Animal Rights Activist

cat1974 · #1 (**permalink**) 06-02-2009, 02:55 AM

Hi all,
I decided to do a post here as some issues have been popping up with a few of my threads recently.

I'll explain. I am an AR activist. I am vegan and go to protests about fur/vivisection etc. I try to lie my life without hurting other life, basically.

This is who I am and I make no apologies for it. I would stand up for your right not to be hurt, for the right of your children not to be hurt, and of course for the right of the animals in your care not to be hurt.

I find RFUK wonderful. I came to snakes (my only reps so far) by accident as there was one about to be killed. I couldn't let an animal be killed so I said I'd take him. I came here, bought books, consulted my vet and asked my local herp dude for advice. Adam is doing soooooooo well now and is a big beautiful boy and I am thrilled and thank RFUK (my first port of call always) for that help.

I am still AR though.

I recently had a rescue siamese kitten and needed advice on siamese cats. I have had cats all my life but the breeding changes them and I wanted her to be happy. So I consulted a siamese site and got the advice I needed.

I never hide who I am. Ever. I am AR and bloody proud of it. I don't expect others to be (though I'd love if they were obviously). My Boyfriend eats meat and my family bred dogs (till my granny died - it was her hobby).

I know the way the media works and that many will think I am about to dig up their grannies......

It is NOT the case. I respect life end of story and as far as non-human animals are concerned yes, I have a serious problem with putting a price on life, but that is an issue that I will take up with anyone at their discretion. Discuss it yes, when you want to bring it up.

However if and when I am attacked I will defend myself pretty much like little Eve, rattle my tail a bit then bite!

I am a very easygoing person and can discuss anything rationally, but if my personal care of my "babies" is called into question I will basically fight back with all I have. Rescue is the one aspect of my life that I am bloomin proud of and I know I do well.

We are not crazy you know! Ask me any question about being AR and I will give you a straight answer.

Thanks and once again, thanks for all the advice with the snakes!
Cat
PS pics: Adam and Eve - PICS AT LAST!!!!

cat1974 · #2 (**permalink**) 06-02-2009, 03:03 AM

.... was a product of inbreeding and died. About 6 months old (by adult teeth) but the size of an 8 week old. I had her for 3 months after she was thrown to dogs in the freezing rain. My BF saved her (had 2 days off work with infected hand to prove it). She was as happy as possible with me but died of pleural pneumonia as the damage from the original cat flu (untreated) plus compromised immune system (due to inbreeding) meant that she could not be saved. She was obviously stunted (in size) and also retarded. She never acted like a cat. I may not know snakes but I DO know cats.... She died last Sunday waiting for the vet to put her to sleep, but it was fairly quick. She went straight to heaven if you believe in that. A little angel if ever I met one. Sorry for rambling.
Cat

oakelm · #3 (**permalink**) 06-02-2009, 04:01 AM

Nice to hear you will take on the unwanteds but not sure why you need to justify yourself to us all. Most of us just take people as they come, a few are always up for an argument but thankfully they are easily silenced. Its nice to see an ARA that owns a snake most seem to be on the other side of the fence not really wanting us to keep them at all. Glad your snakes are getting on well, just a shame about the siamese, poor little thing.

SWE · #4 (**permalink**) 06-02-2009, 07:41 AM

If you ever need to borrow a spade or my bolt cutters to set thousands of mink free to murder all our indigenous wildlife please feel free to drop me a line!!!!
Being AR would be interesting to know what you feed your snake on ?

