Author Topic: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?  (Read 10254 times)

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Offline xrunner

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #50 on: November 13, 2022, 01:10:55 pm »
Heard once somewhere - don't remember where ...

Disciplining a dog vs. a cat


You see dog chewing on something you don't want it to chew on. You look at the dog and say "No No bad dog don't chew on that!"

You see a cat chewing on something you don't want it to chew on. You look in a mirror and say "No No bad human don't leave that thing out to be chewed on!"

 :-DD
I told my friends I could teach them to be funny, but they all just laughed at me.
 
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Online Fraser

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #51 on: November 13, 2022, 01:59:37 pm »
The difference between a dog and cat in a domestic situation is well understood. A dog is a pack animal that wants to please the ‘top dog’ and actively looks for positive outcomes to its behaviour. As has been Said many times, there is no such thing as a “bad” dog, only a bad owner/guardian. A cat, on the other hand, has no true “need” of its human and can survive on its own in the wild. It tolerates a human companion because the human cares for it’s needs and gives it an easy life. I humanise cats and adore them. They detect my positive attitude towards them and reinforce it with nice gestures like ‘talking’, purring and snuggling. It is a win win situation for the cat and it’s human. The human gets a companion and the cat gets well cared for. I am not saying that a cat cannot, or does not, form a close bond to its chosen human, it is the reason for that bond that differs to dogs. Cats are truly amazing survivors and quickly become feral if abandoned as their killer instinct never leaves them, even when in a domestic environment. They are amazing animals and I love ours. The challenge and success of winning a cats affections can be really rewarding to its guardian. Never a dull moment with cats in your family unit.
« Last Edit: November 13, 2022, 02:01:44 pm by Fraser »
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Online Fraser

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #52 on: November 13, 2022, 02:13:42 pm »
One final thought….. if you saw a Tiger scratching the carpet and told it to stop ! …. Do you think it would obey ? A cat has the same personality as a Tiger and in its own head, it is just as capable. Why would it listen to us telling it to stop doing something that it wants to do ? :D It will only stop when it wants to, or fear is introduced to the equation to drive it off. Sadly inducing fear in a cat is a very tricky topic as such can lead to what some may consider animal abuse.
« Last Edit: November 13, 2022, 02:15:46 pm by Fraser »
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Online Gyro

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #53 on: November 13, 2022, 03:07:10 pm »
Well I've just got in from cutting the front lawn. Guess what, two more piles of cat shit since I cleaned up before cutting the hedge yesterday. Of course I didn't notice them until I'd been through them with the mower!

In my opinion, cat owners should be made to keep their little kitties inside, or at least on their property by whatever means. They should then be made to take them out for walks on leads in the pouring rain, and clean up after them like responsible dog owners are expected to do, rather than being snuggled up all nice and cozy and warm. They should also, like dog owners, be responsible for the damage that their pets do, accidents caused etc. I've had half a dozen dead Slow Worms in the back garden with their heads chewed off by little kitties for the fun of it, not to mention the newts, frogs and brids (are they not increasingly scarce and protected?)

An exterme view? Possibly, although I'm beginning to wonder, there are such things as house cats. I'm getting too old to be picking up other peoples' cat shit. As you can probably guess, I'm not a cat owner... but then I'm not a dog owner either.

[/rant]

P.S. I'm the one who got an entire outraged WTF thread by tautech, in the Supporters Lounge, for very gently voicing my objection to dogs being electric shocked into attacking Wild Boar, so I don't think I can really be considered an animal hater!
« Last Edit: November 13, 2022, 03:08:54 pm by Gyro »
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Online Gyro

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #54 on: November 13, 2022, 03:25:43 pm »
One final thought….. if you saw a Tiger scratching the carpet and told it to stop ! …. Do you think it would obey ? A cat has the same personality as a Tiger and in its own head, it is just as capable. Why would it listen to us telling it to stop doing something that it wants to do ? :D It will only stop when it wants to, or fear is introduced to the equation to drive it off. Sadly inducing fear in a cat is a very tricky topic as such can lead to what some may consider animal abuse.

Tigers, like all predators are intelligent enough to recognise a bigger predator and back off. Herbivores tend to fight to the death, carnivores fight enough to establish which is stronger and the loser makes for the horizon. I don't think they get their feeling hurt that easily, unless it's another trait that we've bred into the domestic moggie.

