6 garters for 10 dollars in paper

[Millinex]

the second I lay eyes on a possum, I am overwhelmed by intense loathing and an urge to kill it. I don't know why. I just can't stand them. This emotion overtakes all logic. I must kill it even though it makes no sense. I'll even chase it down to kill it. Fortunately for the possum, most of them are able to get to safety before I get a chance. The last possum family of 4 that crossed my yard at 2am were out in the open. They weren't so lucky. Once they are dead, I kind of feel bad about it but the next time I see one, there it is again, the urge to kill it. I have no control over it.

c. You don't understand. No harm isn't an option when I see one. It must die. I don't understand it myself. They just provoke such a deep loathing in me that just letting them go on with their business is not an option. I simply cannot stand the sight of them, and the logic to let them go on unmolested and unharmed makes perfect sense. That sense goes right out the window the second I see one face to face.

I'm getting chills and grinding my teeth just looking at pictures of a possum. I simply must bash it's skull in. (not as easy as it looks, to kill one with blunt force trauma, BTW) I don't know why I react that way. Weird huh? ...

..... If it were live and moving, in front of me it would be even worse. I wouldn't go the other direction. I'd instantly find the nearest object (rock, gun, club, whatever) and chase that sucker. If I caught up to it, I'd shoot it and/or beat it to death, and feel much exhileration and satisfaction in watching it take it's last breath.

I just found this gem. For someone who's real upset about 4 snakes dieing to a 14 year old, I am rather disgusted at the idea of a grown man killing animals for no reason at all. You know better, but you still choose to do this. If anyone should be in trouble for animal neglect/cruelty, it should be you. This is repulsive and disgusting, seek mental help ASAP.

[infernalis]

This conversation is 9 pages of going nowhere fast

[Sonya610]

This conversation is 9 pages of going nowhere fast

Twice I have sworn off posting in this thread; I am starting to think the comments are designed simply to provoke the ire of other posters.

[d_virginiana]

An elderly man was charged with animal cruelty after he beat puppies to death with a hammer... This conversation reminds me of that.

If the kid in question had been bashing his snakes' heads in with a hammer because they weren't thriving instead of feeding them the wrong type of food, I'd have to totally agree with you.

Along that line, here's an incident that ended up in our local paper (we also knew the owner of the dogs personally). This woman had several pommeranians and had taken them to the vet for their shots and checkup. The vet thought that the dogs had too many fleas and, since the woman said she didn't have the money at the time to buy flea medication, the vet waited until she left the office and called animal control on her. Later that week, she was charged, the dogs taken from her home, and she was prohibited from owning any more dogs for the next few years.
First, if you have large numbers of dogs and live in the south, you are probably aware of how difficult it is to keep fleas down in the summer; we medicate ours and STILL end up with some pretty god-awful infestations.
Second, this woman slept in the bed with her dogs. She also had fleas, and no one was condemning her house as unfit for human habitation. She really loved those animals and was totally traumatized when they were taken away.
Third, the dogs ended up getting euthanized. Personally, I think they were better off with the fleas.

If all you heard was "Woman charged for refusing to give dogs proper medical care" this story would sound a heck of a lot different.

The library also has books on opossum facts, you should check up on that.

This is actually really amusing, because in trying to rehab injured ones in the past, I went by the library when none of the internet sources seemed legit. Those books actually tell you that a staple diet of catfood is appropriate; this will give them MBD and cause an agonizing death due to steady loss of bone mass. Really illustrates how easy it can be to get terrible info from a seemingly trustworthy source..

[Sonya610]

Along that line, here's an incident that ended up in our local paper (we also knew the owner of the dogs personally).

Please post a link to the story or the owners name (since this was public record).

[ConcinusMan]

Taking cheap shots only makes you look that much more petty. You will also see that I recognized and admit that it is a problem. You also insinuate that I have a choice in the matter. I have no more choice than someone who is deeply terrified of snakes. They do not choose to be that way. It just is.

And just for the record, that wouldn't be animal cruelty. Opposums are not native to my area and it's perfectly legal to kill them. In fact, it's encouraged. Also, when I kill them, I did not make them suffer and I didn't do it for pleasure. There's a big difference. I am better about it now. I did not kill the last two possums I found in my back yard. I just ran them off.

[Stefan-A]

Oops.