Atlanta Humane Society Seeks Home for Pair of Cats.

Juan came to the Atlanta Humane Society on Dec. 1, 2011 and is an affectionate, sweet boy who is looking to finally find his perfect family. This one and a half-year-old cat is a beautiful, playful, black and white male who spent some time in foster care. His foster family had a hard time parting with him.
His fun loving, friendly nature and love of attention makes Juan a great family pet for anyone. His foster mom described him as a very well behaved cat who loves to seek out attention and make biscuits in her lap. Although he loves to play, he also enjoys calm moments sunbathing in windows and sitting on laps. He loves cardboard scratchers and any toys that rattle. Juan got along great with the whole foster family including other cats and dogs.
To say that Juan likes other cats would be an understatement. Juan is very social and LOVES other cats. Since being at the Atlanta Humane Society, Juan has found a best friend named Dean.
Dean is a handsome grey and white nine month old cat who is full grown but fairly small at only seven pounds. They can usually be found snuggling in a cubby or running around chasing jingle balls together. These two make great friends and would have the best time if they could go home together. Initially, Dean is a little shy but still inquisitive and with Juan’s help he is coming out of his shell and learning to be more outgoing. These two boys are a perfect pair and if adopted together, would bring a lot of love to your family.
Juan and Dean can be adopted together for just $85 and have both been vaccinated, dewormed, neutered, micro-chipped and tested negative for FIV and Feline Leukemia. You can see photos of the two and a video of them interacting in Juan’s profile video on our website.
Juan and Dean would love to meet you, so if they sound like a good match for you please come to the Atlanta Humane Society’s Mansell Campus located at 1565 Mansell Rd, Alpharetta, GA 30009 for a “meet and greet.” Bring your whole family, including little ones, to meet and play with them.  An adoption application can be filled out at our location or we can be contacted at 404-875-5331 with any questions.

Maine coon for You !

Spring Adoption Event At Orange County Shelter.

From now through April 14, Orange County Animal Services is drastically reducing adoption fees for cats and dogs as part of its first-ever Spring Adoption Event.

“We have dog adoption fees reduced to $60 and cat adoption fees reduced to $50,” says Animal Shelter manager Jess Allison. “Ordinarily dogs are $115 and cats are $95, so right now is a great time if someone’s interested in adopting…so I hope we see a lot of folks come down and a lot of pets get good homes.”

Animal Services began holding special adoption events last year, with “Cat Adoption Month” in June; since then, they’ve held “Dog Adoption Month” in October and a pair of successful holiday-themed events in December and February. But Allison says springtime is particularly important for the shelter.

“During the springtime, typically we start seeing a lot of kittens coming into the shelter, and a lot of puppies,” she says. “So we want to go ahead and try to get those animals adopted as quickly as possible.”

All animals adopted from the shelter come fully vaccinated, vet checked, and spayed or neutered.

If you’re interested in adopting, visit Orange County Animal Services at 1601 Eubanks Road in Chapel Hill.

Pet Owners Get Their Animals Microchipped For Great Cause.

Dozens of cats and dogs are now microchipped. It’s all because of Kevin and Jean Zimmermann of Marshfield.

Their daughter, Brittany, was murdered back in 2008 in her off-campus apartment in Madison. Her parents say, Brittany loved animals, and had three cats of her own, Marvin, Felix, and Boo.
She even dreamed of having a hobby farm one day with her fiancé Jordan.

In her memory, her parents held a free microchipping event today at the Humane Society of Portage County. Hundreds of people from all over the state came to the event to get their animals microchipped. Jean and Kevin donated $2,000 to make sure the event would help as many pet owners as possible. It’s a price they say they gladly pay in their daughters memory.

Jean Zimmermann says the event is some Brittany would have loved. “She would be so proud, I think she’s just absolutely smiling down. The day is beautiful, this would absolutely be something she would support 100 percent.”

They say the turnout was amazing, and urge pet owners to get their animals microchipped. If your animal would get lost or wonder off, they can be returned to you simply by scanning the microchip.

The Zimmermann’s say they do a different event each year in remembrance of their daughter. They say these type of events help them in their coping, and they want to remain positive into the future.

