[Gpdd] Misc: Selling piggies and other rodents "by the bagful"

[Algernon07 at aol.com]

Hello All Piggy Lovers --
    I agree with Susan -- Piggies do need a lobby and we need direction. 
     I did check out the www.rodentpro.com web site and saw that these small animals sold in a bag are not alive any longer and are "frozen." The ad advises that is best to order in advance so that the animals can be "chosen, rendered lifeless (by what means?)frozen then packaged and shipped." (What I have set in quotation marks is paraphrased, by the way and not an exact quotation.)
     I remain deeply disturbed, but at least they aren't all smashed in a bag together and shipped while slowly suffocating. 
      I recall a Zoo volunteer visiting one of the high school where I worked with the writing program many years ago. I wasn't there the day of the presentation, but one of the animals brought and displayed was a large snake -- a boa or python.
    What I most vividly recall now -- with this catalyst -- is one particular student's paper on the presentation. It was a well done paper, full of those "concrete and specific details" that bring scenes to life. He wrote of the "prefrozen mouse-meal" for the snake. "Just grab a frozen mouse meal from the freezer, briefly microwave it and wa-la! Dinner for the snake."
     Certainly it's better than the alternative -- tossing a live animal in with the reptile or other carnivore, but there should still be alternatives.
     Incidentally, Lauren, you mentioned your pet rats' need for meat for proper nutrition. We used to let our pet rats lick peanut butter off our fingers to increase protein in their diet. They seemed to thrive. As my daughter now has two pet rats, I'd be interested in further info -- off the digest, of course.
    As for the bonsia kitty, I think the site needed to be reported. Probably it is satirical but it remains sick, particularly in that who knows what warped mind might attempt something so deranged.

Alge