A Kitty Cat Day

With three dogs, four indoor cats and now the two kitties who make up the world's smallest cat colony, a trip to my vet is not out of the ordinary. Today's jaunt should have been as simple as pie .... the follow up boosters for Oscar and Dora's Fel/L vaccine.
And if they were indoor cats it would have been. At first I thought I hit paydirt because Oscar was close enough to the front step to be out of Dora's line of sight. As soon as I picked him up, he knew something was afoot but was in one of the cat carriers out in the workshop before he could complain loudly enough to alert Dora.
Now at some point Oscar was somebody's dear pet ..... he's just a big sweetie pie and was already neutered when he showed up here. Dora... now she's different kettle of fish entirely. She is a true feral and the only reason I have been able to tame her as much as I have is because she was so very young when she first showed up here.
So she smelled a rat right away .... and it finally took changing into my funny old yard parka with the dangly strings to coax her in for a cuddle. After getting tucked into a carrier and making the 15 km trip each way to and from the Berwick Animal Hospital .... well I expect that it will be at least a day or two before she comes within arms reach of me.
Its been a day for cats ..... most of my friends are animal lovers and the tale of the Harbourville Cats has crept into most conversations today in some shape or form.
For those of us who live out here, the chat was as much about the other end of the stick for ferals .... the many cats that are dumped out here every year. For every Oscar and Bear, who were already altered and socialized, there are so many more juveniles that will become Momcats long before they should. ( The subject of why the many benefits of Early Age Spay Neuter should be more widely advertised is a separate rant for another day )
Out here most folks aren't just full up ... they are fed up. As individuals they are generally responsible pet owners. As individuals their pets are altered and properly cared for . As individuals, most have already taken in more strays than they ever intended. But most of all, as individuals they would like to be able to point a finger to find someone to blame for the river of cats.
The particular finger that I choose to point is deterrents, such as stronger legislative penalties. When I first moved out here, it was pretty common for most of the fellows around here to drive around with an open two/four on the front seat beside them. Why did they do that? Because they had always done it. Because they could. Because it was a rare occasion to see an RCMP car out here. And of course, even if they did get caught, it really wasn't much of a big deal.
You don't see that happening anymore.... not even out here. Why is that? More patrol cars? Tighter legislation? Strong public relations campaigns by groups like MADD? Most of the fellows I know would still be driving around like the old Irish Ballad - "he was never quite drunk, but never quite sober" if not for all of these changes.
When the big dogs and I go for a hike up the Rocknotch Road, there are signs all along the gorge stating that there is a $5000 penalty for dumping garbage along there. Would it help to have signs like that stating that dumping a pet is against the animal cruelty law?
I never make a new recipe for company. Why would I think that way , with all my years of experience as a cook? Because I know first hand that the only way to test a recipe is to actually make it ..... so if I don't believe in animal testing I'm certainly not going to 'test' with my friends : )))
There are a lot of good ideas out there from a wide variety of interested animal lovers and rescue groups. But we won't know if they'll work until we put them to the test, hmmm?