bosc888 · #5 (**permalink**) 06-02-2009, 08:02 AM

I think it's fine if you are an ar activist as long as it's done in a reasonable way, I reckon the majority of people do not like to see animals suffering but do not take the extreme measures of what I'm sure is the minority of ar activists that you hear about in the media.
Where I live there is a problem with mink causing havoc to the local wildlife because they were liberated, there are problems nationally where people fishing have been attacked even though they put a huge amount of money & effort into looking after the environment & the fish that they catch.
Then we come to the animal test labs where people have had their lives threatened for trying to find a cure to dreadfull illnesses.
The case of the grandmother who was dug up is a digusting thing to do & unfortunately these are the incidents that go against you so you have a struggle on both sides, 1 with animal rights & 2 with seperating yourself from the lowlife that carry out these acts of violence & intimidation.
I wish you well in your cause & totally support your right to protest in a reasonable manor as long as you support my right to eat meat, take medication that has been tested on animals & carry on my hobby of fishing. It is for you to convince me otherwise & I can't see that happening but good luck & hope you have many happy years with your snake

Ssthisto · #6 (**permalink**) 06-02-2009, 08:40 AM

If you keep companion animals, you're not an animal rights activist. The animal rights agenda includes the phrase "better dead than in captivity." The animal rights side of things is NOT dedicated to captive animal welfare nor is it interested in the welfare of animals; the entirety of it is "humans must not interfere with animals in any way." If that means euthanising thousands of healthy adoptable animals that could have been provided with good loving lifetime homes, so be it.

If you care about the welfare of animals in captivity, you're a welfarist. You want better conditions for what is in captivity, you don't want what's in captivity to be hurt or killed, you just want to live your life and let them live theirs in the best possible conditions.
If you think they're better off dead than in captivity, you're a rightsist. You want animals to be eliminated from captivity entirely, you think captive animals should die out and you're willing to actively kill them - or support killing them - to remove them from human influence.

From what you've described, you're an animal WELFARE activist - same as most of us - who happens to be vegan and who objects to fur, vivisection and so forth. Hell, I object to vivisection although I also see how it CAN be of use to science, and I only approve of fur if the person using it is going to eat the animal it came off of too. I might not be a vegan or vegetarian; this is in part for health reasons (I don't do well on a diet high in grains/starches/sugars).

Now, if I've read you wrong and you really do support the animal rights agenda... you really do think all my animals are better off dead or pushed out of my home to fend for themselves just to get out from under the tyranny of human rule (try that with my cats and you'll see they'll be straight back in the cat flap) ... then fair enough, I can see how friction might have occurred on this and other posts!

butterfingersbimbo · #7 (**permalink**) 06-02-2009, 08:43 AM

I would say that I'm a welfarist in that case

9Red · #8 (**permalink**) 06-02-2009, 09:00 AM

Hi Cat,

I'm not looking for an argument at all (not my style) but am interested to know how you feel about the use of animals in the development of veterinary pharmacueticals?

I have studied laboratory animal management and legislation as part of my first degree and I can understand why some activists claim that animals are not appropriate for the development of some human drugs as our physiologies are not totally compatable, but some groups seem to 'gloss over' the fact that lab animals are also used in much the same way for veterinary drug developments.

As you said you took in a rescued kitten who unfortunately did not survive, I'm assuming s/he underwent veterinary treatment using a variety of drugs?

spend_day · #9 (**permalink**) 06-02-2009, 10:48 AM

i think as long as your not a "reptiles should be left in the wild even the captive bred ones should be released because there wild, i mean look how wild they are thats where the belong the wild. and nope i dont have any issue what so ever with people keeping wild caugh fish or small birds" AR activist your welcome to be here.

arthur cooke · #10 (**permalink**) 06-02-2009, 02:58 PM

As a person who fought tooth and claw to stop ARs from stopping us from keeping reptiles I was relieved to see that you aren't really AR.

Vivisection is a much abused word,it's no longer safe to use that word, animals in research aren't cut to pieces nowadays, much research is genetic, using animals that have been genetically altered to resemble humans.

If research is done to make human life better, whether or not they cut the animal, then I'm all for it. Because the result can be cures for some of the diseases that afflict us. Imagine the millions that would be saved if it led to a cure for AIDS. So I'm in full support for research using animals.

The anti fur lobby have done a great deal of damage to our country side by releasing mink, many of their videos are put up jobs,this is also the case with the anti vivisectionists.

Hopefully now those terrorists from SHAC have been jailed we'll see and end to some of this nonsense.
cheers arthur

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