At 08:33 AM 4/12/01 -0500, you wrote:
>On Thu, 12 Apr 2001, Charlie Bell wrote:
>
> > > Julia
> > >
> > > wearer of leather, but not fur
> >
> > Do they make furry thongs and whips and stuff?
>
>I've never seen a furry whip, but that doesn't mean they don't exist. :)
>
>One problem I have with fur is allergies. I'm rather allergic to rabbit,
>and the only real animal fur we have here is a rabbit pelt my husband
>acquired when he was young. He gets to keep it boxed up and way away from
>me. :) (I've told him that if he really wanted to actually display it,
>he could seal it in plastic and do so. I just don't want to breathe
>anywhere near it.)
>
>The rabbit allergy wreaks havoc on me if I need to go to a pet store near
>Easter. I've given up on going to the small local independent chain
>because the stores tend to have allergy-provoking animals near the cash
>register on a regular basis; the last time I went to one of them, there
>were rabbits not 5 feet (1.6 meters or so) from the counter, and I was
>miserable for the next hour. In principle, I'd like to go to the small,
>local, independent stores, but if it's going to hurt me in practice, I'll
>go to the national chain instead.
>
> Julia
(1) If you want to talk about unnecessary cruelty to animals, you can
hardly do better than pet stores that sell rabbits at Easter. First, many
of the rabbits they sell are no more than 3-4 weeks old, because they are
tiny and "cute" at that age. A baby rabbit needs to stay with its mother
until it is 8 weeks old, which is about the age it is finally weaned, but
by that age they weigh around 4 pounds/2 kg ("medium" breeds) and look more
grown-up and are not as "cute." Also, most people do not know how to care
for a rabbit, and most pet stores do not provide any
instruction. Surprisingly to most people -- and often it's a tragic
surprise -- a diet of all raw vegetables is not good for a rabbit. Such
things should be given very sparingly as treats to supplement a regular
diet of prepared pellets. All vegetables can quickly give the rabbit a
fatal case of diarrhea. Also, rabbits can live 7 or 8 years or more, and
that means that when the fun wears off after the first week or so and the
kid gets bored, the parents are stuck with caring for it for a long time.
(In fact, I am watching the evening news as I type this, and they are doing
a story on this very subject and talking to a lady who has turned her home
into a rescue shelter for unwanted pet rabbits.)
BTW, at least around here, the national chain pet stores also feature
rabbits at Easter, so you wouldn't be safe going there, either. Of course,
I suppose it's even worse for the rabbits, many of which won't live to see
Mother's Day . . .
(2) I used to be so allergic to cats that I could hardly go into a house
where cats lived, even if the cat was outside at the time. If I handled a
cat, my nose, etc., would fill up with mucus to the point where I could not
breathe except through my mouth, my eyes would turn red and pour tears, and
my face and neck would turn red and swell. I would have to immediately
take my medicine, then a long hot bath and put on all clean clothes
(letting my mother handle the old ones until she washed them). Eventually,
however, I grew out of it, and for most of the past several years have had
two cats living in the house with me. Perhaps you will get lucky, too.
-- Ronn! :)
