we came back to find that he had dragged a bottle of champers from the kitchen to the master bedroom, along with a brand-new package of Tim-Tams. He polished off the entire package of Tim-Tams, had chewed off the tinfoil on the champagne bottle and had almost succeeded in getting the wire off the cork. The blankets on our bed had chocolate stains all over them. Man, this dog knows how to live! We’re lucky though that he didn’t get poisoning - chocolate can be deadly to dogs, depending on the size of the dog, and the nature and amount of the chocolate consumed. Anyway this kind of behaviour is to be expected from a puppy - Gustav is only 10 months old. By the time he’s two, we can expect more responsible behaviour from him.
Here are some good links on crate training:
http://www.perfectpaws.com/crt.html
http://www.inch.com/~dogs/cratetraining.html
http://www.siriusweb.com/AAD/crate.html
http://www.ddfl.org/behavior/cratetraining.htm
http://www.cuhumane.org/topics/crate.html
http://www.doglogic.com/cratetrain.htm
http://www.barkbytes.com/training/crate.htm
http://www.canismajor.com/dog/crate1.html
Gustav is about the best-mannered puppy I’ve seen in Taiwan. He knows exactly what’s expected of him, and he does what he’s told. When he screws up, he knows it too, and is appropriately guilty for at least half an hour. [/quote]
A raucous seconding of cage training! My last dog in the U.S. was an alpha male border collie, usually impossible to live with without a farm. Got him as a pup, the kennel was his den, he slept in there even when the door was open. Eventually even HE figured out when he was getting to out of hand for us and would kennel himself. When I came back to Taiwan, I gave him to a guy with 100 acres and lots of elk to chase, but I hear he sleeps every night in his kennel .
My family had a golden retriever mix that we got from the local shelter. As a puppy, and even as a young adult his favorite game was to do laps around our backyard which I guess is tiny in comparison to a farmyard at a mere 25x32ft. We would pretend to chase him and he’d take off for a couple of laps before figuring out that we weren’t chasing him. We got him neutered shortly after we adoptd him. Unfortunately his hips and seizures got very bad by the time he was 7 years old and had to be put down. I can’t imagine buying an animal from a pet shop. After I had a traumatic experience with a hamster having a distended bowel (I was only 8 years old at the time), my mother swore to never buy animals through a pet shop. Most of our pets get fixed when they are young with the exception of Big Fat Felicia who had two small litters of kittens which died within a week of being born before. One of the first things I did with my Isalu was get him neutered even though he does not go outdoors. I think any responsible pet owner in Taiwan should do it. There are enough unwanted animals out there as it is.
I agree. Gustav got fixed a week ago Wednesday. No problems, only $1500NT, in and out the same day, stitches out 1 week later. We did it for the health of the pet, for our own convenience, and also because it was one of the terms and conditions of our Australian breeder.
Just look at this little guy!
Dofu… about 9 months old.
Took my cat to the vet yesterday because she hasn’t eaten much the past three weeks. Turns out she was constipated which isn’t too surprising as she keeps sniggering at her tinned food and sticks to her dry food but never drinks much. The problem was solved in an instant. But of course, that worries me.
I showed my vet the food I feed (Whiskas), and he said it was okay. The only time I fed her something else (some of the more expensive Japanese brands, not exactly the cheapest Taiwanese ones) because Whiskas wasn’t available at my store, she had constant diarrhea. I asked him if there was anything I could do to get her drink more water, and he said no, there wasn’t, some cats just were like that. We came home, I opened a can of her (former?) favorite, she sniffed and begged for hours until I finally filled her bowl with dry food. She’ll be constipated again in no time.
My neighbour suggested to give her fresh meat, minced meat or fresh liver. Unfortunately, I don’t know much about cooking, don’t have the time (or rather energy) to cook for myself and don’t have any fresh meat markets on my way home from the office. I don’t know what to do, and those horror stories about the Pedigree dogs and cats dying from inner poisoning because their kidneys are damaged don’t exactly ease my worries. I know there are more important things in life than pets. But right now, she’s my little baby.
I was thinking about changing the vet (I’ve always been with the one on Rui-An Street that Alien suggested and that Grandma Nitti’s advertises for as well) to get some more suggestions about what to feed her or how to get her to drink more. Any suggestions? Or any suggestions on how to change her habits? Apart from her weird food habits (which I must admit seem to mirror mine 
), she seems healthy and lively and is her charming and demanding self.
