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raulduke · 10-26-2008, 07:08 AM

Has anyone else seen the "life after people" programs on history and national geographic channels?
I must say I was interested, but also somewhat alarmed, wondering what had prompted the subject to be analyzed.
The reason I ask, is because substantial parts of each program were dedicated the subject of, "what will happen to house pets in the absence of humans?". The consensus was that they would have a good chance of survival, but only if they could escape the actual house. Of course, no disasters were taken into account, just humans somehow disappearing.
Dogs would return to packs and foraging while cats would adapt to thier natural skills, noctunal hunting.
I think we are so familar w/ the behavior of our domestic animals, that we would be surprised to see what they could actually do to survive if need be.

That said, I was absolutely devastated to see the abandoned pets after Katrina. The biggest problem there, was the water of course. The abandoned pets had little or no chance unless they could swim. I am fairly sure that most people here would consider pets as part of the family, but I remember growing up, that some of my friends pets weren't treated very well, and certainly not like a member of the family. They looked at thier pets as "toys", something to keep the kids' attention, and as such, not worthy of proper consideration. Now being somewhat "grown up" and w/ the company a great border collie (sierra), I don't understand how they could treat thier pets that way. I can't see ever abandoning her for any reason. She's a smart pup, and will sense when I'm feeling down and react accordingly. She needs alot of room to run and she hates to be chained up, just like me

.

I think alot of people, families mostly, take thier pets for granted, and these are the people that will abandon their pets if they become inconveinient in the aftermath of some disaster. It breaks my heart to write that, but we've seen it before. I think the good news is that pets have natural instincts that may have been dormant their entire lives, that will allow them to adapt and survive (a natural disaster), oh yeah, and that there are good people like Mr. and Mrs. Mizar out there in the mean time. (Good on you and the Mrs.

)

10-26-2008, 07:08 AM	#13
raulduke Avalon Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: USA Posts: 454	Re: Abandoned pets. Has anyone else seen the "life after people" programs on history and national geographic channels? I must say I was interested, but also somewhat alarmed, wondering what had prompted the subject to be analyzed. The reason I ask, is because substantial parts of each program were dedicated the subject of, "what will happen to house pets in the absence of humans?". The consensus was that they would have a good chance of survival, but only if they could escape the actual house. Of course, no disasters were taken into account, just humans somehow disappearing. Dogs would return to packs and foraging while cats would adapt to thier natural skills, noctunal hunting. I think we are so familar w/ the behavior of our domestic animals, that we would be surprised to see what they could actually do to survive if need be. That said, I was absolutely devastated to see the abandoned pets after Katrina. The biggest problem there, was the water of course. The abandoned pets had little or no chance unless they could swim. I am fairly sure that most people here would consider pets as part of the family, but I remember growing up, that some of my friends pets weren't treated very well, and certainly not like a member of the family. They looked at thier pets as "toys", something to keep the kids' attention, and as such, not worthy of proper consideration. Now being somewhat "grown up" and w/ the company a great border collie (sierra), I don't understand how they could treat thier pets that way. I can't see ever abandoning her for any reason. She's a smart pup, and will sense when I'm feeling down and react accordingly. She needs alot of room to run and she hates to be chained up, just like me. I think alot of people, families mostly, take thier pets for granted, and these are the people that will abandon their pets if they become inconveinient in the aftermath of some disaster. It breaks my heart to write that, but we've seen it before. I think the good news is that pets have natural instincts that may have been dormant their entire lives, that will allow them to adapt and survive (a natural disaster), oh yeah, and that there are good people like Mr. and Mrs. Mizar out there in the mean time. (Good on you and the Mrs.)