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southern MN | This is getting beat to death, and it's not fair to pile on you.....
Sucks when you lose a member of the household or farm yard, and puts a person on edge. We need to be sympathetic with that, and I've tried to with my messages.
But, now, since it's come up, I really didn't get your analogy either.
It was the adult that put the kid in the bad situation, so _in the end_, yes it is the adult's 'fault' that the kid got mangled in the pto. More shielding, better instructions, better supervision, or keeping too young people away from the machinery is really the parent's 'fault'.
But I don't mean that in a mean, bad way. It all depemnds on the situation and details, and in the anologyyou use - sure the kid caused the problem and I'd have nothing but sympathy for the parents. But in the end, it would really be their 'fault' if we need to blame anyone at all.
Likewise with your cat (or my cats or my dogs that have also been run over) it's the owner that let them be in a bad place at a bad time.
I will not automatically blame all car drivers all the time for hitting pets on the road. I don't think you saw it happen, so you don't know if the driver was indeed speeding, or tried to swerve, or slowed way down, or what happened.
'Fault' is too strong a word, it implies blame and all that. I do not find 'fault with you, with the potential pto mangling, or with my dogs or cats.
I dosee you, the kids parents, and myself as responsible for the situation.
I think it is right & proper to give my cats and most of the time a dog it's freedom to roam and be a critter enjoying life on the farm. But if something happens to them in my care, it is my responsibilty that I chose that path for them.
Same with kids and parents.
But most of all, I feel bad for the loss you got now. It's 'just a cat' and there are many more to take it's place, if you are looking for a barn cat will be easy to get in a couple more weeks. But that doesn't help a person feel better about it, they all have thier personalities and quirks, and a person gets used to and fond of a pet they adopt. So there is no way I want to put any sort of blame on your head - I think you did things right. Got a bad result, and that is tough.
But I have a hard time blaming an unknown driver. Don't think that is quite right either.
Neighobr came over last fall & did some business with us, as he headed to his pickup across the farm yard, I told the wife to go gather the cats, we had young ones that were very pasty to humans... Wife said ok and diddle daddled with something, I was doing something else - when I saw she didn't go right away, I knew.... Well the neighbor walks back, says sorry I ran over your kitten.... Well, I knew. Wife didn't get it, she does now. If you want to care for the critters, you got to care right away, not 5 minutes later. Took me a 1/2 day to not blame my wife over that one. ;) But it just happens. We try.
I hope this makes some sense, and again, I don't mean in any way to heap blame upon you, We have 5-20 cats at any particular time and I like them all, each is different, hate to lose them even if they are 'just barn cats'. When something happens to them it's either nature at work or my fault... Our old momma cat is pushing 10 years old, we got her as a kitten from the wife's coworker, I already dread losing her, she is such a good farm cat, heck of a mouser, very friendly, but likes to keep her distance from machinery & such. Outdoor cats don't often last that long,she's going strong but.....
--->Paul | |
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Running over someone's pet./ no speed limit on a rural residential road
