JTaylor

Well, it's quite trippy is it not?

Turbohot

Who are those monotheist peeps that dangle their dead people's body inside a lonely well in jungles, for the birds to feed on them? Is it some type of Jews, isn't it?

Personally, I'd never like to be buried. I like space around me, so I'd rather be cremated and my vapours mix with the universe. I would like everyone to see my dead body, though. I don't want to be in a boxed coffin with a lid on. That's because I don't want my death to be surreal but down to earth stone real. In my opinion, that gives a real closure to the loving ones. it may not be everyone's opinion, though.

Turbohot

Is it? Never thought of it like that.

Would you feed your pet rat to your pet snake, James?

JTaylor

An old friend used to have a python called Tony to whom he fed mice and I recall finding it all a bit uncomfortable. Also, we've just had the man from Mitie around to check on our rat and he tells us that it's eaten most of the bait and that it is probably no longer of this world. Given this ambivalence toward snakes and my choosing to terminate the life of an innocent rat, I'm not best placed to offer an objective treatise regarding the so called dilemma you pose. Additionally, I have no particular fondness for either creature and I consider the material remains of the perished to be nothing more than ashes and dust. Quite frankly, it's of so little consequence to me that I'd struggle to muster up a position even if pushed.

Turbohot

Well a lot of things we discuss here are of very little or no consequence to any of us on our personal levels, but we discuss them nonetheless as a food for thought, if not the food for snake. It's not a 'so-called' dilemma, it can be a dilemma for some who may find it difficult to feed their one loved deal pet to another loved living one. I do understand that. My reason for raising this dilemma as a dilemma here is because it is a dilemma. However, your position is understood, thank you for taking time in answering.

Turbohot

Hey, I've just edited. Sugarrrrr...........!

I do apologise for the typo.

Blue by You

iTrader: (23)

I own neither rat nor snake (and never have).
A friend who owned a fairly large snake used to feed it dead day old chicks and the ocassional live mouse. I had no qualms with the chicks, but the sight of the poor mouse being ferociously stalked and dispatched was quite a thought provoking experience.
I have also seen big game kills on Safari, lion vs zebra not man on animal, and it bothered me not a jot.
I suppose that's the difference between what is normal and necessary for nature, and man's manipulation of nature for his own ends.

ossett2k2

iTrader: (9)

My answer as someone who does have pets(no snake or rat) would be a definite no!
Surely anyone who has/had pets would find it disgusting to imaging feeding your dead loved pet to another loved pet?
I wouldn't feed our budgie to our cat if it fatally fell off its perch one day or any of the fish if the took their last swim .
Much like I'm sure a dog owner wouldn't feed their pet dog to their pet lion.

JTaylor

Yes, I think that's right. The idea that there's some kind of perverse and morbid satisfaction drawn from the experience by the observer and, as you say, it's been contrived by said observer. Perhaps it's disproportionate, but I imagined the live feeding practice to be almost a gateway 'sport' to badger baiting or the equivalent. Having said that, when a kid I tried to resuscitate a sparrow that my cat Jemima had caught. Imagine a young and skinny and naïve James giving mouth to mouth to this poor thing. Perhaps if I'd not interfered our Persian's instincts would have been satisfied for the day and no other little beings would have been harmed. The sublime to the ridiculous!

JTaylor

My pleasure.

Turbohot

Yes, I agree to that.

My previous cat (late Mrs. Billi) once killed a pet budgie of a neighbour friend. It was a scene as my cat brought the dead bird to our door step when my friend was in my house, having a coffee. Prior to that, my friend had put up some posters around the village for her missing budgie and she had to discover that my cat was responsible for budgie's murder. Of all, it had to be my cat, FFS! Bad $h1t, man.

Different note as the direct assassin here is a machinery. On about two occasions I tried saving wounded sparrows that came in through, only God knows why and where from (they sqeezed in through a little ceiling vent, we worked out) and hit our ceiling fans in India. I was so hurt to see them struggle for life and tried my best to feed them water and even planned to take them to the vets. But they always died before I could do much at all. Imagine being in your own world of thoughts and hear a hard sound of their little body hitting your fast rotating fan blades, and then them dropping down defenceless on the floor, in front of your naked eyes. Horrendous! The vent was fully meshed up after these incidences and no bird ever ventured in again, to commit fan-assisted suicide/assassination by fan alone.

dpb

and too small for a curry

JTaylor

Fanticide.

Turbohot

Don't be so heartless, you cannibal!

Yes, a very appropriate term for that.

ossett2k2

iTrader: (9)

Our cat Saash likes to bring birds back for our budgies to play with,they are always alive and well and seem to enjoy me chasing them around the house before letting them fly off on their merry way (The bloody mice not so easy to catch!!!)
The other cat Mittens just likes to bring random things back,plastic ties,elastic bands,sticks and the odd feather

Wurzel

iTrader: (1)

The question is, would a snake eat a dead rat it just happened to find? After all it doesn't know what the rat died of and normally snakes prefer to kill their pray, I know mine used to, wouldn't touch anything dead.

Blue by You

iTrader: (23)

Agreed that this would be their preference normally, but it is common for captive snakes to be fed on dead prey. Pet shops that specialise in reptilian pets sell dead day old chicks for this purpose.
I wouldn't be surprised if there was some kind of legislation in place to prevent the feeding of live animals as food in a domestic situation.

Turbohot

In some parts of America, the ones with Serval/Savannah cats feed them live mice.

Blue by You

iTrader: (23)

I'm not surprised or disturbed by the cat eating mice, alive or dead.
What bothers me is the inane smile on the face of the bimbo serving up les pauvres - such an apparent disrespect for life.

JTaylor

Quite.

Turbohot

I'm with you on this as well.

scoobiepaul

Hopefully the cat vomits the 10 mice up in the chav bitch's handbag

ditchmyster

iTrader: (7)

Indeed.

I'm not in the least bit squeamish about hunting and killing for food, as I view it as something one should know how to and be prepared to do, but what she's doing is totally un-necessary, there are many more things she could feed her cat that would provide better nurishment for her pet wild animal, there is just something twisted in her head.