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cats in carvoeiro, algarve
What on earth does breeding cats for fur in the far east have to do with strays in the algarve? 
I think you mean minority of one.
It is obvious that there are several humane solutions to stray animals, only education, rescue organisations, neutering programmes and concern will eventually get us there
And to go back to an earlier point, children should be taught not to approach any strange animals - back to education and not ignorance again!
I think you mean minority of one.
It is obvious that there are several humane solutions to stray animals, only education, rescue organisations, neutering programmes and concern will eventually get us there
And to go back to an earlier point, children should be taught not to approach any strange animals - back to education and not ignorance again!
EMM you obviously are not an animal lover but you should understand that no animal lover could leave a cat to starve. You will never stop them. My wife would feed all of them if she could and nothing could disuade her and she is typical of so many people. The problem has to be solved by the authorities as Kteee suggests.
I am an animal lover , i have travelled the world, trekked through jungles in central america and S E asia looking for animals in the wild. I have owned ? cats , dogs, budgies and hamsters
I find it hard to accept that the tourist and expat community does not feel that it is culpable when it comes to subjects such as this.
I will admit to being wrong but from my limited observation I do not see the cat being regarded as a pet in Portugal in the same way as it is in England.
Where we spend our time in the Algarve ( not a tourist area ) we see very few cats.
But when we go back to our apartment ( on a tourist development ) there is the usual cat problem.
Therefore my logic is that the cat problem is primarly the fault of tourist development and tourist behaviour.
Its not the fault of the authorities that we Brits have a different ( softer ) approach to this problem.
Maybe thats why more money is given to animal charities in the UK than to the NSPCC.
I find it hard to accept that the tourist and expat community does not feel that it is culpable when it comes to subjects such as this.
I will admit to being wrong but from my limited observation I do not see the cat being regarded as a pet in Portugal in the same way as it is in England.
Where we spend our time in the Algarve ( not a tourist area ) we see very few cats.
But when we go back to our apartment ( on a tourist development ) there is the usual cat problem.
Therefore my logic is that the cat problem is primarly the fault of tourist development and tourist behaviour.
Its not the fault of the authorities that we Brits have a different ( softer ) approach to this problem.
Maybe thats why more money is given to animal charities in the UK than to the NSPCC.
Glad to hear you are an animal lover EMM and I agree with you that cats are not natural pets for the Portuguese however I dont think you can blame tourists for the original problem. It must have ex-pats from Northern Europe who brought the cats to the Algarve in the first place and now the tourists feed them because they enjoy it and because they feel compassion towards the cats. The cats are not silly and therefore congregate near the toursit areas just the same as foxes in England are now more abundant in towns than in the countryside. The authorities did not create the problem but they still should be the ones to solve it because you will never stop tourists from feeding them
Of course cats are pets here, for portuguese and expats.
The stray situation exists, the discussion is how to deal with it, and leaving them to starve is not a reasonable humane solution. As I said earlier, it takes time but can be solved by education, neutering, rescue organisations and care.
I'm afraid trekking through jungles to look at animals doesn't make you an animal lover - it takes much more than that.
People donate to charities that they feel do most good, if the nspcc isn't well supported then they need to ask themselves why
The stray situation exists, the discussion is how to deal with it, and leaving them to starve is not a reasonable humane solution. As I said earlier, it takes time but can be solved by education, neutering, rescue organisations and care.
I'm afraid trekking through jungles to look at animals doesn't make you an animal lover - it takes much more than that.
People donate to charities that they feel do most good, if the nspcc isn't well supported then they need to ask themselves why
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e-richard
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Forgive me if this sounds inhumane. Its a genuine question out of concern:
I was under an impression that wild (non and never domesticated) cats learned to fend for themselves and that feeding them when you are in town for only 2 weeks is depriving them of the ability to learn. Killing them with kindness so to speak.
I'm happy to be corrected, and acknowledge that this is NOT the solution to strays, but its a consideration if its true.
I was under an impression that wild (non and never domesticated) cats learned to fend for themselves and that feeding them when you are in town for only 2 weeks is depriving them of the ability to learn. Killing them with kindness so to speak.
I'm happy to be corrected, and acknowledge that this is NOT the solution to strays, but its a consideration if its true.
Once the season is over these strays ( now well fed and probably pregnant again ) are left to their own devices.e-richard wrote:Forgive me if this sounds inhumane. Its a genuine question out of concern:
I was under an impression that wild (non and never domesticated) cats learned to fend for themselves and that feeding them when you are in town for only 2 weeks is depriving them of the ability to learn. Killing them with kindness so to speak.
I'm happy to be corrected, and acknowledge that this is NOT the solution to strays, but its a consideration if its true.
They Know where humans are likely to be which is why they frequent the holiday developments.
