Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat

Poultry and Pets => Pets without Feathers => Topic started by: tosca100 on April 26, 2014, 09:51

Title: We can do without.....
Post by: tosca100 on April 26, 2014, 09:51
....all this cuteness around the place. It's bad enough having gorgeous little chicks who may grow up to be cockerels. It's heart breaking to see litters of tiny puppies with mum at the side of the roads. Now, to top it all, we have kittens in the loft above the chick nursery! :ohmy:

It's bad enough that they are there in all their two week old cuteness, but the idea of a hungry, nursing mother cat amongst the chicks....it doesn't bear thinking about if she can't find any meeces! :ohmy:

The situation with animals in Bulgaria is the only real problem we have with the country. There are literally puppies and kittens everywhere, they don't believe in spaying, feeding or excercising their animals, they live on the end of a short chain, never getting off unless it snaps, fed bread and scraps if there are any, and the odd bare bone. Cats don't get fed, they are there to do a job, no-one owns them.

We said when we moved here we would have to be hard hearted and not adopt any of the thousands of unwanted animals in our area as we have no idea if our move will work out and couldn't bear to have to try to re-home before returning to the UK where we would have to find somewhere to rent with two dogs already. Farm animals no problem, there are plenty of poor and hungry people who would have them.

But we are torn about these three scraps, even though i don't care for cats, OH does, and I can't bear to see any animal homeless. Oh dear. :(
(http://i673.photobucket.com/albums/vv100/tosca100-dog/KITTENS021_zpsf3b13d5b.jpg) (http://s673.photobucket.com/user/tosca100-dog/media/KITTENS021_zpsf3b13d5b.jpg.html)
Title: Re: We can do without.....
Post by: Goosegirl on April 26, 2014, 11:47
Oh dear indeed! And no....I can't!  :(
Title: Re: We can do without.....
Post by: Trillium on April 26, 2014, 15:31
That is a really hard decision, Tosca. Don't envy you having to make it   :(
Title: Re: We can do without.....
Post by: tosca100 on April 27, 2014, 06:36
Well, the problem has been solved in the worst possible way. We had decided that we would help if we needed to home them, but it looks as if the pine marten found them last night. :( There were a lot of clumps of white fur in the chook pen as if mum had put up a fight. So sad, and one of the most feared animals here. OH says mum had been doing a good job of raising them, they were full bellied and clean.

No doubt mum will have another litter in nine weeks. :(
Title: Re: We can do without.....
Post by: joyfull on April 27, 2014, 08:57
so sad  :(
Title: Re: We can do without.....
Post by: snowdrops on April 27, 2014, 10:39
Oh dear, unless she has moved hem. Hope your chicks are safe :(
Title: Re: We can do without.....
Post by: tosca100 on April 27, 2014, 12:18
Oh dear, unless she has moved hem. Hope your chicks are safe :(

No, she hasn't moved them. OH found two of them, one with wound to throat, one with half a head. He is distraught. We are hoping that she has taken one as there has been no sight or sound of her all day and you would think she would be looking for them. Either that or she was injured, but there was no blood in the pen that we could see, just lumps of fur.

Our guard dogs are not much good, maybe the geese will do better once they are old enough. :(
Title: Re: We can do without.....
Post by: Oliveview on May 01, 2014, 22:17
That is so sad, poor kittens and Mum cat.   Here they think it is a waste of money to sterilise cats or dogs, they cannot understand why we bother!  I spoke to a lady I know from the patchwork class once, she had a lovely little pup with her, I asked if he would get castrated- she looked at me as if I was mad and asked why, it was not nice for him!!  This is a young woman, who should have more sense!
All the dogs that wander the streets here, be it abandoned, lost or just let out, are never castrated- we have yet to have a dog, male or female, arrive at the refuge  that has already been sterilised......why waste their money when we can waste ours! 
Ill dogs, why treat them when there are idiots at the refuge who will pay for the vet instead-  I am sure that is what they think of us, as idiots. 

Sorry for the kittens and Mum cat xxx

Pamela
Title: Re: We can do without.....
Post by: tosca100 on May 02, 2014, 06:11
Pamela there are schemes here where they can get dogs done free, but a lot think it's cruel. However, it's not cruel to dump litters of puppies in bins or the local fountain! Dogs which are sterilised are given an ear tag, not pretty but saves them being picked up on the streets as strays. There are many Brits here trying to help, but I am not sure if their priorities are right sometimes. They seem to spend a lot of money on sending old and disabled street dogs who have never been in a house over to be re-homed in GB. While I applaud their enthusiasm and dedication, there are many healthy dogs being put down every day in the UK as there are no homes for them. I feel that the money, which goes so much further in this extremely poor country, could be used for the good of more dogs and education here. I'll get off my soap box now!

As for cats, maybe the martens serve to help keep the population in check as they are not a huge problem here. But it is horrific all the same, as are so many animal related problems here, but on the other hand, farm animals are revered, but still kept in conditions (though clean and fed) that would not be looked on favouribly in the UK. Our neighbours are really amazed at the condition of our chickens and the lady of the house comes over to kiss and cuddle the babies. They are good people.
Title: Re: We can do without.....
Post by: Oliveview on May 02, 2014, 15:30
Some women at the refuge found a dog, they thought it had been hit by a car- but the vet thinks the dog was shot in the leg-  luckily another bigger refuge took him on- the bill is heading towards 2,000€ and still he might lose his leg.  It makes you wonder at times.

Pamela