Thanks
Iris
Iris,
Have a look at this:
[quote]Cat’s diet: “75 to 90% raw meat- raw means NOT cooked! It is fine to cook it if you must, but know that you are cooking it for yourself; not for your pet. Just cook the food as little as possible until you feel comfortable. Turkey, Chicken, Fish, Lamb, Venison and Beef- This is in the order of usually most liked to least preferred.” "10 to 25% raw grated or chopped veggies- fresh, above ground (carrots, turnips and parsnips are fine), dark green, leafy, cauliflower, broccoli (a cat favorite), cabbage, zucchini… whatever is fresh and happy at the grocery store is fine!! "learn more about fats/oil, eggs, water, etc.for your cat’s health.
“When transitioning a cat who is used to eating commercial food one must be prepared for some reluctance on part of the cat in accepting raw foods. Reviving a cat’s natural taste preference can represent a real challenge for both the care giver and their cat(s). It is important that the care giver be comfortable and confident with the new diet and must enforce the change despite any protest. All the cats that we have encountered, both in our own family and those of our customers, have been successfully transitioned to a raw diet when the change is approached with this attitude.” Natascha Wille-Baker
Raw Food Diet for Cats: A Natural Solution
Why Consider a Raw Food Diet? The simplest answer is, “Because it closely approximates the diet cats would get in the wild; the diet to which their physiology is naturally attuned.” Cats eat a varied diet in the wild, including organs, brains, and occasionally, stomach and intestine contents: mice and other rodents, small mammals, birds, fish, snakes and other reptiles and insects. However, for various reasons most feline caregivers do not have the resources, nor the time to offer live prey to their cats; others may feel squeamish at doing so (although frozen baby mice warmed to room temperature may afford a rare treat.) Enter the raw food diet, which most closely approximates the diet of felines in the wild.Proponents of the BARF diet suggest giving cats raw, meaty neck bones in sections, either whole, or ground. There are a number of variations of these diets, but the basics remain the same.
“The thought of listening to the cat crunching the skull of a mouse with its jaws during our dinner is appalling to us, so it is usually not permitted. Even though we know that mice are natural prey for cats, most of us prohibit our feline companions from eating mice because such behavior is upsetting to us and is deemed unbecoming of a house cat. I am not suggesting that the cat should be allowed to eat your hamster, but I am asking you to consider why so many of us choose to exclude raw, chopped chicken necks from their cats’ dietary menu. It’s not because chicken bones are bad for cats— in fact, the raw bones will help clean kitty’s teeth and provide a rich balance of calcium and phosphorous. The reason why such food is not allowed is because it is unacceptable to humans—raw chicken necks weren’t on that poster of the “five basic food groups” that adorned the walls of our grammar school classrooms, and the thought of eating raw meat (especially poultry!) is repulsive to us.” Mary L. Wulff-Tilford author of All You Ever Wanted To Know About Herbs For Pets
Raw Diet Recipes
Raw Recipes for Felines Step-by-step pictorial and guidance to making and feeding RAW cat food produced by Anne Jablonski. Read Anne’s open letter to veterinarians
SeaCrest Keeshonden Feline Diet The cat is a creature who has total dependence on raw meat. Cats are obligate carnivores, and need a lot of meat in the diet. I believe that the grain based commercial diets are killing our cats. Cats are now dying of kidney disease, get diabetes, hyperthyroidism, IBD, etc. Commercial foods have only been popular for cats for the last couple decades. Before that, Fluffy was fed a variety of people food, and got a chance to hunt for herself. While I truly believe cats belong indoors in today’s world, it has limited their diet. While indoor/outdoor cats can hunt and often choose that over commercial foods, indoor kitties aren’t given that option. It scares me to think that we may be slowly killing our felines. My raw-fed cats have great teeth (unheard of in many cases), great coats, great condition, their coats gleam, they’re incredibly soft. And VERY active!!! Even the vet has noticed a difference (not that he’s seen the younger 2 for anything besides routine care…)
“The common practice of feeding meat without bones (or bone meal) is nutritionally disastrous for dogs and cats. There are far too many people giving eggs and meat to their pets without providing a balance to all the phosphorus they contain. Meat contains no calcium, and lots of phosphorus; bones contain lots of calcium. Eggs contain lots of phosphorus; the shells contain calcium. That is nature’s balance. If we feed meat without bones or eggs without shells, or aren’t sure of the correct ratios of those things to feed, we must use something to replace them. It is a common and tragic mistake to give a diet far too high in phosphorus to cats and dogs.” Christie Keith from Natural diet… what is it?
