|
Korean Job Discussion Forums
"The Internet's Meeting Place for ESL/EFL Teachers from Around the World!"
|
| View previous topic :: View next topic |
| Author |
Message |
jacksthirty
Joined: 30 Nov 2009
|
 Posted: Wed Sep 05, 2012 8:53 pm Post subject: Help with kitten, please! |
 |
|
There is a kitten that seems to live in the grounds of the PS that I work for (I work in the countryside). It's always near it's mother, but I noticed that its back legs seem to have some kind of problem. I think it's known as swimmers or frogs legs or something. Is this a permanent thing or something that some cats get and 'grow out of it'?  I would say it's around 3 months old or so.
I'm hesistant to take the kitten home as I'm leaving in six weeks and also I'm allergic to cats, but I can't really leave it as it is. So I guess, if I can fix it then I will and maybe try and pass the cat off to someone else when it's 'better'. 
Any advice??!?! |
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
le-paul
Joined: 07 Apr 2009
Location: dans la chambre
|
| Posted: Wed Sep 05, 2012 10:08 pm Post subject: |
|
|
I love animals so I can sympathise with why you want to help it. However, my advice is, leave it alone.
Korea has a serious feral cat problem, mostly because of people dumping their pets on the streets. If you help it, it will probably get re-housed over and over - causing it massive stress. If not, it will be put in a shelter with all the other stray cats and kittens (and probably destroyed anyway). The cats seem to be doing fine on thier own on the streets. I dont think trying to domesticate them all the time is necessarily the best way. Besides, it could be carrying all kinds of diseases.
It has its mother. Leave it on the streets - let nature take its course. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
jacksthirty
Joined: 30 Nov 2009
|
| Posted: Wed Sep 05, 2012 10:18 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| le-paul wrote: |
I love animals so I can sympathise with why you want to help it. However, my advice is, leave it alone.
Korea has a serious feral cat problem, mostly because of people dumping their pets on the streets. If you help it, it will probably get re-housed over and over - causing it massive stress. If not, it will be put in a shelter with all the other stray cats and kittens (and probably destroyed anyway). The cats seem to be doing fine on thier own on the streets. I dont think trying to domesticate them all the time is necessarily the best way. Besides, it could be carrying all kinds of diseases.
It has its mother. Leave it on the streets - let nature take its course. |
But it can't walk! Don't know if I want that on my conscience. Found some info via google that might help.
What type of diseases might this cat carry? |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Mix1
Joined: 08 May 2007
|
| Posted: Wed Sep 05, 2012 10:25 pm Post subject: |
|
|
That splayed leg problem could have numerous medical causes, and probably won't just go away on its own. Depending on how mobile the kitten is, it may not have a great chance of survival without some help, especially on the streets.
You could take it to a vet and get an assessment of the problem as it may be treatable. You could assess your options at that point, which may include moving it to foster care (you or someone else) in which case it could potentially be adopted out if things go well and the kitten is healthy and socialized.
If that's the option you take, there are numerous adoption sites (foreign and Korean) to help it find a home if it needs one. Animal Rescue Korea is one example.
I'd say help it if you can. A little effort on your part could make a big difference. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Mix1
Joined: 08 May 2007
|
| Posted: Wed Sep 05, 2012 11:16 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| le-paul wrote: |
I love animals so I can sympathise with why you want to help it. However, my advice is, leave it alone.
Korea has a serious feral cat problem, mostly because of people dumping their pets on the streets. If you help it, it will probably get re-housed over and over - causing it massive stress. If not, it will be put in a shelter with all the other stray cats and kittens (and probably destroyed anyway). The cats seem to be doing fine on thier own on the streets. I dont think trying to domesticate them all the time is necessarily the best way. Besides, it could be carrying all kinds of diseases.
It has its mother. Leave it on the streets - let nature take its course. |
Some valid points here and to some extent I agree. It's never an easy decision to intervene like that, and you can't be sure if you're doing more harm than good sometimes. Not an easy or clear choice.
But assess it on a case by case basis. In most cases, I'd agree with le-paul, but in extreme cases, I'd be more inclined to want to help in some way. Everything changes once you directly encounter an animal in need. Because then emotion (including guilt) and altruism enters into it.
Also, in this case, letting nature take its course means that it's probably going to die if left on its own, and you don't know when or in what way, fast or slow. The mother can only take care of it for a limited time.
One way to look at it is, since it already can't walk, the chances of you doing more harm than good by trying to help it are lower than if it were a healthy cat. Depending on the age of the kitten, taking it to a vet and getting an assessment may not be the worst thing for it, and could even be the best thing for it. But be realistic about the outcomes; if it's a serious, irreversible medical condition, be prepared to have it put down as that may be the most painless way. But you never know, it could also be a small fixable problem and you could potentially be doing a really good thing.
