Woman who made goth kittens prosecuted for animal cruelty

[Nyoibo]

Lets not turn this into a circumcision debate, I'm pretty sure we've got one or ten of them and if not, start one.

[Salted Grump]

Mentioned in the article is that the accused used a 14-gauge needle, 'Normally used on cattle due to their thick skin', and that 'At least once a Kitten tore out a piercing'. Also, who in their right mind would pierce the back of a kitten's neck? Good way to have an instantly-boneless kitty IMO, and I like cats with the ability to walk about under their own power.

I've docked sheep when I was younger, using the rubberized-ring method. Docking a Cat or Dog's tail ~should~ use the same method, (Ie; professional training required, plus a specialized tool to ensure that the animal only suffers moderate discomfort instead of pain) but, also, should only be done for working animals, or for health concerns due to a longer tail.

Eg; young sheep with long tails tend to get the tails glued to themselves until they're weaned off of milk; Docking the tails prevents that, and reduces the attraction that flies would have to the sheep as a result, so It's a two-stage health concern.

All things being equal, The woman deserved the conviction, and it's probably the only time I'll point out that, for all its flaws, PETA did good by exposing the extent of the harm done to the fuzzballs.

[radiocerk]

14 gauge needles are also the standard piercing size for humans. If you have pierced ears, and you haven't stretched them, they are 14 gauge.

[lordlundar]

Piercings are a pseudo surgical procedure for decorative purposes. Humans have them because they can devise means to offset any shortcoming that the piercing induces.

A cat, and especially a kitten on the other hand relies on ALL their senses and body structure being at their peak. In addition, they cannot devise a means to offset similar shortcomings that piercings induce, often on a more severe scale.

Look at those kittens. Can you tell me that they can hear or smell properly, let alone maintain balance? As well, for a human, that's the equivalent of wearing 20 pounds of metal all the time. As for those submission rings? You know what happens when a kitten is picked up by the scruff of their neck? They go limp. That submission ring induces a similar feeling in the kitten, which combined with the weight of the metal is what's causing the lethargy which is very dangerous to the kitten.

This lady seems more than willing to make sure that her kittens fit her definition of beautiful than ensuring they can actually live beyond a young age.

[tabbyblack13]

Docking of the tail was normal for many working breeds because the tail can get stuck in carts or stomped on. Also some dogs like cats can be born without tails. The ear cropping is what bothers me the most. I don't like it but it was done to make the dog look more dangerous. Also dogs with floppy ears can get more ear infections.

The piercing of a cat for no other purpose then to make money off of them is horrible. I can barely keep collars on my cats. I cannot for the life of me figure out how I would be able to keep piercings in my cat. Hell the amount of work that it takes to keep human piercings clean when they are healing and then you do that to a cat an expect them to heal properly is stupid. I remember when my cat had stitches in his surgery last summer and how he would try to pull them out. It makes no sense to me.

I'm not touching the human circumcision issue. That's for a different topic.

[Hyena Dandy]

Black cats are not goth enough for her?

[Ladeeda]

The ear cropping is what bothers me the most. I don't like it but it was done to make the dog look more dangerous. Also dogs with floppy ears can get more ear infections.

Pfft, floppy ears don't make the 18 rows of Doberman teeth any less sharp and massive.

[Lace Neil Singer]

If this woman had wanted to make goth kittens, she could have done so easily without piercing them. -.- Maybe put some clothes on them (tho she'd have to take the pictures fast!) or done some photoshopping. Either way would have been better than mutilating them.

Look at the pictures. It's not good to have such huge pieces of metal in a kitten's ears.

As for tail docking; horses used to have their tails docked. The excuse was that it prevented the tail from getting tangled up in harness, but docking wasn't just for working horses; it was for hunters and riding horses, too. It was just a fashion thing. Now, working horses tend to have their tails clipped; I used to work with shire horses, and all those horses had clipped tails. In other words, the hair was trimmed and shaved, but the bone remained intact. That was sufficient. I can't imagine any reason to dock a cat's tail unless it's cuz the tail is damaged in some way.

[HYHYBT]

Cats (those that have tails) use their tails for balance. They need them, aside from any pain caused by the removal.

You shouldn't even trim their whiskers.

[Fire_on_High]

I'm fairly sure I read somewhere that some of the breeds who have ears commonly docked did it to prevent fungal infection of the ear. Floppy ears kept moisture and earwax in more and fungus could grow like crazy, but with cropping and training it's kept more open and stays dry.

[Kelmon]

Cats got their tails cut off and ears pierced? How horrible!

But it get's worse: I heard there's people that actually kill animals, even eat them!




To be honest, I just don't see how this is a big issue. It's cats, not human beings.

[Andara Bledin]

Just because they're not on the same level as us does not mean that torturing them is just fine and dandy.

^-.-^

[Lace Neil Singer]

A lot of serial killers start off by torturing animals. Still think it's a good thing?

[blas87]

There's a difference between slaughter houses that provide beef for grocers, and someone torturing a cat for their own sick fun.