Dumped animals had been euthanized; SPCA rules out abuse, hoarding.At least there’s no pet serial killer on the loose.The 35 dead dogs, cats and lizard found off the Hutchinson River Parkway on Thursday had been euthanized before they were illegally dumped, indicating this was not a case of animal abuse, authorities said Friday.“We think people were bringing their pets in to be euthanized,” Westchester SPCA Chief Ernie Lungaro told The Journal News. “Somewhere along the line, they were supposed to be cremated or properly disposed of. Instead, they were just dumped on the side of the road.“Our first step now is to find out who was euthanizing these animals,” he added.The carcasses were discovered in garbage bags, including eight dogs, 26 cats and one South American lizard.

They were in varying states of decay.Some of the bags were caked in dirt and weeds, suggesting they’d been there for months.Others had probably been dumped there within the last few days, Lungaro said.

Despite the fact most were within 5 feet of the roadway, they weren’t reported until Monday morning by a Transportation Authority worker.Westchester County police initiated a criminal investigation.A veterinarian in Mount Vernon performed necropsies on five of the animals and, Lungaro said, “There were no signs of abuse or any type of neglect involved.”Two of the skinny cats had shaved necks, which is consistent with euthanasia because that’s how technicians access jugular veins with needles.The veterinarian also found evidence that the animals had been stacked at one point, and frozen — both indications that they had been euthanized.Lungaro said the animals, of various breeds, likely had different owners. “If it was a hoarder, the condition of the cats and dogs would be the same,” the chief said. “There weren’t any patterns of skin irritation. Some were old, some were young, some were thin and some were heavy. Each animal had its own condition, and they all appeared to be euthanized.”He said someone might have dumped the dead animals to save disposal costs.

Patch Pet: Jalena is a Friendly Little Girl Who Would Love a Good Lap.

She’s a friendly and vocal 2-year-old cat who has lived with dogs and cats before and gotten along with everyone. She is used to being handled, picked up and having her nails trimmed. Jalena is a healthy eater and likes catnip.

She’s a beautiful, friendly little girl who would love a good lap and somebody to watch TV with. You can see how playful she is in her video.

Jalena is a very special cat with some very special needs. She suffers from a chronic urinary tract infection. But, her symptoms are easily controlled. Jalena needs a nice quiet home. Chaos and noise can make her condition flare up. She’d also like a good healthy diet for her kidneys.

Jalena is still looking for that special someone who can help her through her tough times. Sadly, her previous owners have not been able to work with her. If you think you can, please contact an Animal Friends adoption counselor for a meeting!

Jalena is spayed, vaccinated and microchipped.

Family fun day at Bath Cats and Dogs Home.

Children were given the opportunity to get up close and personal with some cuddly pets at an animal awareness event.Bath Cats and Dogs Home is hosting the series of open days across the weekend to give families a chance to find out more about owning a small pet.A whole range of animals, including rabbits, guinea pigs and ferrets, are on show for youngsters to handle and there are also experts on hand to answer any questions.Mel Jones, animal care and welfare delivery manager, said they wanted to make sure pet-owners had all the necessary information to give their furry friends the very best home.She said: “We want to get people to understand that bigger is better when you are looking after an animal. You want to give them the biggest space and cage possible.

“There is always something new to learn and our staff are very experienced. So if you already have a pet and what to find out new tips to look after them, or you are considering getting an animal, then we should be able to help you.”Sophie Lea was at the event today with her children, six-year-old Alexander and four-year-old Izzy.The youngsters were enjoying looking at the different animals, particularly the rabbits.

Mrs Lea, who lives in Batheaston, said: “We come here occasionally and we had seen this was on and thought it would be nice for the children.“They have animals at school, guinea pigs, and I am contemplating getting one for home, so this seemed a good idea.”Ben and Laura Dawson had taken their four-year-old son Jacob and two-year-old Theo to see the animals.Theo, who has a pet rabbit called Bunny, said he had liked looking at the dogs.Mr Dawson said the family, who live in London, had dropped by on their way to Wales, because he had been a student at the University of Bath and had been a volunteer dog walker at the home.The 2nd Keynsham Guides were at the animal awareness event today because they had chosen the home as the location for making their induction promise.Neve, a pupil at Chandag Junior School, said they had chosen the Bath Cats and Dogs Home because they were all animal lovers.The ten-year-old, who has a rabbit called Biscuit and a cat called Kitty, said: “We have had a look around everywhere and I got to hold a ferret called Roger and a guinea pig. The ferret was very hairy. It has been fun.”

