The stink of rescue and kindness.

As some of you know, the tom cat that Horse Daughter 'rescued' from the mill has started spraying. HE is spraying the porch and front door of our house.

I posted the dog on the porch to chase off any other male cats that might be the problem. And while the dog was laying there, the cat stepped right over him and sprayed our front door! Today it smells like the cat actually sprayed the dog too!

So what started as an outside front door stink has travelled to the dog. From the dog to the mat inside the front door. Then down into the basement where the dog has his other bed. An act of kindness has turned into a cat spray scented nightmare that is making me very, very angry.

It also makes me think that rescuing animals is the STUPIDEST thing anyone does. Yes, yes, I know we have our chronic rescuers here on this site, I know who they are, I know they are all breathing steam right now. Settle yourself down. I am on that same list of rescuing animals as you are. I have lugged home starved and crazed horses, SPCA dogs who should have been put down by the SPCA due to profound psychological damage. But I have to ask...do we rescue animals for the sake of the animal? Or do we rescue animals so we can have a self love fest about what great and caring people we are and what a difference we make blah, blah, blah?

There are too many damn animals on this planet! Most of them live horrible lives thanks to people who are the most horrible of all creatures walking this earth! I have said over and over and will say again that for many animals a bullet in the brain would be the biggest act of kindness. Yet we have groups and societies who champion the cause of never destroying an animal. It's insane!

Listening to the CBC about a young woman who wanted a horse and was watching the papers for adds. Came across someone wanting to re-home a rescue horse that turned out to be high need and the rescuer didn't have enough time for this horse. This was a warm and fuzzy story, or was presented as such, a story about love. But from my own horse philosophy, this story made me scream.

First, if you rescue a horse without expecting it to be a messed up, time consuming project, then you are a moron! If you think that 10 minutes a day with starved, mistreated horse is going to rehabilitate it, then you deserve the kick to the groin that you are going to get. And when you discover that your little bit of self loving wonderfulness has gone sideways, and the horse is not responding, and you are not interested anymore, what your add should say is, SOMEONE NEEDS TO RESCUE THIS HORSE FROM ME BECAUSE I AM DUMBER THAN DIRT!

The young girl who took this horse home was still unable to ride it a year later, due to behavioural problems, but she loves her horse to death and goes to see him everyday after school. I consider this a tragic ending. Pretty soon mom and dad will tire of paying stable fees and then this wreck of a horse will be passed yet again down the line. ANd maybe the next person who owns the horse will NOT have any morals and ethics and finding the horse unrideable, will be happy to let it starve, its feet over-grow and let the teeth turn into tearing, sharp razors. Yup, that describes the life of MOST of the horses on this earth.

I am beginning to think that taking a horse home (dog, cat, etc) shooting it and shoving it in a pit is the better option. Take this cat. Too sick to neuter. Probably dumped at the mill because of the cost of treatng him, for the rest of his life. So kid brings him home, outfits us with all the cat paraphenalia, expensive food to entice him to eat (he could not smell and often cats who can't smell, don't eat, and he was pretty close to death from starvation). We vet him and buy costly meds then invest the time and risk personal injury to give him meds. Have you tried giving medicine to a cat who doesn't want his medicine? Bring out the bandaids! He has a shelter built for him with fresh hay stuffed in when old gets icky. He has cat nip. And what is the result of all this kindness, hard work and well placed, earnest caring? A house that smells like cat ass.

SO..what's the lesson here?

I think part of growing up, part of being an adult, is knowing when it's time to NOT pass your problem along. NOT lug it to the SPCA, NOT put an ad in the paper seeking a 'forever' home. I think part of growing up is putting on your big girl panties and saying this problem ends here, now, with me. I believe that EVERY animal, no matter what their behaviour or problems, is entitled to the very best care that can be provided, despite how well it does or does not perform up to my standards. And I also believe that to pass that 'bad' animal along so someone else can neglect it because of its behaviour problems is reprehensible and criminal. Thus I believe a lot more animals should be destroyed than are destroyed. I know that sounds hard hearted, and it IS hard and that IS reality..but if you want dogs that bite and run away, cats that spray or horses who want to kill you...more power to you. But most of the world will treat those animals badly, and they don't deserve that.

