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[big3bc]

Being a certifiable pet lover, I have owned every kind of pet imaginable from the odd ( 2 deglanded skunks) to the normal (countless dogs and cats). During my 12 years here in Turkey, I have had dogs, cats, fish, birds, turtles, lizards and tarantulas. If any of you are thinking about getting a pet, here is some worthwhile advice:
- If you want a cat, don't grab one off the street. They are almost impossible to domesticate, and will only return to eat if allowed outside. They are also disease-ridden and full of fleas, lice and mites.
- Don't trust the veterinarians. They only have a 5 year degree (much shorter than that required to be a vet in the US). Many of their clinics are not clean. I have had both a cat and a dog die here in Istanbul when being neutered by "reputable" veterinarians. Some types of pet pills and medicines which are illegal in 95% of the world are legal here. Don't use them. Do your research first.
- Never buy any kind of pet at the outdoor plant/ pet market in Emin�n�. All of the cats and dogs there were removed from their mother after 5-6 weeks. The police have closed this place several times, but somehow it always seems to reopen.
- Never (and I repeat never) listen to anything a pet shop owner says. Never buy anything he/ she recommends. They are only trying to make money. For example, I have owned several tarantulas in the past. Last week, I noticed a pet shop near my flat had tarantulas. I asked the owner several questions. When asked what to feed them, he said I can feed them store bought chicken, fish, beef etc. This is a complete joke- tarantulas (99% of them) will only eat live prey such as crickets and houseflies. I asked what kind of tarantula he had, and if it lived above the ground. He said there is only one kind of tarantula (there are more than 500 kinds), and they all live in trees or bushes (more than half are burrowers).
- Cat food from America such as Whiskers and Fancy Feast contain additives that are addictive. If your cat was raised on Whiskas, it won't eat anything else. I have a Persian cat, and that is all she will eat. Don't waste your money buying expensive food from pet shops.
Your best bet is not to get anything if you plan on staying here for only a short while. There are no SPCAs in Turkey. Your pet will inevitably end up on the street.
By the way, both of my parents were veterinarians.

[tarte tatin]

I am also an animal lover. I agree with a lot of what you say. Particularly about that awful market at Emin�n� and the standard of veterinary care. I know some good vets but there are some really bad ones too.

I have to disagree with what you say about street animals. I look after all our garden cats and they are very domesticated indeed. I am lucky enough to live on the ground floor so they can go in and out. I never intended for them to become pets but most of them are very affectionate, sleep on my bed and behave just like any other pet cat I have ever had.

I do agree that some male street cats do not like being cooped up in flats. My neighbour has two that keep trying to jump out of the windows and a Turkish friend of mine also had a bad experience with a male cat. My male cats are great but they are not cooped up. One older male cat never comes into my home but he sleeps on my terrace and is a total sweetie. The other boys all come in for extended periods and are total lap cats. I am sure most female cats if adopted as kittens can adapt to life as house pets.

As for being disease-ridden, most of mine are quite healthy and I do my best to keep them free of parasites. I would prefer to take a chance with a street animal than support the petshop trade that leaves a lot to be desired here. Some diseases such as feline chlamydia are surprisingly easy to treat, a tiny one-off dose of zithromax, which you can buy at the chemists, is a miracle cure for many of the illnesses which cause upper respiratroy problems and eye loss in cats. I have used it with great results.

I have no experience with domesticating street dogs, but the petshop 'pure bred' ones are not often very good examples of the breed and may have puppy farm type health problems.

I am interested in your comments about pet food as I had often wondered if they were addictive. I do buy them for convenience but supplement with other things such as boiled liver, fish etc. What would you recommend feeding?

[big3bc]

For which type of pet, Tarte?

[tarte tatin]

For cats and dogs. I am afraid I don't share your exotic taste for tarantulas;).

Meat is so expensive here and I do buy chicken liver sometimes but it is not good to feed it too often apparently, just once a week or so. If I had just one animal I could afford to buy very good food but I look after 10 at the moment, sometimes more. I am only working part-time too unfortunately.

