I t's hard not to have got caught up in the football fever, even for someone like me, who is not usually particularly interested. There's something about feeling part of a group that's irresistable, and at a recent Lightning Seeds concert, I heartily sang ‘Football's coming home’ with the rest of the crowd. The feeling of comaraderie was strong, we were all happy, we all wanted the same thing!
Cats, unfortunately for their human owners, don't feel the same about being part of a group. Indeed, it seems that their domestication is so recent that they have not yet managed to evolve genetically to become the companions required of them, and as a result life in the home can prove stressful: so much so that it is estimated that as many as 25% of cats fail to cope and opt for a feral life. Claire Hargrave discusses the genetic barriers to domestication in her fascinating article (p316).
An understanding of the cat's innate nature is important not only for the home life of the cat, but also for the cat visiting the practice. Since the cat's natural response to an unfamiliar environment and other unusual stimuli, such as the smells and noises they might encounter while at the practice, is to escape, and frustration at not being able to achieve their aim may elicit aggression, it's not surprising that cat owners often avoid taking them to the veterinary practice, and, if a visit to the veterinary practice is unavoidable, they become difficult to handle. In her article on setting up a cat friendly clinic (p284), Sarah Endersby provides some excellent advice on becoming an accredited Cat Friendly Clinic (CFC). The CFC programme currently has 1198 clinics accredited (will be 1200 by the time this is going through people's doors!), with 559 clinics in the UK. Of these 36 are Bronze (which can include mobile clinics), 365 Silver and 158 Gold (see Sarah's article for an explanation on how these are designated). There are CFCs in 32 countries; plus the scheme is run under licence in the Americas and there are a similar number of CFPs there. Why not take a look at your practice and see what you can do to become cat friendly? Something as simple as adding a box to the cat's cage can really make a difference, as Charlie Wright demonstrates in her research article ‘Effectiveness of providing a box, or partially covering the cage front, on reducing cat stress’ (p328).
I've also been watching the EFRA inquiry into dangerous dogs and breed specific legislation. Neil Parish (MP for Tiverton and Honiton) put the case strongly that the Dangerous Dogs Act and breed specific legislation was not working, but Lord Gardiner of Kimble, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Rural Affairs and Biosecurity, refused to concede that the Act needed to be changed, even stating that he found it acceptable that good natured pit bull types were being euthanised as collateral damage… Lord Gardiner was left with the following question to answer in writing: ‘Is there a middle ground for banned dogs like the one at Battersea to be rehomed under conditions that give Defra confidence that it is safe, e.g. behaviour training, muzzling, owner training etc. The report will follow.
So, while I echo the emotions of the football fans following the World Cup semi-final in feeling ‘devastated’, I am even more upset at the possible outcome of the BSL inquiry!