In the Tiger vs carpet case, you would clearly be the smaller / weaker predator.  ;)

(Duplicate post removed)
« Last Edit: November 13, 2022, 03:41:02 pm by Gyro »
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Online Zero999

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #55 on: November 13, 2022, 05:38:03 pm »
Well I've just got in from cutting the front lawn. Guess what, two more piles of cat shit since I cleaned up before cutting the hedge yesterday. Of course I didn't notice them until I'd been through them with the mower!

In my opinion, cat owners should be made to keep their little kitties inside, or at least on their property by whatever means. They should then be made to take them out for walks on leads in the pouring rain, and clean up after them like responsible dog owners are expected to do, rather than being snuggled up all nice and cozy and warm. They should also, like dog owners, be responsible for the damage that their pets do, accidents caused etc. I've had half a dozen dead Slow Worms in the back garden with their heads chewed off by little kitties for the fun of it, not to mention the newts, frogs and brids (are they not increasingly scarce and protected?)

An exterme view? Possibly, although I'm beginning to wonder, there are such things as house cats. I'm getting too old to be picking up other peoples' cat shit. As you can probably guess, I'm not a cat owner... but then I'm not a dog owner either.

[/rant]

P.S. I'm the one who got an entire outraged WTF thread by tautech, in the Supporters Lounge, for very gently voicing my objection to dogs being electric shocked into attacking Wild Boar, so I don't think I can really be considered an animal hater!
I don't have a cat myself, but was raised in a household with cats, so I can see it from both sides. I often have to clear up what I believe to cat crap in my garden, although it might be a fox. Ideally yes, cat owners shouldn't allow their cats to crap in other gardens. As far as keeping cats indoors is concerned, I think it's cruel to the cat, as they can't exercise their natural behaviours indoors. It would be nice if the cat would use the litter tray. Unfortunately it's virtually impossible to keep a cat to one garden. It might be possible to encourage it to crap in their own garden, by having a patch of sand, in a secluded area, where they feel safe.

Unfortunately there's not much you can do, other than make life difficult for cats in your garden. I don't know if the ultrasonic repellers are any good. There are also the ones which use a PIR sensor to trigger a water spray, but they're no good in freezing weather and you might need a few of them.
 
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Offline Electroplated

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #56 on: November 13, 2022, 08:57:23 pm »
Go to home and bargains and buy one of those green tennis racket type fly swatters, cost about 8 quid.
Take it apart and separate the wires that connect the HV charging circuit to the mesh screen, then remove the pcb and battery contacts.
With a hacksaw saw off the handle part as it meats the mesh area, you only want the handle part.

Reassemble the pcb and battery contact inside the handle and solder two 6 inch lengths of stripped solid core cable to the pcb output wires,  a length of 2.5mm t&e is deal for this, make sure the bare wire is kept apart, the idea is to make two sturdy probes, use glue or tape to hold it all together.

Insert batteries, power it in, shove the probes down your boxers and see what it feels like, if it blows your nuts off then its safe to say its not suitable to use on a cat  :P
« Last Edit: November 13, 2022, 08:58:59 pm by Electroplated »
50 years working with electronics and I still wonder how small parts can have all that smoke inside !
 
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Online Fraser

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #57 on: November 13, 2022, 09:16:35 pm »
 :-DD
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Online CatalinaWOW

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #58 on: November 13, 2022, 10:06:55 pm »
As someone who has no use for cats I simply don't understand the behavior of cat owners who disown any responsibility for the damaging behaviors of their pets.  I can understand and tolerate a truly feral cat who is truly living out natural behaviors, and taking the natural risks of living.  But the cat who is fed and protected from predators all day and then turned out to be "natural" against all the small critters in the neighborhood and to keep their home range clean by defecating at or beyond the boundaries of it's territory gets no sympathy from me.  I am more than willing to be the bigger, meaner predator.  They have no more rights to my property than the rats, mice and other vermin.
 

Online Zero999

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #59 on: November 13, 2022, 10:19:43 pm »
As someone who has no use for cats I simply don't understand the behavior of cat owners who disown any responsibility for the damaging behaviors of their pets.  I can understand and tolerate a truly feral cat who is truly living out natural behaviors, and taking the natural risks of living.  But the cat who is fed and protected from predators all day and then turned out to be "natural" against all the small critters in the neighborhood and to keep their home range clean by defecating at or beyond the boundaries of it's territory gets no sympathy from me.  I am more than willing to be the bigger, meaner predator.  They have no more rights to my property than the rats, mice and other vermin.
Owner aside. The cat doesn't have human emotions or morals. It's an animal. A cat still has the same instincts as a wild animal and will continue to hunt because it's preprogrammed to enjoy it.