Circus evolves amid market, regulatory challenges

Nicole and Alana Feld come from a long line of circus folk, so they are well aware of the challenge of bringing a century-and-a-half old attraction to families with many entertainment choices.

Like tightrope walkers, the Feld sisters seek to maintain a balance between innovation and tradition in producing the Ringling Bros. and Barnum and Bailey Circus.

After Ringling phased out the traditional three-ring format a few years ago so audiences could focus on one act at a time, there was some initial naysaying but the change came to be regarded as a success. But when they eliminated lions and tigers that same year in response to survey results showing that elephants were the top animal draw, fans weren’t happy _ and Ringling quickly brought back the big cats.

“People expect to see animals, and they expect to see clowns,” Nicole Feld said. “We want to deliver on those expectations.”

The circus is the flagship product for Vienna, Va.-based Feld Entertainment, a privately held family company that bought the circus in 1967. It’s unclear how profitable the show is. But the sisters said business remains steady, with the circus drawing more than 10 million people a year to its shows across the country.

Still, the company remains under siege from animal-rights activists who accuse it of treating elephants and other animals cruelly. Last year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture imposed a $270,000 fine against Ringling _ the largest ever assessed by the federal government against an animal exhibitor under the Animal Welfare Act _ for a variety of violations.

The issue is a sore point for Ringling, which agreed to pay the fine but admitted no wrongdoing. A company spokesman says the violations are a byproduct of heavy regulation _ in one four-month period, one of the circus’ traveling units was inspected 82 times by 18 different agencies.

By most measures, the circus has come a long way since P.T. Barnum assembled a traveling troupe of freaks, contortionists and Jumbo the Elephant into The Greatest Show on Earth.

In other ways, the circus maintains the traditions that have been there for nearly 150 years: exotic animals, acrobatics and an unwavering commitment to showmanship and pleasing audiences.

The balancing act requires the Felds to keep the show contemporary in the face of increased competition for the entertainment dollar and evolving public tastes. At the same time, much of the circus’ appeal comes from its tradition, and the circus ignores those traditions at its peril.

It was Nicole and Alana’s grandfather, Irvin Feld _ who sold snake oil at carnivals as a child during the Depression and established himself as one of the country’s top rock-and-roll concert promoters in the 1950s _ who acquired the circus in 1967.

Before buying it outright, though, the elder Feld made one of the biggest changes to revive the circus, which had folded in 1956. He did away with the Big Top _ the fabled circus tent _ and moved the show to the indoor arenas that he used to book his rock and roll shows.

The change enabled the circus to survive, continuing the traditions that dated back to “P.T. Barnum’s Grand Traveling Museum, Menagerie, Caravan and Circus” in 1870. Feld himself died in 1984.

In modern times, the company has endured its share of difficulties. It owned the Siegfried and Roy show in Las Vegas, which closed in 2003 when Roy Horn was mauled by one of his tigers. The family endured an embarrassing lawsuit from Karen Feld, sister of Feld CEO Kenneth Feld, who claimed her brother’s bodyguards roughed her up at a family memorial service. Jurors dismissed the lawsuit.

And then there are the ongoing complaints from animal rights activists, which at least one performer takes issue with.

Alexander Lacey, who performs with lions and tigers on Ringling’s “Dragons” show, said his rapport with his animals is built on mutual respect and rewarding animals for correct behavior. He says circus life for big cats is a better fate than critics suppose.

“Look at the wild. That’s not necessarily a good place to be,” he said before a recent show in Richmond, Va. He cited the threats from disease and human encroachment on their habitat that threaten lions and tigers in the wild.

The circus’ big cats “have an opportunity to eat, sleep and reproduce in an environment that is stimulating for them,” said Lacey, one of a number of Ringling performers who come from multi-generational circus backgrounds. The key, he said, is to make sure that the lions and tigers’ days are interesting for the time they are awake _ they typically sleep 18 to 20 hours a day. With many days containing multiple performances, the big cats have active days.

The performers say that at its core, the circus isn’t much different than it was decades ago. What’s changed, they say, is the presentation. Bulky costumes have gone by the wayside. Music tends to be more contemporary. And technological improvements in lighting and staging help speed the pace of the show. Acts featuring children used to be common, but now are rare.

“It’s more theatrical now,” said George Caceres, leader of The Flying Caceres trapeze troupe. Caceres is a third-generation performer; his mother continues to work on the Ringling show as a costume designer.