For those who want to send me a letter bomb, relax. I am aware that many of us here have resuced critters and had it turn out wonderfully. That has happened at our house too. But let's be honest and say that perhaps your presence on this site marks you as someone who IS willing to put your back, time and money into making that happen. It is also honest to say that the vast majority of the population is not equiped to deal with problem animals nor dedicated enough to stick it out. So can rescuing work? Yes. But as a percentage of success, I'd say it's pretty low.

I ponder all these things as I sit, watching the snow fall and fall and fall, the smell of cat stank wafting through the house, knowing that an unhappy decision has to be made, and soon!

Dumber than Dirt, love it. Sooooooo darn true for so many of us, who refuse to be mentioned.

I am an animal rescuer. I tend to agree with much of what Uno has said.

When I was younger, early 20s, and full of the belief that I could make a differnce in this world, I wore my heart on my sleeve. I would turn a deaf ear to the Uno's who would say what she did because old ladies don't know what they are talking about. How could you turn your back on a poor animal in distress. Watch me prove you wrong. Ect. Ect. And I did. One of the first things I did was rescue cage birds that no one wanted anymore. What started out as a few birds, soon turned into over 100. Did I mention at the time I had no job. Yup. What money I had went into saving my part of the world. I soon became a dumping ground for breeders with franken-bugies that didn't have a prayer and should have been put down by the breeder. Instead they ended up with me and bless my naive youth, I would keep the bird alive. Even a week was at least a life. After a couple of months, I was faced with having to move. I passed the torch to a kindly couple who took the birds I had and said they would care for them as I tried to do.

Looking back at 48, I realize how how naive I truely was. Sometimes as much as the heart is in the right place, we humans do put our feelings before the welfare of the animals we believe we are doing right by. I especially have learned this with chickens. Cause when I got involved with them, I still held the belief as I did trying to save those caged birds. However, I was now older, wiser. Watching a bird struggle for days fighting for its life and I had no idea how to cure it of its ills, offered me a cold harsh smack of reality. I am allowing suffering for my benefit because I don't want to feel that I am the villian in taking life. Taking life equals failure. Allowing a bird to suffer for days waiting for the end is truly failure. Personally, I believe there is no such thing as a 'kind death'. Even vets will tell you there are times when they put an animal down, a humane death can go wrong. I believe now that for the brief moments the animal will suffer as I take its life as best I know how, is better than allowing it to die a slow death that takes days for nature to do its thing.

I think too that this is an issue more with us city people than farm people. Farm people learn early about life and death with the animals they raise. A city person like me, death just doesn't seem the kinder thing to do. Instead you believe you can turn a miracle for some animals and have that wonderful ending where the animal goes on, healthy, happy. Again, we are naive to not face the truth that sometimes the kindest thing is to end life.

Now as for the horse. Frankly, if the parents allowed their child to adopt a rescue horse from an ad, they need their heads examined for braincells. I consider myself an adult, sort of. I would love to have a horse but don't because I don't have the money to afford the luxury. Too many think you can just put a horse on a piece of fenced land and, voila, that's all there is to keeping a horse. Horses are like boats. You are always putting money into them. A rescuce horse has issues. That is why it is a rescue. Unless you have experience with horses to begin with, you should not be going this route. Expecially if this is your very first horse.

Yet another young person who believes they can do what the more experienced say maybe shouldn't be done, I guess.

I think there are some people who torture themselves with animal cruelty. I don't know why, but they seek it out and attempt to 'fix' it. Perhaps it is a way to attempt to indirectly fix something in their own lives.

All I know is that kind of thing makes me physically nauseous and I would be a nervous wreak if I so much as tried to immerse myself in it. So I tend my own garden. However, if neglect or cruelty were in front of me, of course I would assist. But I would never seek it out.