[big3bc]

I have always fed my dogs and cats whatever they seem to like when it comes to store bought pet foods. I don't ascribe to the theory that feeding your pet the more expensive foods makes for a healthier animal. As far as your street cats are concerned, any cat food you feed them is better than what they will find on the street.
The pet food industry is just starting to reach Turkey. The many specialized brands your vet sells might help control your pet's weight and provide for a slightly better diet, but they aren't worth the added expense.
Every pet is different. My cat won't eat fish, chicken, or any other meat except for rare beef.

[tarte tatin]

I saw a new vet yesterday with one of my cats and he was trying to tell me that I should buy premium food for all the street cats I feed. He said 'you are probably already spending 150TL per month so just do a deal with a petshop and buy a big sack of premium food.' I am not spending that sort of money and unfortunately cannot afford to but I felt somehow that I had let my cats down.

Another vet told me dry food is not great and I am better off preparing my own. It is not only Turkish vets, the internet is full of conflicting advice about dry food/wet food, raw food/cooked food.

I feed my cats Michos biscuits which they like and top it up with fish, liver and so on. They always have several bowls of water available. I do try and worm them regularly as well. They all look healthy and as you say, Michos are much better than nothing and also better than the even cheaper food my neighbour was feeding them before. Of course the older ones scavenge in the dustbins and we live just two houses away from a fish restaurant:)

I have spent about 400TL on vetinerary treatment this month and felt put out about being guilt tripped about what I was feeding the animals.

[big3bc]

As more and more people buy pets, more and more opinions on what is good for your pet will appear on the net, in newspapers etc.
Pet food has become similar to people food (butter, cheese, eggs) in that what one vet says is good for your pet, the next will say it shouldn't be fed to your pet. With your street cats, you should be happy that they are getting something to eat, and not worry about the quality.
Dry food for cats is usually only used as a supplement for a "main dish." For dogs, it is almost always the main course.
Any specialized food you see in a pet shop which claims to help solve a particular problem with an animal is to be avoided. An example of this is food which claims it helps prevent Persian cat's hair from matting.
Try to buy something that has a "fixed formula." This means that the food inside is always made the same. Most people don't realize that there is a lot of filler in a bag of pet food. One popular filler is corn which is not easily digested by cats and dogs.

[spiral78]

Dry food for cats is usually only used as a supplement for a "main dish." For dogs, it is almost always the main course.

First - I'm not in Turkey, but in the Czech Rep, Nederlands, and, very occasionally, Canada, with my Canadian dog.
However, this is a very interesting discussion and I'm intrigued that big3 comes from a veterinary family.

Our old vet here in the CR told us that, before prepared dog foods became available, dogs rarely had cancer here. Before the revolution in '89, dry foods weren't available, and dogs normally ate scraps. In the past 20 years, he says that cases of cancer have risen dramatically.

I can't vouch for this, and doubt that any hard statistics are available. But I feed our dog a steady diet of brown rice, cooked veggies, and chicken or salmon.

It's quite a luxury - in the past, I also had multiple animals for whom I felt responsible and simply couldn't afford to feed on the 'best.'

However, I do think that if it's affordable to feed dogs (and cats, of course) on 'people-safe' food, then it should be preferable to whatever is/may be in the prepared stuff, so long as it's a diet that takes into consideration the animal's need for fibre, protein, etc....

and am horrified to learn that some packaged American pet foods are actually addictive! to what lows will the big companies sink????

[tarte tatin]

I think common sense needs to be applied. When my vet was talking to me I did think that animals did very well for millennia without Hills Presciption Food or whatever.

As far as home foods go I think it depends on the individual animal, my dog seems to vomit after fish or rice, she just doesn't digest it well.

People should also be aware that although dogs can digest foods other than meat, cats are true carnivores and their bodies only really make use of protein foods. Certain foods which are safe for people are also dangerous for cats and dogs, especially onion, chocolate, mushrooms and grapes.

[Antepli Ejderha]

Like many luxuries it is expensive here and houses are actually apartments so not animal friendly.

[Luxe]

Great thread! Are there any places to buy reptiles?