Jaroslav Flegr is no kook. And yet, for years, he suspected his mind had been taken over by parasites that had invaded his brain. So the prolific biologist took his science-fiction hunch into the lab.
Posted on 06/22/2012 2:56:31 AM PDT by Bon mots
Jaroslav Flegr is no kook. And yet, for years, he suspected his mind had been taken over by parasites that had invaded his brain. So the prolific biologist took his science-fiction hunch into the lab.
What he’s now discovering will startle you. Could tiny organisms carried by house cats be creeping into our brains, causing everything from car wrecks to schizophrenia?
(Excerpt) Read more at theatlantic.com ...
Thanks for easing my concern a little.
I had a brother who was schizophrenic. I have read about toxoplasmosis and the theory that it might be a contributing factor to schizophrenia, although the more traditional belief was that it was heredity, drug use, and head injuries. Since my brother grew up with pet outdoor cats, and our family did rescue some strays, I thought it might have affected him.
Fast forward to my own 10 year old son, who played in the yard, and in playground sand, frequently visited by cats who pooped in the sand. Also, we have a cat we got from a shelter three years ago in our home. I really do have an agonizing fear that he’s going to get schizophrenia when he gets older. Your post helps to put it into perspective. I do wonder, though, whether our cat carries it.
The fart was funny.
Heh heh heh...
Then . . . it was the cats.
Cat Rules:
1) The cat is NOT allowed on the furniture.
2) Alright, the cat can go on the furniture, but NOT on the kitchen counter.
3) Okay, the cat can go on the kitchen counter, too, but just NOT when I’m preparing meals.
4) Fine, The cat can go wherever it wants, whenever it wants, as long as it doesn’t swat me in the face at 4:30 in the morning, demanding to be fed.
5) Yes, the cat will be fed at 4:30 in the morning.
6) Dogs have masters, cats have staff.
“Cat Rules:
1) The cat is NOT allowed on the furniture.
2) Alright, the cat can go on the furniture, but NOT on the kitchen counter.
3) Okay, the cat can go on the kitchen counter, too, but just NOT when I’m preparing meals.
4) Fine, The cat can go wherever it wants, whenever it wants, as long as it doesn’t swat me in the face at 4:30 in the morning, demanding to be fed.
5) Yes, the cat will be fed at 4:30 in the morning.
6) Dogs have masters, cats have staff.”
Our present kitty lives the good life. He has his own cat flap, but did not stop him from meowing all of us awake at 2:00 AM. What, you need food? No, there’s plenty. But you see, he ate the kibbles out of the middle, and he doesn’t LIKE to have to stick his nose in the corners of the cat dish. He needs us to push the remaining kibbles into the middle, then we can go back to sleep.
Regarding the kitchen counter, my last cat was all too smart. We tried to teach him not to go on the kitchen counter (used squirt bottle). He learned that he wasn’t to be SEEN on the kitchen counter. Big difference. So, we’d be in the basement, watching a movie on the computer, and we would hear a noise that sounded EXACTLY like two cat’s front paws landing on the floor from counter height followed by the sound of two hind paws landing from the same height. You race upstairs, and all you see is the kitty curled in a ball on an easy chair, doing an exceptional imitation of Vinnie Barberino ... “What? Where? Huh?”
He was the boss, but he tricked you intoliking to be bossed.
Apparently our cats make us insane so we are easier enslaved to their service and whim. What a racket!
BIRDS BRING OVER 60 DISEASES TO YOUR BACKYARD OR HOUSE
Air Sack Mites ... Air Sack Rupture ... Allergic Alveolitis ... Anatomy (Avian) ... Aspergillosis ... Avian Brain Disease ... Avian Flu ... Avian Goiter (Thyroid Hyperplasia or Dysplasia) ... Avian Gout ... Avian Influenza ... Avian Pox ... Avian Tuberculosis (Mycobacterium avium) Bacterial Infections ... Baldness ... Beak & Feather Disease ... Beak Problems / Deformities ... Bird Fancier's / Breeders Lungs (Allergic Alvolitis) ... Bird Flu ... Bite Wounds ... Bleeding ... Blepharitis ... Blocked Gizzard ... Bordetella ... Botulism ... Brain Disease ... Breeding-related Problems ... Broken Legs / Toes ... Bronchitis ... Bumble Foot ... Bursal Disease Canary Pox Virus ... Candida / Candidiasis ... Cancer ... Canker (Trichomoniasis, more commonly known as “pigeon canker) ... Chick Deformities ... Chlamydia / Chlamydiosis ... Chronic Egg Laying ... Cryptosporidium / Coccidia ... Coccidiosis ... Conjunctivitis ... Coryza Diabetes ... Diarrhea Egg Binding ... Egg Laying (Chronic) ... Egg Yolk Peritonitis / Egg Peritonitis ... Emphysema ... Enteritis ... Eye Problems Fatty Tumors ... Feather Cysts / Feather Lumps ... Feather Disorders ... Feather Lice ... Feather Plucking / Chewing ... Fowl Cholera ... French Molt ... Fungal Infections Giardia ... Gizzard (Blocked) ... Gout Heavy Metal Poisoning ... Hemochromatosis ... Herpes ... Hypothyroidism Infectious Bronchitis ... Infectious Bursal Disease ... Infectious Coryza ... Infectious Sinusitis ... Influenza Kidney Disease / Problems Laryngotracheitis Lead Poisoning ... Liver Disease ... Lymhpoid Leukosis Macaw Wasting Disease ... Marek's Disease ... Megabacteria / Megabacteriosis ... Metal Poisoning ... Mites & Lice ... Mutilation ... Myialges Nudus ... Mycoplasmosis Necrotic Enteritis ... Neuropathic Gastric Dilatation ... Newcastles Disease ... Nutritional Disorders Omphalitis ... Overheating Pacheco's Disease ... Pasteurella ... Papilloma ... Parasites ... Parrot Fever ... PBFD ... Pneumonia ... Psittacosis / Chlamydiosis / Ornithosis ... Pseudomonas ... PDD ... Poisoning ... Polyoma ... Pox Virus ... Prolapsed Cloaca ... Psittacine Beak & Feather Disease. Regurgitation ... Respiratory Distress / Diseases Salmonella / Salmonellosis ... Sarcocystosis ... Scaly Face & Scaly Feet Disease ... Seizures ... Self / Skin-Mutilation ... Sinusitis ... Skin & Feather Disorders ... Stargazing Teflon Poisoning ... Thyroid Problems ... Tuberculosis ... Tumors (Cancer) ... Tumors (Fatty) ... Toxicities / Poisoning / Ingestion ... Trichomonas Visceral Gout ... Visceral Leukosis (Marek's Disease) ... Vomiting West Nile Virus ... Wet Vents Yeast Infections Zinc Poisoning ... Zoonotic (Bird / Human) Diseases
#6 is the Master Rule. They truly own us. (But we love ‘em, don’t we?)
Won’t Link be jealous!
So that explains it.
Pinging myself for future reading.
Aww Look he likes you!(and so does all of his diseases!)
I have a dream that one day brony FReepers will be able to openly discuss the weekly episode on Free Republic!
Holy moly....I thought mine were the only ones who did that!!!!
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