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From: rcd@opus.UUCP (Dick Dunn)
Newsgroups: net.pets
Subject: Re: who says pets should run loose?
Message-ID: <483@opus.UUCP>
Date: Wed, 16-May-84 03:41:51 EDT
Article-I.D.: opus.483
Posted: Wed May 16 03:41:51 1984
Date-Received: Fri, 18-May-84 07:36:00 EDT
References: <484@hound.UUCP>
Organization: NBI, Boulder
Lines: 25

<>
>        With all this talk about pet identification, I have not yet
>        noticed any mention of the argument against letting pets run
>        loose, which I consider the height of irresponsibility.

I've been avoiding it consciously - but OK, I'll jump in.  If you own a cat
and live in/near a city, you're a damn fool (not to mention inhumane) for
letting your cats outside.  I've been convinced the hard way - I was a damn
fool long enough to get one cat killed and another injured to the tune of
$n00 (n>2) in repairs.

The problem of cars is the most obvious one - but there's also feline
leukemia (FeLV) and feline infectious peritonitis (FIP).  Both of these are
common, contagious, invariably terminal, and have no known immunization or
cure (though FeLV is close).  They're also very ugly ways to lose an
animal.

We raise cats, so there's no question of letting ours out - we couldn't
afford (in the emotional/professional sense, NOT the monetary sense) to do
it even if we wanted to.

I'll respond to queries and/or flames.
-- 
...A friend of the devil is a friend of mine.		Dick Dunn
{hao,ucbvax,allegra}!nbires!rcd				(303) 444-5710 x3086