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The PET thread.

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Post  StarFireSong Mon Oct 11, 2010 9:47 pm

Just curious: What do you guys think of the practice of declawing cats? I'm on the fence.

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Post  Argent Fang Mon Oct 11, 2010 10:57 pm

StarFireSong wrote:Just curious: What do you guys think of the practice of declawing cats? I'm on the fence.

I'm not the biggest fan of doing it, but in the case of my two indoor cats, if I didn't do so, they'd probably claw up everything. That being said, they're not completely helpless since they still have their fangs and rear claws but it's not something I'd do to a cat that spent the majority of its time outside.
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Post  Dinny Sun Oct 24, 2010 11:14 pm

StarFireSong wrote:Just curious: What do you guys think of the practice of declawing cats? I'm on the fence.

Avoid it if possible. My cat is solely indoors but he doesn't scratch up any of the furniture.

I'm against it because the act of sharpening a cat's claws on something also stretches various muscles connected to the heart. If cats don't get the opportunity to claw, they can get weaker hearts. Also, they feel very helpless and defenseless and will become twice as stressed in a situation they feel the need to defend themselves in.

But it's permissible, whereas declawing other animals isn't. Dogs, rabbits, ferrets etc actually use their claws for walking and removing their claws would make them lame.

Related: I decided I want rats. I'm crazy about rats at the moment. The PET thread. - Page 2 51772

The PET thread. - Page 2 Rat_albino
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Post  StarFireSong Tue Oct 26, 2010 12:38 am

Dinny wrote:
StarFireSong wrote:Just curious: What do you guys think of the practice of declawing cats? I'm on the fence.

Avoid it if possible. My cat is solely indoors but he doesn't scratch up any of the furniture.

I'm against it because the act of sharpening a cat's claws on something also stretches various muscles connected to the heart. If cats don't get the opportunity to claw, they can get weaker hearts. Also, they feel very helpless and defenseless and will become twice as stressed in a situation they feel the need to defend themselves in.

But it's permissible, whereas declawing other animals isn't. Dogs, rabbits, ferrets etc actually use their claws for walking and removing their claws would make them lame.

Hmm. I wasn't aware of the muscle-heart connection, so thanks for educating me on that. Smile My cat's also indoors (after spending 2 1/2 years as indoor/outdoor), & she doesn't scratch the furniture either. I've got a few "legal" scratching pads/posts for her to keep her happy though.

I've also heard of people capping the cat's claws as an alternative to declawing them, but it makes me wonder if the caps wear off with time & use. & I also wonder about the cats that were declawed/capped & they escape. Eesh. Poor things.


What was the deciding factor with the rats?

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Post  Dinny Tue Oct 26, 2010 2:43 am

StarFireSong wrote:
Dinny wrote:
StarFireSong wrote:Just curious: What do you guys think of the practice of declawing cats? I'm on the fence.

Avoid it if possible. My cat is solely indoors but he doesn't scratch up any of the furniture.

I'm against it because the act of sharpening a cat's claws on something also stretches various muscles connected to the heart. If cats don't get the opportunity to claw, they can get weaker hearts. Also, they feel very helpless and defenseless and will become twice as stressed in a situation they feel the need to defend themselves in.

But it's permissible, whereas declawing other animals isn't. Dogs, rabbits, ferrets etc actually use their claws for walking and removing their claws would make them lame.

Hmm. I wasn't aware of the muscle-heart connection, so thanks for educating me on that. Smile My cat's also indoors (after spending 2 1/2 years as indoor/outdoor), & she doesn't scratch the furniture either. I've got a few "legal" scratching pads/posts for her to keep her happy though. (1)

I've also heard of people capping the cat's claws as an alternative to declawing them, but it makes me wonder if the caps wear off with time & use. & I also wonder about the cats that were declawed/capped & they escape. Eesh. Poor things.
(2)


What was the deciding factor with the rats? (3)

(1) My cat has one scratching post, and he's had this same one for six years. He really needs a new one, because he's absolutely torn it up. It's the only thing he scratches (apart from my leg, he often treats it as a scratching post when he stretches on me) and most of the carpet has been torn off it, haha.