I don't know what the law is, where you live, but in the UK it's still illegal to harm someone else's pet, even if it's on your property without your consent.
 

Offline paulcaTopic starter

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #60 on: November 13, 2022, 10:25:29 pm »
I don't know what the law is, where you live, but in the UK it's still illegal to harm someone else's pet, even if it's on your property without your consent.

Its illegal to be wilfully cruel any animal period.

The law gets more interesting when it comes to "Animal rights" though and the short version is.... "Is the animal worth money?",  "No?" Then if you run over it, you can leave it at the side of the road and forget about it.,  Yes Or it's a dog.  then you can't just leave it there, you are required to show at least an attempt to reach the owner or take the animal to a vet or just call out an emergency vet.  You are not necessarily liable to pay the damages though.
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Online Zero999

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #61 on: November 13, 2022, 10:47:51 pm »
I don't know what the law is, where you live, but in the UK it's still illegal to harm someone else's pet, even if it's on your property without your consent.

Its illegal to be wilfully cruel any animal period.
That's true, but pest control is perfectly legal. If someone shot a feral cat dead, because it's a pest, it's perfectly legal, as long as they killed it as cleanly as possible and don't inflict unnecessary suffering. If it's someone's pet, then they've broken the law. One might be able argue, they believed it was a feral cat, but I doubt the court would believe them.

Quote
The law gets more interesting when it comes to "Animal rights" though and the short version is.... "Is the animal worth money?",  "No?" Then if you run over it, you can leave it at the side of the road and forget about it.,  Yes Or it's a dog.  then you can't just leave it there, you are required to show at least an attempt to reach the owner or take the animal to a vet or just call out an emergency vet.  You are not necessarily liable to pay the damages though.
Reporting running over a dog dates back to the days of dog licensing.
« Last Edit: November 13, 2022, 10:50:12 pm by Zero999 »
 

Offline eti

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #62 on: November 13, 2022, 11:40:36 pm »
“Law” is beside the point. Rarely do morality and legality intersect. Morals mean vastly more than “law”. The law is an ass, a huge ass with no sense.

If I know I’ve got a clear conscience and need to do what keeps it clear, I’ll break the law IF I HAD TO and ONLY if there’s no other way, and I’d prefer not to of COURSE.

I’ll answer to God at the end of my life. Not some man in a chair.
« Last Edit: November 13, 2022, 11:42:38 pm by eti »
 

Offline DavidAlfa

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #63 on: November 14, 2022, 12:22:41 am »
I know cats can be true bastards sometimes, but that's a bit excessive at least as initial approach  :-DD
Just use some a water spray ot something that releases air and frightens him.
If still not working, add some lemon juice or other non-toxic compound she hates, will have to lick it off his fur and probably remember where it came from.

Long time ago I had a cat with an obssesion of eating my shoes, tried lemon, spicy stuff, he just didn't care .
That motherfeecker even ate solid copper wire one day I was replacing a wall socket.
He was probably retarded, none of my other cats were like that, not even his brother, he was just the extra chromosome cat  ::)
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Offline james_s

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #64 on: November 14, 2022, 08:02:16 am »
Long time ago I had a cat with an obssesion of eating my shoes, tried lemon, spicy stuff, he just didn't care .
That motherfeecker even ate solid copper wire one day I was replacing a wall socket.
He was probably retarded, none of my other cats were like that, not even his brother, he was just the extra chromosome cat  ::)

The condition is called Pica, I have a cat that occasionally eats wires too, he was much worse about it when he was young, I had to make sure I picked up my projects off the floor.
 

Online Zero999

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #65 on: November 14, 2022, 09:17:16 am »
Long time ago I had a cat with an obssesion of eating my shoes, tried lemon, spicy stuff, he just didn't care .
That motherfeecker even ate solid copper wire one day I was replacing a wall socket.
He was probably retarded, none of my other cats were like that, not even his brother, he was just the extra chromosome cat  ::)

The condition is called Pica, I have a cat that occasionally eats wires too, he was much worse about it when he was young, I had to make sure I picked up my projects off the floor.
Pica can also affect humans. It can be caused by lack of certain nutrients in the diet and is more common in pregnant women. Oddly enough, the typically substances eaten aren't high in the nutrient the person lacks.
 

