Posted on 05/30/2009 9:26:22 AM PDT by JoeProBono
The unbelievable tale of a cat named Lucky -- who fell 26 stories and survived -- doesn't quite prove the myth but it comes pretty close. In early May, Keri Hostetler was readying her lower Manhattan apartment for guests who were coming to visit. She cracked the window of her home office a few inches -- something she "never, ever did" -- just to air the place out. She left the door to the room ajar and got to work on her laundry.
(Excerpt) Read more at abcnews.go.com ...
Welfare recipients.
They have quite the entitlement attitude. We're pretty sure they snuck out and voted democrat last fall.
My niece is now a vet and she stresses beyond belief the necessity of cats being forced to maintain their ideal body weight. According to her, over weight cats are prone to all kinds of maladys that significantly shorten their lifetimes.
As a side note, you're probably aware of it, a cat that stops eating for even a couple days requires immediate attention because they will ultimately go into liver failure.........Thats another story of an adopted cat that I only had for 6 weeks........$800......cha ching!
Suddenly I had one fat cat and one skeleton cat. It happened so fast it was scary! The vet said to stop the meds and he started to eat again if I hand fed him. It's been a month now and he is finally eating normally and bulking up and she has at least stopped gaining. But now I'm on to their tricks and more observant about who eats what!
Awww!
LOL
It’s hard to find a good veterinarian for some reason. We’ve known a lot of them over the years, and they’ve made some really, really bad diagnoses and done some really stupid medicating. A couple of them have experimented on our cats until they finally figured out what was wrong. I’ve lost cats to their mistakes, Muffin was one of them. He died at 15 from kidney failure from taking a drug he didn’t need. Slinker died of lymphoma after four different diagnoses, all wrong, and $1,500 in treatments, drugs, and a specialist. He was only 8. I could go on.
That’s “too in proportion.”
Anyway, here's some info from one site:
"DWARF, MIDGET AND MINIATURE CATS (INCLUDING "TEACUP CATS") Copyright 2002-2006 Sarah Hartwell
"Smaller than usual cats occur for several reasons - some genetic, some hormonal and some environmental. Dwarfism is a term which covers numerous conditions resulting in undersized individuals. It usually results from a combination of genetic factors and endocrine (hormone) malfunction. Some forms are caused by early injury e.g. physical damage to the pituitary or thyroid gland. Dwarf or stunted individuals can also result from malnutrition and chronic illness in early life. I am aware that some terms are now considered more politically correct than others, however political correctness is a human consideration and not a feline one.
"These pages neither promote nor condemn dwarf and midget cats. They are intended as a source of balanced information, presenting the potential health issues as well as describing miniature mutations and breeds.
"Those seeking miniature cats (often known as "teacup cats") should be warned that not all petite cats are dwarf or miniature. The normal size range for cats is around 5 lbs to over 12 lbs and cats at the lower end of this spectrum are not necessarily miniatures. I have seen some advertisements claiming that cats under 10 lbs are miniature, when in fact they fall well within the normal size range! In the past, cats at the lower end of the size range were homed or sold as pets, particularly in the Persian breed where a massive, cobby build is required by the breed standard. The modern trend for miniature cats means that less scrupulous breeders charge high prices for runty or under-sized cats and some "breeding programmes" are little more than kitten mills. Genuine miniature cats come from breeding lines where the trait has been, or is being, fixed by selective breeding and where the cats are a consistently small size due to genetic mutation or to progressive downsizing. Genuine breeders pay strict attention to health, hygiene and to the homes their cats are adopted into. Reputable breeders limit the number of litters produced each year to ensure the health of the female cats and will take great care to avoid excessive inbreeding (damaging to the immune system) and to widen their gene pools.
"Note: This is a work in progress and is not intended to be an authoritative work. During its research I found many contradictions in texts relating to the various forms of dwarfism in other species, including dwarfism in humans. Although I have tried to resolve these inconsistencies, these may result in inconsistencies or inaccuracies in this article. There is currently little data available specifically about feline dwarfism.
"Dwarf and Miniature Cats Yahoo Group: minicats. It is not a place to ask "where can I buy a miniature cat?" nor to ask "How do I breed miniature cats?" It is a place to compare notes with other owners of dwarf, miniature and teacup cats e.g. health, causes of small statured cats."
Still Joe Cool.
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