Cat Lovers of Rome Unite in 'Cat Pride' March

Yahoo! News ^ | 2/22/03 | Rueters - Rome

[NormsRevenge]

Cat Lovers of Rome Unite in 'Cat Pride' March

ROME (Reuters) -

A couple of thousand cat lovers turned out for Rome's first "Cat Pride" march on Saturday to demand protection and funding for the city's thousands of strays.

Donning whiskers, bearing signs and in some cases cradling cats in their arms, protesters streamed by the Colisseum and ancient Fori Imperiali ruins, home to many "sacred strays" which Rome declared a part of its historical heritage last year.

The stray cats have been slinking through the ruins since they were first excavated and their protectors believe they are descendants of felines who stalked Roman temples in the time of Julius Caesar more than 2,000 years ago.

But cat rights groups say the city's 150,000 abandoned moggies get far from imperial treatment from residents.

Last year, a string of stray cat killings sparked fears of a feline serial killer and highlighted the city's love-hate relationship with domestic animals who are often abandoned on the streets.

On Saturday, the city's "gattare," or "cat ladies," marched to demand government aid for cat shelters and neutering programs and more help from the general public in protecting and feeding the animals.

"The cat ladies and men of Rome are finally coming out of the closet!" organizers declared in posters.

[NormsRevenge]

Sat Feb 22,11:42 AM ET

A man dressed as a Roman Gladiator holds up a cat during a march for feline rights in Rome February 22, 2003. Some 2,000 cat lovers turned out for Rome's first ever Cat Pride march to demand protection and funding for the city's thousands of strays. (Tony Gentile/Reuters)

[HuntsvilleTxVeteran]

Does anyone know how to get rid of feral cats?

[Illbay]

Here's betting that this thread elicits as big a flame war as any other topic you could bring up on FR!

[Illbay]

Get a "feral dog" and sic 'em?

[Illbay]

BTW, that guy looks like he's dressed as a Roman LEGIONARY, not a "gladiator."

[Diddle E. Squat]

[LibKill]

Does anyone know how to get rid of feral cats?

Cats are on the small end of the varmint scale. A .22 rifle, or even a high-powered pellet gun is good medicine for worthless furballs.

[miss marmelstein]

Thanks for the post. Now that's a cause worth marching for!

[NormsRevenge]

I almost thought twice about posting this for that reason alone.. almost ;-) LOL

Feral cats usually die fairly early in comparison to kept cats. I have had a feral colony for the last 15 years, Im down to the last few of a pile of cats that were abanadoned or bred prolifically in my neighborhood. I guess when no living thing is worthy of any respect at all, Im gonna pull my own plug, as I wouldn't want to be around if I couldn;t make a difference too. IMO.

But 'til then , Flame away!

[Riley]

"Ave Caesar! We who are about to cough up hairballs, salute you!"

[Joe 6-pack]

"Does anyone know how to get rid of feral cats?

Cats are on the small end of the varmint scale. A .22 rifle, or even a high-powered pellet gun is good medicine for worthless furballs."

Although a fine exercise in marksmanship, stalking a born stalker can be time consuming. If you're not inclined to do so, lay out saucers of antifreeze. Cats are attracted to the sweetness, and will lap it up like mother's milk. It is invariably fatal. Just make sure any pets you do care about do not get access.

[LibKill]

While you foolish humans march for our rights, we are plotting for the day when we will rise up and EAT you!

[LibKill]

Although a fine exercise in marksmanship, stalking a born stalker can be time consuming. If you're not inclined to do so, lay out saucers of antifreeze. Cats are attracted to the sweetness, and will lap it up like mother's milk. It is invariably fatal. Just make sure any pets you do care about do not get access.

GREAT MERCIFUL BLOOD-STAINED GODS!! NO!!!!!!!!

Dude, dogs will lap up that antifreeze a lot faster than cats. You don't want to murder puppies, do you? Think of man's best friend!

Get a pellet gun. Exercise in marksmanship.

[nina0113]

I'm a serious cat lover, so I don't like saying this, but really the only way to get rid of feral cats is to shoot them. Live-trapping & moving them just moves the problem to someone else's neighborhood. Feral cats aren't, and will never become, pets.

When I lived in the country there was a pack of them in the abandoned house down the road - they were all a sandy blond color and looked like a pride of tiny lions. They weren't a problem out there, so I just enjoyed watching them.

[nina0113]

>>Cats are attracted to the sweetness, and will lap it up like mother's milk. <<

And then die in agony - my next door neighbor lost a dog being careless with antifreeze, he said it was terrible. Poison is a coward's weapon.

[HuntsvilleTxVeteran]

Thanks

using a .22 in city limits could be bad.
I will change my antifreeze and leave it
in several pie pans until I find a way to
get rid of it.

[LibKill]

STOP!!!

Leaving poison around is as irresponsible as laying landmines and walking away from them.

You could kill dogs, squirrels, human children.

Don't do it FRiend. Please.

[MotleyGirl70]

Cats are on the small end of the varmint scale. A .22 rifle, or even a high-powered pellet gun is good medicine for worthless furballs.

Why don't you tell us what you REALLY think.

[Joe 6-pack]

As others have cautioned here, be VERY careful kids and your own pet(s) do not access it. It may not be the most noble thing to do, but in an urban area where feral cats can be nuisance and a health problem, one must do what one must do.

With all due respect to other posters, the cats may die in agony, but I'd rather see that than see what may happen to a kid who played in a sandbox full of tapeworm laden cat turds.

[Steve0113]

Were they members of the Roman Cat Church?