Well, statistically if we did exchange one million human beings for a mountain lion and averaged it over the entire population, that would be a 1 in 7000 chance that you were one of the unlucky ones.
That’s rather better than your chance of surviving childbirth. It’s close to your chance (if you live in the US) of dying in a traffic accident each year. But it could equally be achieved by natural wastage; better birth control provision in the less developed world could reduce population growth by more than that every year very quickly. There’s in round terms 100 million babies born in the less developed world every year. Cutting that by a few million a year wouldn’t only improve life for the rest of the animal kingdom, it would improve the prospects for everybody.
Another way to look at it is to ask, would we notice a million excess deaths every year? Assuming they are spread evenly through the population, that’s a reduction in life expectancy at birth of around 3-4 days. We expect to see much worse than that as a result of climate change.
I could go on, but the “are you going to volunteer to die, then” argument is flawed.
Yes, that was total bullshit. I’m not sure why they thought a large Jungle Cat would act like a pet dog. It seems like the Brazilian authorities are getting progressively stupider the closer we get to the Olympics.
When I was growing up in Saginaw the “Cat Lady” lived here with her Ocelot. She used to take it on walks on a leash. Skim through the photos to around #24 to see what a cute little Ocelot does when it sharpens it’s claws on a door casing… Sad to see this beautiful house being torn down by order of the the inept city council as they certainly don’t make 'em like that anymore (we just don’t have the old-growth Michigan forest trees to do so).
Judging by the photos unless you had a small fortune to piss away at restoration that place is better off being razed. Really about the only thing original left would be the foundation and brick exterior at which point it will be cheaper to build a replica from an empty lot.
I think it was all part of the usual sweep and clear efforts on the streets of Rio. Instead of the usual police death squads, they are letting wild cats on the loose to eat homeless children.
I’ve heard it said that cats were never truly domesticated. They just sort of hang around us when it’s in their best interest. I believe it.
From all I’ve seen, big cats are just as domesticated as small house cats. The difference being purely their size. Destructive feline powers rise proportional to their size. I usually have half a dozen scratches from playing my cats or having them climb my shoulder for a head butt. The leather couch is in shambles now (bought before cats). Stuff gets knocked over. If a big cat acted exactly as my small cats do, the destruction would be incredible, just for the sheer size difference. Playful things cats do would be terrifying if a misplaced swipe could end your life. The entire social dynamic would change as well. Little cats have no choice to bow to my superior size and strength as they can’t hope to overpower me for my food or make me into the food. A big cat has a choice. Cats can have quite different personalities as well, so no doubt some big cats have been kept as amazing pets…and others pure terrors that need to be in the wild. Even small house cats are merciless killing machines. They’re just adorable when you know their killing power isn’t a threat.
As the “owner” of a high percentage Savannah who is turning 8 years old, I can verify most of what’s said in this post. The breeders will downplay the bad substantially, but you’re buying into a deal which may last most of your adult life. The cat will bond with you permanently (they don’t ever actually re-home successfully, regardless of what any breeder will tell you, if you bail, the cat won’t bond with/trust anybody new).
You’ll need to baby proof your house to ~7’ high, you’ll have to figure out how to curb bad behavior (IE: shattering anything breakable/glass/etc., urinating on doors/corners/bedspreads), etc., nevermind the fact it’s got permanently installed sharp bits, and the strength of a midget on PCP, and can unload the full potential energy in its muscles without the slightest hint or warning.
Unless you can afford (both time, and money) to tailor the next 20 years of your life to a very high strung animal, who isn’t going to mellow out, it’s a bad idea.
I could not upvote that comment enough. All cats are really little adorable furry murder machines. If they were big enough to take you down and eat you, they would. No matter how many times you fed them kibble or scratched them behind the ears.
That doesn’t stop my 12 pound Domestic Shorthair from trying. He is constantly trying to “taste test” me. He is missing most of his teeth, but he still tries to put my entire kneecap into his mouth. He sleeps all day, dreaming of hunting me for food.
Definitely this!
Our raccoon was perfectly fine with people and other critters, but she destroyed many things in pursuit of her obsessions: screen doors/windows, bowls containing chips/popcorn, etc,
The only time that she bit somebody was the last time… She loved car rides, so would sneak in the car whenever she could. Mom was in a hurry one day, so she just grabbed the racoon to toss her out of the car – the raccoon objected to the rough handling and bit mom’s wrist (didn’t break the skin or anything).
Mom gave her away a few days later while we were at school.
Edit that to include the small ones as potential terrors. It is truly amazing the variation in personality even among a litter of kittens, never mind species. Always go with your gut when choosing a pet, a whiney kitten will be a whiney adult cat. A bold kitten will be a great pet, but nothing will be safe.
Even garter snakes have personalities. We kept one for a year that was just a psycho, never calmed down. Others are chill. FWIW, snapping turtles are so dumb it’s amazing they survive.