(2) Caps can come off, but they're hard to get off, and as far as I know they need to be replaced yearly or so. It's not as harmful as outright declawing, but still. The main product for this is called Soft Paws, and you can get them in various colors. It's admittedly a bit weird seeing a cat with purple or fluorescent pink claw tips, but whatever. You can get them in a natural claw color of course, but you know, some owners...

(3) I just saw a photo one day that sparked me into finally doing some more research on rats as pets. I was at a party a few years ago where the host's younger brother was walking around with two rats on his shoulders, and I was one of the only people who wanted to handle them, and I was impressed with how tame and friendly they are. They're very curious. I was at a pet store and fiddling with something that was on top of a wired rats cage, and one of the rats that was in there climbed the side of the cage all the way up to the top to sniff my hands. It was adorable.

I've never tried keeping small mammals as pets. I want rats more than I want ferrets, but I'll end up having both because Dr. ARM loves ferrets. I'm actually a bit scared of them to be honest. I think they are cute, but I was bitten pretty hard and I don't really have the courage to touch a ferret again (unless I've been assured it's been well trained).
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Post  Dinny Tue Oct 26, 2010 7:57 am

Also BIRDS ARE AWESOME

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Post  MKing Tue Oct 26, 2010 11:46 am

Dinny wrote:Also BIRDS ARE AWESOME


FUCKIN HILARIOUS

That bird was killin it.......BIG TIME.
Although, I am a bit jealous that it dances better than I do Shaking Head
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Post  lilith Tue Oct 26, 2010 4:15 pm

Adam (bf) had two rats and he said they were the best pets ever. They were really cuddly and curious (they liked his ears a lot =P).

Interestingly, the only thing they wouldn't eat was McDonald's. I suppose they didn't see it as food.
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Post  StarFireSong Tue Oct 26, 2010 7:48 pm

Dinny wrote:Also BIRDS ARE AWESOME


The PET thread. - Page 2 Lmao

I spent the entire day (off & on) watching that video & sharing it with my grandma. The bird's so... GANGSTA. LOL. Very Happy

I found another video advertised alongside yours, Dinny... Very Happy


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Post  Dinny Sat Nov 06, 2010 4:38 am

StarFireSong wrote:I've never had ferrets, but a former neighbor couple (lesbian pair that's since broken up, one works at a scientific research facility) used to have a HUGE variety of pets: 7-10 cats, a couple dogs & snakes, rabbits, ferrets, turtles, mice, rats... They took them in after the research on them was done cuz they were gonna be put down. They told us that the ferrets need to be oiled or bathed weekly because of their skin. I don't really remember what exactly because I was busy looking at their pets.

I was meant to reply to this aaaages ago but I forgot.

Bathed weekly? You've got to be joking. For someone with a huge variety of pets, they had no idea what the fuck they were doing with their ferrets. The more you bathe ferrets, the more they smell: if you strip the natural oils from their coat, their glands go into overdrive and and they get oily. You're only meant to bathe a ferret once or twice a year. Any more than that and they will actually get stinkier.

If you get a female ferret that's been de-scented, though, she probably won't smell. Ferrets with scent sacs smell, and boys smell more than girls.

I'll probably spam photos and videos of my rats and ferrets (not together lol) when I get them... ARM will probably be in the shot too. Razz

Oh, and I love Einstein. <3
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Post  Guest Tue Nov 16, 2010 4:49 pm

I need to get a new pic of my dog. He is now a little over 7 months old. I would guess he is 70-75 lbs easily. My wife hates him because he has messed up a lot of things around the house. I have to have the carpet replaced now because he chewed up a spot in the den. It is 5 years old and we were going to replace it or give an allowance when we put the house on the market next year anyway. I have spent hundreds of dollars on him for toys, beds, cage, etc and he still chews the drywall off the walls!! He still stinks. We have stopped bathing him as much (now about 1x/ month) trying to get him not to smell. We are trying a few things with his diet. A local breeder recommended adding apples and yogurt to his food occasionally. We have not tried that. He has been eating Innova food for a while now. He seems to fart a lot and they stink sooooo bad!! The same breeder said there is a gland that the vet will have to drain?? so I will ask about that on his next visit.

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