I like the way you said this. It's been my experience that the successful protests/boycotts are the ones that get noticed. If the people you're refusing to buy from don't know that a). you are refusing to buy from them and b). why they will have no idea that what they're doing is wrong. So, my strategy is if I go to look at a kitten to adopt and find that it is not acting right or the mom looks awful or if the environment is bad then I'll tell them that. I feel like that is the more important action than not doing anything.
Also, Boulder is full of animal lovers and all kinds of environmentally friendly people. At least, that's what my out-of-town friends tell me. =)
Many successful important protest/boycotts start at the grassroots. That is why the simple act of educating people about BYB's and the like DOES make a difference. It does matter.
When more people start supporting the shelters when looking for pet quality mixed breed and occassionally purebred cats and kittens, society as a whole does benefit. BYB are at least held responsible for their actions when they understand their role, then they should alter their pets, and pet stores won't sell kittens anymore, so they will stop selling them. Grass roots does make a difference in many cases. One person does matter regardless of if you believe it or not.
If you want to really make a difference and take some action and do someting, volunteer at a shelter. That would make a bigger difference than trying to get a free kitten you hope will work out from a BYB.
Common sense says if the shelters in reality WERE favored too much, over the BYB's, pet shops, etc. we wouldn't have the horrible pet overpopulation problem now would we? If more people went to the good shelters that vet their kitties, spay/n, are honest about health and temperament issues, dedicate their lives to cat and kitten well being, are a good source of knowledge, and so forth - instead of the middle man (BYB's) or pet shops that produce, give away, or sell these kitties that wouldn't be a bad thing to favor the shelters. But that is not reality.
Interesting thoughts on the issue. My cousin and a friend got a "for free" puppy from different towns at different times; both have had to pay a lot of vet bills and had a lot of heartbreak from genetic conditions. The puppies were healthy when they first got them, but it didnâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t last.
I agree. It is all so situational.
Common sense says there are way more cats than people who want them. Pay attention please: I was talking about the people on these forums.
The difference it makes is minimal at best. Doesn't mean we can't or shouldn't tryor darndest, but we really need to be realistic. Reality is: Most people do not care. It's sick, it's terrible, and it's shameful, but most people just don't give a crap. We, the cat lovers who spend thousands on our pets and lavish them with affection, are the exception rather than the rule. Some people will pay attention and be appalled, but more often than not, the most we'll get is a shrug of a shoulder and our words promptly forgotten.
Okay, so more people do what you said above. Many more than that continue to support them. Short of making it illegal with punishments of torture and death, they will always have a market. What you propose above will never happen without a hefty miracle. It's supply and demand, yes, and no matter what, no matter how many people we try to educate, there will always, always, ALWAYS be many more who are out of our reach. You can almost invisibly slow the demand, but there is almost no chance of it actually being stopped. You have to be realistic.
All she wants to do is get a kitten. She's not going looking for a BYB, or going into a pet shop, and that's a load of responsibility that you're proposing that she might not have time for. If what she wants to do is get a kitten, and she goes searching and finds something detestable, she intends to speak up and possibly call animal control or whatnot. She was never looking into saving the entire race of kitties--she was simply planning on doing something that was beneficial as opposed to nothing if that's what she happens across.
Generally, the BYB are ones who do it for profit and sell out of pet stores. They have tons and tons of queens who are worn out from breeding and are generally not healthy. The ones you'll find on craig's list with small rehoming fees are generally mistakes and "oopsies". Those are generally the people that informing will probably make a difference to, so if you can, tell them to spay, spay, SPAY! =D Find out what the history is, check for all conditions, and ask if you can have them examined by a veterinarian--if there are any health problems, and they're responsible people, they should be willing to take them back. Just a thought.
Very, very true. Many purebred cats have lots of health problems as well due to the limitations of a small gene pool.
I couldn't have said it better.
And even some self-professed cat lovers do not care. I have a friend who got THREE girl kittens from pet stores and one male cat as a stray. She didn't spay any of her girls b/c she couldn't afford it after paying for the cats. The male was not neutered either. So one of her cats had kittens. She didn't get any of those 4 fixed either before she adopted them out (or got them shots). Then I finally convinced her to get her cats fixed and she did the females but didn't want the males to "lose their manhood." So...she brought in another stray female..and the male got her pregnant....and it goes on despite my efforts of trying to convince her why it's good not to have kittens
Most BYB(the ones that are really super bad imho) are the ones who do it for profit, who refuse to spend the money on proper medical care, and basically just use their cats as breeding machines. These are generally not the ones you'll find on Craig's list. Craig's list kittens come from a variety of sources--from the above example: the "just one litter" people, the irresponsible out-door non-spaying people, "oopsies", fosters, and lots more.
Not for sure, it probably varies per individual and per litter if we are talking about a BYB
thanks and sorry for asking questions that ppl already answer. I can't quite keep up with this forum. =P
