Korean Job Discussion Forums

[krissy123]

Does anyone know of where I can get a kitten or cat in Busan or Gwangju? I would prefer one in a shelter, but anything will do...thanks!

[krats1976]

[Ya-ta Boy]

If you go to your local 5-day market, you are bound to see some penned up in a box waiting to be sold to someone with a bad back who will pay good money to take the kitty home and drop it in a vat of boiling water...and drink the soup that results. It's good for a bad back, you know.

[kimchi_pizza]

Be patient and you may stumple on a few.

A month ago I saw group of kids crowded around a bus stop near my hogwan. I took a peek and saw a pair of kittens abandoned in a box. Most Korean I've met have a strong dislike for cats and figured no one would go near'em except for kids' poking and prodding.

Koreans see cats as something like foxes and believe they possess some kind off evil spirit or ill omen. The belief is fading, but there is still that lingering feeling of dislike for felines. I'm sure you can find one for free.

I'm now the proud owner of Phoenix and Tiger. Great cats.

[Ya-ta Boy]

[PaperTiger]

What will you do with the cat when you return home? Some people decide it's "too expensive" or bothersome to bring their pets home, you might want to check out that stuff before you go and get a pet you should be making a commitment to, instead of just having a furry ornament for your apartment for a year or two while you're here.

I'm sorry, but short-timers just shouldn't get pets...especially cats. Ever wonder why there's so many living miserable lives on the street? They probably got passed around until someone bounced them out into the street.

My wife and I have three kittens now, but every time I hear about who wants to adopt them it seems Koreans' ideas about how to care for cats and what places could be a suitable home, I feel I'm just sending them off to misery. Bleah, I don't know if we can give them up...they're really cool.

[joyfulgirl]

i got a cat here. cute as balls. but, i'm gonna get it put down before i leave. can't be bothered.

fer fuckssake, paper tiger....

[canuckistan]

My 2 cents:

No cat (or any other critter) that I have ever had has been turfed when it was no longer "convenient."

Barring allergy issues, I think it takes a special breed of self-centered coldness to just turf 'em after a pet has become attached and knows/trusts its owner as being exclusively the one who sustains it in this world. It knows your voice, your walk, your smell, the sound of your car when you come home. And there it is waiting for you, as it always will until the day it dies.

I'd like to think attachment would run both ways, but I've long understood that for many people, the unfortunate pets they surround themselves with are just kinda "there"--like TV--with no real emotional attachment to an animal which, for a handful of food a day, gives 100% loyalty to its owner--ultimately totally undeserved in the end.

It's just sad.

[kimchi_pizza]

I'm never one to shirk my responsibility wether it's family, students, OR pets. I plan on being here for quite some time so having to leave them isn't a concern and IF I had to, I'd bring them home.

My only concern now is that I had a childhood allergic reaction to cats that went away, but now living with two cats in a studio-type appartment I have to wonder if it'll be a problem.
Cats are great and enjoy having them, but if it comes to my health or theirs then there is no choice. Naturally I'd do my hardest to find'em a good home, but if not then I have no problem with putting them down.
I would still have a clear conscience knowing I gave them a little joy rather than having kids poking them or adults turning them in back pain relief.
Which, by the way Ya-ta, I, and maybe others, didn't find the soup comment funny the first time so why mention it twice?

[VanIslander]

[krats1976]

[red dog]

[kermo]

[red dog]

[Corporal]