The circus has always had to balance innovation and tradition, says David Carlyon, an author and academic from Larchmont, N.Y., who has studied 19th-century circuses and was himself a Ringling clown in the late 70s.

A century ago, Carlyon said, the appeal of the circus was almost self-evident. No other entertainment of its kind was available. Performers demonstrated mastery and partnership with animals to a population that was used to working with horses and other farm animals. And there was a sex appeal as well _ in a Victorian era, it was rare to see the human body so clearly on display.

As entertainment options have exploded in the modern era, the circus has worked to keep pace. Carlyon recalled a somewhat feeble effort by Ringling in the 1980s to incorporate a Menudo-style boy band into its act.

Despite the occasional missteps, Carlyon said, “the Felds, as near as I can tell, are doing a good job.”

Some of the biggest changes at Feld Entertainment have been outside the circus world altogether. While the circus remains Feld’s flagship operation, in 2008 and 2009, Feld acquired a variety of motor sports properties, including monster truck shows, motocross and the International Hot Rod Association. In 2010, it created a theatrical motorcycle stunt show called Nuclear Cowboyz.

Combined with long-running brands such as Disney on Ice, Feld’s shows draw annual attendance of more than 30 million, meaning that the circus accounts for roughly a third of the company’s business.

The motorsports allow Feld to target young men and teens, a slightly different audience than the family with children ages 2 to 11 who make up the primary target audience for Ringling.

Still, the Feld family is at heart a circus family. Nicole and Alana, as children, performed as clowns.

“It’s an old circus saying _ `You have sawdust in your veins,’” said Nicole, who joined the company in 2001 after spending a few years out of college in other jobs. “It wasn’t until I wasn’t able to be around it that I realized just how much I missed it.”

Free clinic alters 27 cats.

The 27 cats scheduled to be spayed or neutered last week at Silver Creek Animal Clinic might have wanted to yell a collective “Run!” but their owners stood their ground and expressed relief.Cathy Fennimore made an appointment for her 6-year-old cat, Teeny, who has produced several litters of kittens.

“We decided no more,” Fennimore said.The cost for a cat spay is about $69, and a cat neuter is in the neighborhood of $37. Had the clinic not been free, Teeny likely would be looking at another batch of babies.

“We probably wouldn’t have come in today,” Fennimore said.Those sentiments were echoed by others waiting in the lobby of the Silverton business, where a cacophony of “meows” resonated above the human voices.

The free spay/neuter clinic was organized by two Silverton High School students, McKensy Lounsbury and Dunia Baghdanov, for their senior project. The 18-year-olds raised about $110 to help offset the cost of the surgeries.For the 27 cats (10 male and 17 female), the estimated overall value of the surgeries was about $1,300, said practice manager Kyle Palmer.The teens are still accepting donations to help cover expenses, but whatever isn’t collected will be generously absorbed by Silver Creek Animal Clinic.

“This is something we’re happy to do and we feel strongly about,” Palmer said. “… There are obviously a lot of people in our community that are in need, and we feel really good about being able to help them today.”Silver Creek Animal Clinic started a low-cost neuter program years ago in response to a growing number of stray cats in the community. Palmer said the clinic went from neutering about 100 cats per year to more than 500 annually. The program is still offered on the first Thursday of each month.Lounsbury and Baghdanov had connections at Silver Creek because they help at the clinic through their school’s work-experience program. Both want to pursue a career working with animals, and they decided a spay/neuter clinic would be a good idea for a senior project.

Greenacres home filled with cats and garbage sheds light on animal hoarding.

No one passing by the townhome on 27th Lane would have suspected the horrible conditions inside that led authorities to rescue nearly 50 cats living there.

The manicured lawn and a back yard opening onto a lake belied the stacks of garbage bags and stench of urine inside the Sherwood Lakes home. Scores of cats scaled the trash heaps in what investigators are calling the biggest recent case of animal hoarding in Palm Beach County.

The neglect came to light when the townhome owner suffered a medical problem March 6 and was hospitalized. Worried about her cats, she asked authorities to look after them.

When county Animal Care and Control crews arrived, they had to call other county departments for help with what they found. They spent two weeks removing cats from the home. The final tally: two dead and 45 alive.

“It is probably the worst hoarding case that we’ve seen in Palm Beach County,” Animal Care and Control Capt. David Walesky said. He described the home’s condition as “very, very deplorable.”