As for diseases, yes it could potentially have something, but the kitten is young so could very well be clean. And other than rabies, most cat diseases are not transferrable to people. Vets get feral cats brought in semi-regularly and can give them shots to prevent or treat certain diseases.
Also, how friendly/approachable is the kitten? Is it completely hostile and feral or is it approachable and somewhat friendly? This might factor into the decision too, regarding the potential method of getting it to a vet and also its chances of being socialized/adopted later if that's the road it ends up on.
le-paul is correct that a good number of these cats do end up in and out of adopted homes or back in shelters and it can stress them. But I've seen worse cases than this cat be adopted into good homes too, so you never know. I even know of a cat that was brought in to a shelter with no use of the back legs (a seemingly hopeless case) but got use of them again after a while and ended up in a good home. Anything is possible, it's up to you to take the step or not.
You can't help all the cats, but you can potentially help this cat if you choose to. That won't solve the overall feral problem, but it could make a difference in this cat's life and yours as well. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
le-paul
Joined: 07 Apr 2009
Location: dans la chambre
|
| Posted: Thu Sep 06, 2012 1:22 am Post subject: |
|
|
| like |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
jvalmer
Joined: 06 Jun 2003
|
| Posted: Thu Sep 06, 2012 6:48 am Post subject: |
|
|
| le-paul wrote: |
| However, my advice is, leave it alone. |
ditto |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
catman
Joined: 18 Jul 2004
|
| Posted: Sat Sep 08, 2012 2:05 pm Post subject: |
|
|
 |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
KimchiNinja
Joined: 01 May 2012
Location: Gangnam
|
| Posted: Sun Sep 09, 2012 10:03 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| Make it into soup! |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Mix1
Joined: 08 May 2007
|
| Posted: Mon Sep 10, 2012 6:02 am Post subject: |
|
|
| KimchiNinja wrote: |
| Make it into soup! |
Hilarious. Spreading the love or just going for shock value?
Nah, he shouldn't make it into soup though. Cats were traditionally put in soups/tonics here to cure arthritis. Obviously according to Oriental medicine principles, the messed up leg problem of that cat could spread to him if he ate it.
OP, any news? I'm guessing not. In any case, cats do have a tendency to just "disappear" here. They really don't seem to last too long around these parts. There aren't that many animal lovers per capita, much less cat lovers.
Our apartment complex now has two new kittens. Last I saw, some little kids were laughing and chucking stones at them. We stopped them and my gf tore them a new one, but who knows how long the kittens will last at this rate. At least our apartment has a cat woman to feed strays, that is, until she gets beat up and thrown in the trash like the one from the news. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
JustinC
Joined: 10 Mar 2012
Location: We Are The World!
|
| Posted: Mon Sep 10, 2012 7:52 am Post subject: |
|
|
It has its mother with it, surely a little food now and again is the best you can do for it?
And animals in the wild die, every day. A hard but true fact. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
nora
Joined: 14 Apr 2012
|
| Posted: Mon Sep 10, 2012 10:49 pm Post subject: |
|
|
| JustinC wrote: |
It has its mother with it, surely a little food now and again is the best you can do for it?
And animals in the wild die, every day. A hard but true fact. |
Life is brutal.
Didn't you ever read "Millions of Cats"?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Millions_of_Cats
Yeah, if you're soft, it sucks. Cats die. Their life is rough. Oh well. I like cats, even had a couple, and I was sad when they died, but hey - besides taxes, death is the only other certainty in the world.
Leave him be. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Mix1
Joined: 08 May 2007
|
| Posted: Tue Sep 11, 2012 12:47 am Post subject: |
|
|
| JustinC wrote: |
It has its mother with it, surely a little food now and again is the best you can do for it?
And animals in the wild die, every day. A hard but true fact. |
Uh, yeah. Organisms die everywhere, every day. Good observation. 
That's cool, I'll be the voice against the haters/doubters here. 
Someone on here said 'let nature take its course'. Ok, but remember that altruism also occurs in nature, and humans are part of nature too.
We aren't in the wild, we're in a city. Some of these cats are wild and some are not. Cats have been with us for thousands of years. They feed from our trash sometimes and they help keep the rodents in check. We are interlinked in many ways.
Believe it or not, some of these cats do want or need a helping hand sometimes. Some even bond with humans, get adopted, and lead a good life. Or there's TNR programs (trap and release) where cats get brought to the vet, get fixed/sterilized and then released again.
The OP came across a kitten in need. He could help it if he wants to or he could leave it be. There are no set rules. Sometimes good comes of it, sometimes not. Just saying, anything's possible. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
|
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum
|
|
FAQ
Search
Memberlist
Usergroups
Register
Profile
Log in to check your private messages
Log in
