The phrase comes to mind, "The road to hell is paved with good intentions." :( I have no doubt whoever is running this shelter has the best of intentions. One of my girls, the one I think was the first positive, came from just such a shelter (Angel Wings in Kingston, TN). I know this lady had only the best of intentions in her heart, and I know she loved the kitties she tried to provide care for. But I also know she didn't know how to say "No." And a lot of innocent kitties suffered as a result. It was a heartbreaking situation altogether :( Look, I have to know every day when to say "No." My heart aches for some poor kitties I see at local shelters and adoption agencies, but I know I am not capable of caring for more than the three I have, and I know that to bring healthy, negative cats into a situation where they're at high risk of contracting FeLV is irresponsible. I've replaced my sofa twice now due to kitty claws (FINALLY got them all trained. It IS possible.) but I'd never dream of declawing, and I think most people are horrified here at the thought of a shelter using declawing as a standard policy. Its unimaginable. Even the lady I mentioned above gave me a very long lecture about declawing and made me sign contracts that I wouldn't do it. Siamese Rescue done the same thing when I adopted my other two. I think everyone here is horrified that, as you pointed out, she can't say "no." We all must recognize our limits. I am not saying you, or the woman who runs this shelter, are bad people, but even the best of intentions can be devastating (as I know personally.) Hoarders "love" the cats they have, they just don't know when to say no. Same goes for this situation, I think. Our hearts just ache that as horrible as FIV and FeLV is, we have to live with the knowledge that this shelter is mixing them, and mutilating their little paws in the process. Its just painful. Its not personal attacks on you, or to say that you don't have the best of intentions in your heart. Reminds me of a story I heard on NPR on my way home, talking about zero gravity effects on bacteria. They were talking about infecting mice with salmonella to see how long it would take them to die. It was just painful to listen to. :(
Michael ************************************** See what's new at http://www.aol.com