No judgement on anyone else here.

i am with sue on this one....if they are infront of me i will help them out i hate seeing animals starve or neglected...but owning a pet business everyone has "rescue"dogs who were abused or 1/2 dead or simply bought of kijiji from a puppymill.....EVERYONE owns a rescue personally i tink the word rescue is being thrown a lil to much around... anyhow i dont seek them out, i dont have the time, i would much rather start from scratch with a animal and train it the way i want ...i dont want others problems as i do have rules here on my farm and i find "rescued"animals harder to train with their issues...i like fresh start puppies or kittens to train right from the start.

I don't doubt some people use rescuing an animal to fix something that is missing in their own lives. I think animal hoarding is a prime example of this. Something breaks inside and rescuing a distressed animal fills space. Then again, I know many people who do this with their pets too.

I think for others though, rescuing a distressed or abused animal shows caring and compassion.
For others, in a way, you can say we believe we are protecting a defenless, trusting animal from a bully. In the way some people will put themselves in harms way to save another person they see in trouble, even at the cost of their own life. It is a sense of feeling that all living things deserve respect and that life is special. Pet animals especially, we see as vunerable as they are raised to trust us for their care. When we see abuse, we can't help but feel to help it. How we see it, is how many see helping a young child that is being abused by an adult. Something inside you says it's wrong to exploit another who cannot protect themselves.

I am definitely a quality over quantity person. A long life of suffering versus a short enjoyable one, hmmm, seems like a no-brainer to me.
Too often, do-gooders end up causing more harm than good.
I've known several people who end up neglecting the animals they have taken on to help. They take on so many, they no longer have the cash to feed or care for the animals. They become the very problem they are trying to prevent.
As a side note, if you want to get rid of that stench, try Orange-apeel. I swear by the stuff for removing horrid smells. Too bad it won't get rid of the cat for you.

Oh gick, I should not even comment here, might get hate mail too, smiling. Being one that dislikes cats, well, the species in general (we have two cats here on the farm and they are OK), I won't even mention what would have come about here if that was my cat. Good luck with whatever you do. Cat urine is one of the most awful scents that I can imagine, well maybe goat urine comes a close second. Have an awesome day, CynthiaM.

CynthiaM wrote:Oh gick, I should not even comment here, might get hate mail too, smiling. Being one that dislikes cats, well, the species in general (we have two cats here on the farm and they are OK), I won't even mention what would have come about here if that was my cat. Good luck with whatever you do. Cat urine is one of the most awful scents that I can imagine, well maybe goat urine comes a close second. Have an awesome day, CynthiaM.

Now Cynthia, bash the cats all you want, but never say a mean word about a goat!

auntieevil wrote:I am definitely a quality over quantity person. A long life of suffering versus a short enjoyable one, hmmm, seems like a no-brainer to me.
Too often, do-gooders end up causing more harm than good.
I've known several people who end up neglecting the animals they have taken on to help. They take on so many, they no longer have the cash to feed or care for the animals. They become the very problem they are trying to prevent.
As a side note, if you want to get rid of that stench, try Orange-apeel. I swear by the stuff for removing horrid smells. Too bad it won't get rid of the cat for you.

Agree. I'm glad I learned that lesson when I was young. That's why I never got back into it too. It's too easy to get in over your head trying to do what you believe is the right thing.

Yes I agree Auntieevil. Once quailty of life is gone and there is more pain and suffering than good days then best to end the suffering but then I feel the same about humans as well... And I agree with you toybarons very well said.

There is a difference of true rescues of good animals from idiot people who haven't had a chance to ruin the animal yet and idiot people who've had a chance to ruin the animal as well I was at a 4-H meeting this past weekend and someone was telling me just how many baby rabbits and chicks she had that she had all ready for selling at Easter Ugh people are stupid I had to walk away before she looked at my face or I said something. She'll sell them to dumb people that think it'll be fun but when the animal grows and no longer cute will they look after it or eat it, nope they'll drop it off at SPCA or expect someone else to take it off their hands. I couldn't even count how often you see animals listed for sale that say the animal is bigger than they expected, really you didn't know that a great dane would be big...