We were shown a villa a few years ago, clearly the owners and their guests had fed the local strays.
It being december there was no one about, As soon as we arrived cats came from everywhere.
They ran into the villa, upstairs etc.
Needless to say we did not even consider this property.
So cat lovers , if your really want to be kind,
Don,t just feed them occaisionally, Feed them All of the time.
Take them back home with you ( if you live in Portugal ).
If you are a holiday maker take them to the local animal shelters.
Don,t knock those of us who recognise where the true fault lies.
I think not only cat lovers, but all animal lovers, make up their own minds what they should or should not do regarding animal welfare. I for one don't need to be lectured by you regarding my attitude to what the solution is or who is to blame for the stray cat problem. I did take cats home we have 4 lovely cats who were once strays and we have rehomed many others.
Last edited by e-llen on Wed Feb 11, 2009 11:17 am, edited 1 time in total.
In my experience, and I had adopted several stray cats over time, cats are very resourceful creatures from a certain age onwards. Feeding them or not, they will adapt to human habitats quite proficiently.
As we create vast amounts of refuse through our normal living habits alone, our presence already beckons the cats to hovel around us. Not only does our refuse provide food for these animals, it also attracts vermin that these cats can prey on.
Begging for food is also something they learn from observation: When I adopted Tess she did not make much sounds except purring. Over the course of time she learned from the other four that making noise can get food to appear in her bowl and she now has entire conversations with me while I open a tin in the kitchen.
Besides getting 2 square meals a day she also scavanges, hunts birds and goes to beg at the restaurant and she will gorge herself on food untill her legs buckle (she has grown past 6Kgs and how she can still pluck birds out of the air defies the laws of physics imho), so I can safely say that cats that are old enough to have learned how to acquire food will make use of those skills regardless of wether you feed them directly or not.
The same can be said for the coffee shop cats: make with the big eyes and the loud voice and those poor saps will soon part with their food. If not, go to the rubbish bins and dig.
The problem in winter becomes more apparent when there are less poeple around to feed the cats, they do roam to where they find people - I have seen six new cats on my terrace these last months. That does not mean that if I do not feed them that they will perish, as some of the older cats also come back year after year having spent the summer elsewhere.
Not feeding means they will move on, hunt or scavenge to survive and they will continue to do so year after year untill they fall victim to disease, cars or in some rare cases, old age.
Whilst there have always been peaks in the cat population over the years, natural selection and limited human intervention have normaly regulated the cat population over time.
I think we can help in two ways: if you can get a young female cat to climb into a box, please give the vet in Guia a call, I beleive they can give you the contacts for people who may assist in funding the operation: 289561683
and secondly, don't feed kittens unless you intend to keep them, because not having learned to fend for themselves, they will probably die when you leave.
As we create vast amounts of refuse through our normal living habits alone, our presence already beckons the cats to hovel around us. Not only does our refuse provide food for these animals, it also attracts vermin that these cats can prey on.
Begging for food is also something they learn from observation: When I adopted Tess she did not make much sounds except purring. Over the course of time she learned from the other four that making noise can get food to appear in her bowl and she now has entire conversations with me while I open a tin in the kitchen.
Besides getting 2 square meals a day she also scavanges, hunts birds and goes to beg at the restaurant and she will gorge herself on food untill her legs buckle (she has grown past 6Kgs and how she can still pluck birds out of the air defies the laws of physics imho), so I can safely say that cats that are old enough to have learned how to acquire food will make use of those skills regardless of wether you feed them directly or not.
The same can be said for the coffee shop cats: make with the big eyes and the loud voice and those poor saps will soon part with their food. If not, go to the rubbish bins and dig.
The problem in winter becomes more apparent when there are less poeple around to feed the cats, they do roam to where they find people - I have seen six new cats on my terrace these last months. That does not mean that if I do not feed them that they will perish, as some of the older cats also come back year after year having spent the summer elsewhere.
Not feeding means they will move on, hunt or scavenge to survive and they will continue to do so year after year untill they fall victim to disease, cars or in some rare cases, old age.
Whilst there have always been peaks in the cat population over the years, natural selection and limited human intervention have normaly regulated the cat population over time.
I think we can help in two ways: if you can get a young female cat to climb into a box, please give the vet in Guia a call, I beleive they can give you the contacts for people who may assist in funding the operation: 289561683
and secondly, don't feed kittens unless you intend to keep them, because not having learned to fend for themselves, they will probably die when you leave.
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Lesley Jean
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Well done Gambrinus, an intelligent and caring comment which I wholeheartedly agree. If you feed the kittens then they will never learn to fend for themselves, feed the Mums while pregnant to help them if you feel you need to do something.Trouble is we are all suckers for those huge eyes and that pathetic meow...