Animal Care and Control is receiving more calls about hoarding as more people learn about the problem.

Of the many calls reporting possible animal cruelty, investigators find that about one a day involves a hoarder. Extreme situations such as the one in Greenacres are found every few months.

Another extreme hoarding case was that of Chi Lu Linville of Loxahatchee. In 2002, crews removed hundreds of goats from her home. In 2003, they removed almost 200 pigs, cats, sheep and cows.

Linville became so enraged that she enlisted a hit man – actually an undercover Palm Beach County sheriff’s deputy posing as as a hit man – to shoot Tammie Crawford, an Animal Care and Control officer, and dump her body into a canal. Linville was convicted in 2005 of solicitation to commit first-degree murder.

Also fresh in Walesky’s mind were the 52 animals found in a western Boynton Beach home in 2000. In that same house was a roomful of dead animals the homeowner just couldn’t let go of.

Randall Lockwood, senior vice president of forensic sciences and anti-cruelty projects at the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in New York, said hoarding is a mental disorder with a high recidivism rate.

About 75 percent of animal-hoarding cases he has seen involved dogs or cats, but people also hoard exotics such as tarantulas, he said.

“Hoarding in general is part of an anxiety disorder. You feel that things are out of control and you want to try to maintain control,” Lockwood said. “People for a variety of reasons –– life experiences, biological disposition –– are incapable of forming lasting relationships with people, so they substitute this.”

Two weeks ago, Animal Care and Control officials went to a home on Plumosa Drive in suburban West Palm Beach when they were notified by a pet food bank that its owner, who rescued dogs off the street, might be in over her head.Like many hoarders, the home’s owner thought she was helping the nine dogs that were removed from the home.And that’s often how hoarding begins, Walesky said.”She had little tunnels going through her house,” he said. “She had multiple lawn mowers in her house and had dogs tied to the lawn mowers.”The dogs were not sick, but the living conditions were bad enough to classify the case as hoarding. The woman denied having a problem and refused to cooperate with authorities, Walesky said.Authorities can’t take action if a person simply has a lot of animals, as long as they are well cared for and no city or county codes have been violated.But if the owner is deemed a hoarder, is harming the animals or lives in bad conditions, authorities have options.Code enforcement officers can order them to clean up a filthy house that is not safe to occupy and fine them if they don’t comply.The county health department can determine that the house is unsafe for occupation. And if the animals are uncared for or harmed, the hoarder can be charged with animal cruelty.Police also can order a mental health evaluation for the hoarder.If the person is willing to receive help, mental health therapy and adult protective services are available.But more often than not, hoarders do not comply with authorities and don’t think they are doing anything wrong. Then law enforcement and other agencies get involved.