I'm catching up on posts after a couple busy days so I will say as much as it was nice that your daughter made sure kitty didn't end its life in pain and suffering I would put it down. If it has a contagious health problem then it shouldn't be allowed near other animals to pass it along. Since it can't be neutered it also shouldn't be allowed to run free and I wouldn't have a spraying cat in my house EWWWWW! It's unlikely you'll get it to stop because its a habit now. It's probably fathered enough unwanted kittens that daughter can get a free kitten neuter or spay it and have a pet. The biggest problem is that since this kitty has been spraying other neighbourhood cats will still come to spray and getting rid of that smell is very hard. I wouldn't add a new kitty until old kitty (and neighbourhood kitty) spray is gone because cats just like dogs just can't help peeing where others have gone so the cycle will continue until the scent is completely gone. Ugh once you get that scent in your nose its hard to get rid of yuck!

I was at a horse conference a few years ago where one of the presenters suggested that the fastest growing breed of horse was the "rescue".

Rescue is a buzzword. One marketing expert said that if you ran a horse business, you'd be more successful if you had a "rescue horse".

As difficult a decision as it can be, ending the suffering of an animal (or preventing it) through euthanasia is often the most humane option.

I totally agree with you kendra......There is compassion, which we all obviously have.

But then a person has to be sensible.

Going broke trying to fix something, that isn't going to have any quality of live anyway, is just plain foolish.

well said. As a member of peta (people eating tasty animals, not the other one) it is nice to hear people with a grasp of reality. If we took all of the money we spend on animals that should be put down and put it into other worthwhile things (like kids) I can't help but wonder what kind of world we would have. Our society has gotten so out of touch with the cycles of life, and the concept of survival of the fittest that we are injuring the very animals we say we care about.

I once offered to rehab wildlife for the SPCA. It didn't last long. They stopped calling me because I wouldn't run out after every baby squirrel that people called them about. Then there was the crow with the broken wing. It can't fly! Put it down humanely and move on! I wanted to rehab and release. Not to become a zoo for animals that had no hope of a normal life.

If the cat was born in the saw mill ,and there is a lot of cedar dust ? well then put it down ! Cedar dust is not a good thing to inhale and can cause a world of issues particularly within the lungs .I've had someone try and give us kittens that were born in a attic or somewhere that had fibre glass insulation and the kittens were all suffering with health issues ,had to put the whole litter down ! ...my view only

peta member...the other one....SOOO funny!

I agree that there should be more animals put down than there are. I have been taking in unwanted animals off and on my whole life.

Just this year I have learned that it does not make me a bad person to not "rescue" an animal that will disrupt all that I have at home right now. There are people that are set up for that and I do what I can but I do and have put down animals that have serious problems or any aggression towards humans. My kids, me and my family are more important than the animals...

Life is full of hard lessons, thankfully there are also a lot of heart warming experieces with animals too.

Wishing you peace and hopefully closure on this cat issue soon. Being annoyed every day by the same thing is horrid.

I am a rescuer. A rescuer of farm animals. That's what I do. Free to be Me Animal Sanctuary. I have rescued animals from horrible situations, some unfortunately can not be helped. I must pick and choose my battles and it is heartbreaking. But if I can help them and turn their lives around, I do. If I can't I have a very compassionate vet. However I also must make sure that I do not get overwhelmed With the numbers of rescues because there are special needs rescues requiring extra care. I now have an autistic boy who has been helping me. His parents say the animals and I have rescued him. But I think the angels sent him to us and we have rescued each other!
Lou

It sounds like you have struck the right balance, Lou. That is admirable to me.

Thank you Sue!

Lou. you and what you do is wonderful. Never stop

I agree. Lou, you are wonderful!!!! I like that you have the wisdom to be able to pick you battles as it were. Thanks-you.