Cyprus-Forum.com

[supporttheunderdog]

But Scottish folk deliberately run over rabbits to keep the numbers down - for the farmer's turnip harvest (so they say).

- Will never get into a car driven by a Scot ever again, except my husband (who has been tamed )

Ive heard of Paphites running over jackrabbits and then taking them home and eating them....Do the Scots do that also?

I'll provide the rest of the article shortly, with the Recipes.....

[BerkshireScouse]

Thank you to those who have replied to this post in the appropriate fashion. I appreciate that feral cats on Cyprus help in keeping the population of snakes/rats etc. down, but (1) many Brits like us have problems when it comes to suppressing our more humane side and we can’t help but fall in love with these gorgeous little furballs, (2) judging from the frivolous nature of some of the posts here, it’s obvious that membership of the EU has not yet led to a more enlightened attitude to animal welfare for all Cypriots.

Anyway, for those of you who are interested in what happened to our mother cat - we eventually managed to trap her, and have her taken away for examination by the veterinary surgeon on Episkopi Garrison. Unfortunately she was found to be carrying a number of viruses, and was generally not in the best of health. The policy on the garrison for feral cats found to be in such a condition is to have them euthanised to try and prevent the further spread of disease and viruses amongst the feral cat population, so sadly she had to be put down in line with this policy.

I do believe she appreciated that we were trying to care for her during the six months we had her in our garden, and at least she no longer has to go through the endless vicious circle of getting pregnant and giving birth repeatedly. The fact that her misery is over gives us some comfort.

We managed to catch the two little ones and take them to Paphiakos in Paphos, so at least they will be looked after well there and have relatively nice lives.

[GreekIslandGirl]

What a tragic story.

But, a typical example of why humans interfere only to make themselves feel better and do nothing for the natural order of things.

- Give yourself a pat on the back for your "enlightened" animal welfare practices!

[Get Real!]

Thank you to those who have replied to this post in the appropriate fashion. I appreciate that feral cats on Cyprus help in keeping the population of snakes/rats etc. down, but (1) many Brits like us have problems when it comes to suppressing our more humane side and we can’t help but fall in love with these gorgeous little furballs, (2) judging from the frivolous nature of some of the posts here, it’s obvious that membership of the EU has not yet led to a more enlightened attitude to animal welfare for all Cypriots.

You uneducated and incompetent little peasant… the Cypriot authorities should arrest you and cut your balls off!

[SKI-preo]

Feral cats ware the last chance for the cyprus economy. If the number of feral cats is reduced due to trapping their value as commodity will greatly increase in value whic hcause the Cyprus Stock exchange to rally, Turkish Cypriots will then flood the market with cheap illegally imported feral cats causing the feral cat bubble to burst and then the cycle will begin again.

[LynInCyprus]

Well done BerkshireScouse

Thank you for being so very kind and considerate to an alternative life form.

Although the end outcome for your 'feral' mother cat was sad it was the humane decision to be taken in the circumstances (in my opinion) and you probably saved her from a slow and painfully extended death due to further viruses she may have contracted via continued sexual activity.

As a long term volunteer at an animal shelter I have seen (first hand) the agony of illnesses that uncontrolled breeding in feral cats and dogs causes - ie - feline immunodeficiency/leukaemia/parvovirus but to name a few.

As most shelters are solely reliant on charity funds they have to take a tough but fair decision when illness is detected to stop the spread to other animals in their care - the sick animal is put out of its current and future suffering via euthanasia.

TNR (trap-neuter-return) may not be an ideal solution with regard to managing the feral cat situation, but it is a least an option that will reduce the spread of controllable feline disease.

None of you expressing such distaste for TNR would want to contract any of the many potentially transmittable viruses or other problems that are attributed to feral life - toxoplasmosis/campylobacter/giardiasis/ringworm etc etc

[Paphitis]

Thank you to those who have replied to this post in the appropriate fashion. I appreciate that feral cats on Cyprus help in keeping the population of snakes/rats etc. down, but (1) many Brits like us have problems when it comes to suppressing our more humane side and we can’t help but fall in love with these gorgeous little furballs, (2) judging from the frivolous nature of some of the posts here, it’s obvious that membership of the EU has not yet led to a more enlightened attitude to animal welfare for all Cypriots.

Anyway, for those of you who are interested in what happened to our mother cat - we eventually managed to trap her, and have her taken away for examination by the veterinary surgeon on Episkopi Garrison. Unfortunately she was found to be carrying a number of viruses, and was generally not in the best of health. The policy on the garrison for feral cats found to be in such a condition is to have them euthanised to try and prevent the further spread of disease and viruses amongst the feral cat population, so sadly she had to be put down in line with this policy.

I do believe she appreciated that we were trying to care for her during the six months we had her in our garden, and at least she no longer has to go through the endless vicious circle of getting pregnant and giving birth repeatedly. The fact that her misery is over gives us some comfort.

We managed to catch the two little ones and take them to Paphiakos in Paphos, so at least they will be looked after well there and have relatively nice lives.

So you went to help out thinking you know more than Cypriots and care more for animals than Cypriots do, and then you murdered the poor poor pussy cat.

Can you please butt out next time and leave animal welfare to us Cypriots?

[repulsewarrior]

dearest lady, your message is heartfelt, i too have witnessed the abject cruelty Humans can impose on other animals, and regretfully (even as an extreme), it is not limited to Cyprus.

cats in Cyprus are special, you witness here a symbiosis of existence that has been left undisturbed since the first cats were brought over about 4,000 years ago. take comfort in the fact that genetically these may be the strongest of their kind anywhere, the complete antithesis of breeding.

...Freedom; look at them as a natural wonder, (living in this respect is cruel), choose to be a friend, but as far as their welfare respect includes this Principal, too.

(i apologise for the abrupt nature of some of the replies, but talking about "our" cats, as you can see, touches a nerve.)

[Get Real!]

So you went to help out thinking you know more than Cypriots and care more for animals than Cypriots do, and then you murdered the poor poor pussy cat.

Can you please butt out next time and leave animal welfare to us Cypriots?

Einstein eventually discovered that it was a standard feral…

“Unfortunately she was found to be carrying a number of viruses”

So they decided to kill it branding it “unhealthy”!

[GreekIslandGirl]

Since when did the British base garrisons acquire the right to euthanise Cyprus' wildlife?

It's that "kill every wild Badger around in case it has TB" mentality all over again.