Cat breeder, newfound judge dishes about winning kitties

Talk about nine lives. Show manager Lil Borg will be at the helm of the American Cat Fanciers Association Cat Show in West Fargo today and Sunday. She will bring four cats from her Valley City-based cattery, Catty Hills. And after today’s show, she will go to see a specialist for a possible staph infection, her second one since she received back surgery in early May.Show manager Lil Borg will be at the helm of the American Cat Fanciers Association Cat Show in West Fargo today and Sunday. She will bring four cats from her Valley City-based cattery, Catty Hills.And after today’s show, she will go to see a specialist for a possible staph infection, her second one since she received back surgery in early May.Serious health problems would stop most people from spearheading a cat show. But not Lil Borg, a longtime cat breeder and North Dakota’s only ACFA-certified cat show judge.“I’m going to be at the show. I’m determined. I’ve already bathed four cats this morning,” Borg said Thursday. “The show will go on. I guarantee it.”After all, Borg has dedicated a good part of her life to cats. More than 20 years ago, she first saw a beautiful Maine Coon on public television and decided she had to have one. Within a few years, the already busy rancher’s wife was breeding and showing Maine Coons and ragdoll cats.Borg says it’s a great way to meet other cat fans, and it’s the perfect activity to do with kids.“It’s a good way to get closer to your grandkids is to do something fun like this with them,” says Borg.A few years ago, Borg decided to downsize her cattery. She made the switch from harder-to-groom long-haired breeds to American shorthairs and American bobtails.Borg, who wears a blouse in a faux wild-cat print, admits she has a weakness for brown tabby cats.All four of her entries this weekend will be tabbies. They will include two American bobtail tabbies and two Silver Tabby American Shorthairs.One of the shorthairs is a newbie to the show world. “Josie” is a green-eyed, round-faced kitten with a striking, black-and-sterling coat and a dainty demeanor. When asked to sum up Josie’s show potential, Borg is almost at a loss for words.“She has everything,” she says finally, pointing out the well-defined “bracelets” of black fur circling the cat’s legs, the butterfly-shaped marks on her shoulder blades and the striped “splines” that run the length of the petite cat’s body.Like all Silver Tabbies, Josie was born black, but turned lighter as she matured. At 5 months old, her coat bloomed into a striking pattern that revealed huge show-cat potential, Borg says.Yet some of the most beautiful cats will never have the disposition to be show felines, Borg says. Josie’s own father is “huge and gorgeous,” but loathes the show ring, she adds.On the other hand, one of Borg’s best show cats didn’t have a pedigreed bone in his body.Borg found “Butch” as a giveaway kitten at a garage sale. He didn’t have a tail, so she sometimes wonders if he was fathered by a famously prolific, tail-less stray that was rumored to produce tail-free kittens all over the Valley City area.Butch grew into a handsome, 18-pound brown tabby with a low-key attitude. He won many household pet awards in his career, including a highly coveted supreme grand champion honor.“He almost had a presence about him,” Borg says. “He would come in the show ring and just sit down like he owned it. He just didn’t care.”Nowadays, Butch is retired. Borg is winding down too and has reduced the number of cats in her cradle. But as a born doer, Borg wasn’t ready to park in front of the TV. So she decided to become a cat-show judge several years ago.It’s a time-consuming process to become an ACFA-certified judge. To assess a range of diversity that runs from long-haired Maine Coons to a hairless Sphynx, they must learn the standards for 40 breeds.They also must run an ACFA-registered cattery, have bred and exhibited purebred entries for at least five years and bred three litters.On top of that, they need to show a winning tradition. Applicants have to exhibit five different cats to grand champion level in ACFA shows.It took Borg two years to undergo the exhaustive judge-training process, which included tests, travel to cat shows around the country and practice-judging with training judges.It’s a lot of work, but Borg says judging has given her a newfound respect for an animal she’s always loved.She admits developing a real admiration for an angular breed that she didn’t care for — until she saw and handled an incredible example of one as a judge.“I look at cats a lot differently now than I did as a spectator. Now I’ll just look at a cat like that and go, ‘wow,’” she says. “Even if it isn’t a brown tabby.”

Obese pets vie to lose weight in  ’Biggest Loser’-style  ’Pet Fit Club’ competition.

In all, the Pet Fit Club’s 18 contestants tip the scales at 336 pounds — about the same weight as 35 cats, 50 Yorkshire Terriers or 380 tins of dog food.

Loew’s Hotel chain makes no secret of its “pet friendly” policies. Loews Philadelphia hotel offers “Woofie Weekends” for its guest featuring special meals for pet companions. It hosts the annual Pennsylvania SPCA fundraising gala and embraces canine guests.

The policy apparently does not extend to feral felines at its Orlando hotels.

We learned from Alley Cat Allies that three Disneyworld-area Loews hotels, Loews Royal Pacific, Loews Portofino, and Hard Rock Hotel at Universal Orlando Resorts launched a war on managed feral cats colonies outside the properties.

Apparently the cat battle has been raging for months, according to USA Today.

Eyewitnesses reported cruel treatment by a trapping company hired to remove a longtime colony of feral cats living at the properties, launched a Facebook page “Save Loews Cats” and called on Loews to stop the trapping immediately.

“We have heard horrible reports of cats held outside in traps for up to nine hours, baking in the hot sun and in temperatures of 90 degrees with no food or water. Eyewitnesses have posted photos of cats who have been injured from the frantic struggle to free themselves – at least two with a bloody nose, another with a gash on her head,” said Becky Robinson, president and co-founder of Alley Cat Allies.

“The trappers, called Critter Control, are clearly not following humane best practices,” said Robinson. “Proper protocol dictates that the traps should be continuously monitored, covered by a sheet or towel immediately after trapping to minimize stress and chance of injury for the cat, and removed to a safe, quiet place. Worse, the cats have been suffering, denied food for more than a week. And, employees’ jobs have been threatened if they are caught feeding them.”

Robinson condemned the treatment of the cats by a so-called “pet friendly” company and said it refused to work with animals advocates to consider humane options.