Online CatalinaWOW

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #66 on: November 14, 2022, 09:44:08 am »
As someone who has no use for cats I simply don't understand the behavior of cat owners who disown any responsibility for the damaging behaviors of their pets.  I can understand and tolerate a truly feral cat who is truly living out natural behaviors, and taking the natural risks of living.  But the cat who is fed and protected from predators all day and then turned out to be "natural" against all the small critters in the neighborhood and to keep their home range clean by defecating at or beyond the boundaries of it's territory gets no sympathy from me.  I am more than willing to be the bigger, meaner predator.  They have no more rights to my property than the rats, mice and other vermin.
Owner aside. The cat doesn't have human emotions or morals. It's an animal. A cat still has the same instincts as a wild animal and will continue to hunt because it's preprogrammed to enjoy it.

I don't know what the law is, where you live, but in the UK it's still illegal to harm someone else's pet, even if it's on your property without your consent.

I know that cats will be cats.  I am speaking to the owners of cats.  They are the ones creating the situation by allowing/forcing the animal to live in an situation not balanced by the rules of tooth and claw.  In a natural environment an animal that over hunts it's range starved.  The problem is self correcting.  But a pet cat goes home and eats and continues hunting.  This general concept extends to many other cat behaviors.
« Last Edit: November 15, 2022, 03:16:54 am by CatalinaWOW »
 
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Offline Ed.Kloonk

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #67 on: November 14, 2022, 09:53:16 am »
A kids water pistol is likely the very best deterrent.

It can even be automated so you do not have to be there for the act.  Several YT videos on that.  One crazy funny one uses a water hose.  It is outdoor, of course.


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Online Gyro

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #68 on: November 14, 2022, 10:11:11 am »
As the video clearly demonstrates that the cats will not learn after triggering the deterrent multiple times, the first trigger needs to be a more permanent learning experience.  >:D
Best Regards, Chris
 
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Offline paulcaTopic starter

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #69 on: November 14, 2022, 10:12:14 am »
I know that cats will be cats.  I am speaking to the owners of cats.  They are the ones creating the situation by allowing/forcing the animal to live in an situation not balanced by the rules of tooth and claw.  In a natural environment an animal that over hints it's range starved.  The problem is self correcting.  But a pet cat goes home and eats and continues hunting.  This general concept extends to many other cat behaviors.

That's all very well, but we don't really get the blame for cats.  Dogs yes, we bred them into domestication (although first we bred them for work).  Cats came along for the ride themselves.  Self-domesticating.

The explanations are varied.  Most believe it was when humans began to cultivate, farm and therefore store food.  You store food you attract vermin.  Birds and mice and other small critters.  Cats seen an opportunity. Hang around the humans it's a win, win, cats get food, humans get pest control.  The relationship has been functioning that way for 1000s of years.  I don't think you can really call them domestic though.  Maybe purely "house" cats, but I'm fairly sure the instinct to survive out there in the wild still exists in most of them.  Dogs... not so much.  They have been bred far and away from their natural form.  They have been heavily domesticed and stand very little chance out in the wild.

A lot of the small innocent little critters would not be there if humans had not moved in and brought their food stores, scraps, bins.  So the "natural" balance is skewed anyway.
« Last Edit: November 14, 2022, 10:22:36 am by paulca »
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Offline Ed.Kloonk

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #70 on: November 14, 2022, 10:18:07 am »
As the video clearly demonstrates that the cats will not learn after triggering the deterrent multiple times, the first trigger needs to be a more permanent learning experience.  >:D

One of ours used to climb the flyscreen on the door until he got fed up with receiving sudden super soaker right in the belly as he hung there.
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Offline xrunner

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #71 on: November 14, 2022, 01:43:29 pm »
You know, all this talk of cats and other animals not "behaving" or acting like we want them to, destroying "things", etc., we need to just remind ourselves of something.

People, many times, aren't much more well behaved than many animals I have had.  :P
I told my friends I could teach them to be funny, but they all just laughed at me.
 
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Offline PlainName

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #72 on: November 14, 2022, 02:07:11 pm »
At least you can sue people, or bop them on the nose. Or act passive aggressive and just know it's annoying them. Cats... immune to every known wile.
 

Online Gyro

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #73 on: November 14, 2022, 02:11:19 pm »
Bop the owner(s) on the nose and make them come and clean it up every day? Just a thought.
Best Regards, Chris
 
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Offline paulcaTopic starter

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Re: Is a "Fly swatter" circuit appropriate for a cat?
« Reply #74 on: November 14, 2022, 03:32:33 pm »
Bop the owner(s) on the nose and make them come and clean it up every day? Just a thought.

Put a litter tray in the corner of the lawn for it.

If it makes use of it, you can empty it in the neighbours flower beds.

(Please seek legal advise before following anything I suggest :))
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