Tigerman, your post reminds me of a time when my brother’s cat Daisy refused to eat any sort of cat food. During the summers, my brother used to work in the back country at Philmont scout ranch in New Mexico. He took his cat with him one summer. She was already quite a hunter; she would spend most of the day outside in our yard or the neighbors’ yards stalking birds, chipmunks and rodents. She’d bag one every two or three days. Well, out in the back country where my brother stayed for three months, she was suddenly in a target rich environment. There were plenty of critters around that had never had too worry much about predators before the arrival of Daisy. She had the cabin rodent free in two weeks and then broadened her stalking ground. She got a bit fat, actually, and didn’t touch any of the cat food my brother had brought with him. When she came back to Memphis, she lost a lot of weight because she just didn’t want to eat cat food again. She tried to continue eating birds and such, but there just weren’t enough in our neighborhood to sustain her. Many people think that the occassional bird that their house cat kills is just an odd sign that they still have some of their natural instincts to hunt, kill and eat. I don’t think so. I think most cats are completely capable of feeding themselves if they are in an environment that has enough prey.
I find it quite interesting to watch a sharp cat hunt. Daisy was a little bird killing machine. A couple of years ago, my father fell ill and a friend came over to see him. The friend left his car window open and Daisy jumped in. When the friend left, he didn’t notice Daisy in the car; she was probably scared stiff riding in a car with a stranger. Back at his place the next morning, he opened his car door to go to work and Daisy bolted out. He tried to catch her but she was long gone. Fortunately, this guy lives about thirty miles outside of town on a farm. She doesn’t go hungry. Dad’s friend still sees her every now and then in the fields or catching some sun on the black top roads. There’s no trash dump out or any other source of food except what she kills for herself. I think she’s about 12 or 13 years old now, and she can still hunt. My parents joke that she checked the license plates of all the people who came to visit my dad and finally jumped in the car that had a plate for a rural county.
JT,
Great story…
Back on the farm, we never fed the cats, except that we would spray the goat milk at them now and then… they absolutely loved that. But those cats were all ratters… and they all ate well and I don’t think they ever even saw commercial cat food.
I’ve been taking my dog, Dofu, gradually off commercial food and giving him more and more meats and bones. I usually cook the meats while the bones are consumed raw. But I am now beginning to give him more raw meats, and he loves everything and appears to be as healthy as can be.
I think Iris should consider doing the same with her cat. Its so easy getting the raw meats, organs and bones here in Taiwan… and it really isn’t expensive.
Thanks Tigerman, I’ll print that out.
I don’t have any problems with her crushing mice bones and enjoying raw liver. It’s just, I more often than not leave the office at 8-9pm which is a bit late to get her raw food for the day, apart from the fact that I would’t know where to get it on my way home - sigh.
Iris
[quote=“iris”]Thanks Tigerman, I’ll print that out.
I don’t have any problems with her crushing mice bones and enjoying raw liver. It’s just, I more often than not leave the office at 8-9pm which is a bit late to get her raw food for the day, apart from the fact that I would’t know where to get it on my way home - sigh.
Iris[/quote]
Cats frequently hunt a night.
You can buy raw meats and organs in any market, and in any supermarket.
Dofu’s favorites: chicken hearts and gizzards, pig hearts and livers and ham bones and pig rib cartilege and meat.
See how happy and healthy he looks:
Yup. Daisy would get birds during the day and four leggers in the early evening and in the morning before dawn. That is just like tigers and lions on the African grasslands. During the day, a cat has no real advantage over his prey as far as eyesight is concerned. They can see much better at night though and a sharp cat will take advantage of that. Actually, Daisy couldn’t kill four leggers too well during the day because her close in vision wasn’t good enough to finish them off after attacking them. That’s the trade off for a cat’s good night time vision: they have poor close-in vision. Iris, I’ll bet your cat would love to see you come home every night at about 9:30 with a nice chunk of mammal flesh.
Something I’ve always wondered about is why cats love fish so much. It doesn’t seem to be in their natural diet because most housecats hate to get wet. I saw Daisy catch a small fish once in a shallow creek. She loved the fish but was miserable from getting so wet when pouncing on the fish. I never saw her go fishing again. I guess cats don’t live by the motto “I’d rather be fishing,” but instead by “I’d rather be ears folded back and crouched down in a grassy field getting ready to pounce upon and squeeze the life out of a nice, juicy, unsuspecting bird.” At least that seemed to be what Daisy was thinking every time she would wake up whoever she slept with at 4:30am to let her out of the house. You could damn near set your watch according to the time that cat would wake up and go stalking every morning. Always about an hour and a half before sunrise. If you didn’t get up to let her out of the room and house, she would make damn sure you understood her dissatisfaction. She’d knock things over, break desk lamps or climb up on the highest piece of furniture in the room just to push something off and produce a loud noise. If that didn’t work, she would just come and sit on your chest and breath in your face. “It was nice sharing the bed with you, but now it’s time for me to go whack some small animals. Open the door now.”