Robinson noted that the cats at the Loews Orlando resorts are feral cat colonies that have been neutered, vaccinated and cared for by employees as part of a longtime Trap-Neuter-Return program. The cats were living peaceful, healthy lives and no longer breeding. Trap-Neuter-Return is the only effective and humane approach to feral cats, because it stabilizes the population and makes the cats healthier and better neighbors.

“We call on Loews to stop this inhumane trapping immediately,” said Robinson. “There is still time for them to the right thing by these cats and allow them to live at the place they’ve called home for years.”

In the New World, the first images of cats were found in Peru, they are from 400-1000 years. Mr. er., later they become permanent motif in jewelry, but the origin of domesticated maine coon photos in this part of the world still remains a mystery.By the beginning of the Middle Ages was the maine coon photos on the planet so much that they almost completely lost its privileged position. Church considered the personification of evil maine coon photos. They were burned at the stake, drowned, brutally tortured and exterminated. There was even a custom wall up the maine coon photos in the basement of a building under construction. And at the time of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth I in 1558 in England publicly burned several bags with the cats.In the XVII century. interest in witchcraft and witch-hunt “again increasing, especially in England. King James I wrote a book about witches, and created the post of “witch-finder.” The persecution of maine coon photos spread across the Atlantic in the American colonies, where in Massachusetts in 1692 were held selemskie sensational trials of witches and their “impure intercourse with cats.” People who loved cats, had to hard. If they had cats, they were accused of having links with the devil, but as soon give them up, rodents ate instant food stocks, raising the epidemic diseases of livestock and people.Since the beginning of the Renaissance fashioned humanism spread to cats, are cozy in their homes. They again began their loved ones. Psychologists began to study their behavior. Created by books and paintings devoted to cats. Suffice it to mention just a few names. Cats occupy an important place in the fine works of Goya and Jean-Baptiste Greuze. In the artwork used fashionable allegory, give cats human features.By the XVIII century. official persecution of cats stopped. Prominent phenologist Harrison Weir in 1889, wrote that the cat suffered for many years and centuries of disdain, abuse and cruelty in the complete absence of kindness and tenderness; it’s time to change things. It was Harrison Weir gave the idea of ​​a cat show that the “new breed, color, markings received more attention.” He has organized and judged the first exhibition of cats July 16, 1871 at the Crystal Palace in London, set the class and degree of excellence “for different classes. In this way he hoped to improve the appearance (exterior), and most importantly – the fate of the cats.

Met almost all the continents, wild cats maine coon have always attracted people’s attention by their behavior. Feline population of about 35 species, and it includes highly specialized carnivores, as it reached the top of the evolutionary development of the detachment. About ten million years ago, they already had similarities with modern mammals. One such evolutionary branch starts with a small group of animals, gradually changed their food and from the insectivore turned into carnivores. This miatsidy – the ancestors of all modern carnivores, which appeared about 50 million years ago. Miatsidy retained similarities with its carnivorous kin: small, short-legged, with a long trunk and narrow, elongated snouts. However, they had a skull bigger, it is assumed that the brain is more complex. They were well developed hearing and vision, and mobility, combined with fast response and power. In turn miatsidy became the ancestors of the ten currently existing families of carnivores. 10 million years ago by miatsidov occurred first as cats maine coon predators – diniktisy, successfully adapted to the environment. The size they were with the trot and is very reminiscent of modern cats maine coon, differing from them over long tusks and a smaller brain volume.

Diniktisy, according to zoologists, were divided into two evolutionary branches. The representatives of one of them elongated canines. So there were saber-toothed maine coon cat, related to an extinct genus mahayrodov now. The representatives of the other branches of the canines, in contrast, decreased, and these animals gave rise to a sort of cat, including the modern maine coon cat. Three families – eared seals, true seals and walruses – returned to the sea and live in it. Family remaining in the land – coonskin, bear, dog, Cunha, niverrovye, gienovye and cats – are much faster and zorche their ancestors had developed a more subtle hearing and smell. Three branches of the modern cat family (small cats, big maine coon cat, cheetahs) have ancestors – neofelid. Along with neofelidami also appeared paleofelidy presented by two groups – nimravinami and ancient saber-toothed cats, which lasted about 30 million years. Neofelidy continued to evolve, and about 20 million years ago, an psevdelyurus – very strong and quick for his height. As well as modern cats, he could prey on smaller animals.