Is this show to try to convince people to keep their cats indoors or what? Showing the effects with no recourse to improving the problem just leads to freaked out people. I do wish more groups were helpful to those people who want to trap spay/neuter feral cat populations. People keep getting cats and abandoning them when they move. The logistics of trapping spay/neuter can be rather overhwhelming - what do you do with them before they go to the vet? What do you do with them while they heal? If we can't get a handle on the feral cat problem, what's the point of gruesome pictures?

Last fall I was at Stanley Park in Westfield, Massachusetts shooting some scenic photos of the park and I kept hearing a whistling sound off in the distance. Finally out of curiosity I went to see what it was. To my complete surprise I found it was a guy in his backyard, which adjoins the park, and he was training a Red Tailed hawk in the art of "Falconry" (Hunting by means of a raptor). I quickly hung a long telephoto lens and began shooting pictures. In a few minutes the guy noticed me and invited me to come in a bit closer. I moved in to about 20ft where he and I could talk yet my presence would still not excite the hawk. In our discusssion he told me that he is one of only 7 ppl in the entire state who are currently licensed to practice the art of Falconry. According to him it takes 6 years in an apprenticeship to get a license and they must have the license before they can posses a bird. During that 6yr period they must work with a raptor rehab facility to learn how to care & feed the birds as well as handling characteristics. He also stated that they cannot buy a bird. To get a bird they have to live trap one in the wild, but they are limited to only trapping birds that are presenting some form of nuisance. In his case, his bird had taken up residence in a residential neighborhood and had been hunting bird near ppls bird feeders or small cats, most of which were to large for the bird to carry off so it just killed a cat, then consumed what it could on the spot and leaving the remains to the total dismay of the cat owners. . . . . . Here is a photo of me doing my imation of a handler.....LOL

@ Rita Council - So sorry you are dealing with this so soon after moving in. With regard to the pet training service - in addition to the noise your board has to also enforce other rules regarding running a business and maintaining insurance. They also have to protect the association from incidents that could occur on common grounds. I worked in the humane industry and as much as I love animals, I am very aware of the risk that any business that deals with animals holds. When I ran a mobile pet vaccination service at pet stores I needed to carry $1 million/$3 million coverage for myself, my business, my employees, my independent contractors (vets), the pet stores where we conducted business and the property owners where the pets stores were located. We also needed to get riders or event insurance if we held a clinic at a community event. What are the rules for your community for running a home based business? What types of businesses are allowed? Is the business licensed? Is the business insured? Is the condo association covered if an incident occurs in a common area or involves another tenant or their pet? One of our greatest risks was dogs that were not dog friendly. We had to be constantly watching for signs of dog on dog or dog on cat aggression. If the board is aware of the business and has not made sure that adequate insurance has been obtained they could be held liable.

Yes, Mom lied....she told the school that she had to relocate for a job. She was unemployed (fired from her last job) and didn't begin work until December -- so clearly, the move had zero to do with a job. The boyfriend didn't help at all, in fact, she was paying his rent, so she just figured it would be cheaper to have him live with her. He leached off her for a long time -- even after she bought a new house and told him he had to move out. He threatened suicide so she paid 2 mortgages for another 8 months or so until she could get him to leave the house (I couldn't make this stuff up!). For all I know, she offered to pay him rent to get out -- I know she supported him the entire time he lived with her. Perhaps that money is her retirement money, but her kids knew that she paid a lot for her BF (even lent him $10,000 to start his own company....didn't work out so much, duh!). You have to realize, this is not just about the money. We can pay towards her college, but we believe that she must also pay -- take a financial stake in her own education. And, make up for the scholarship that she let go. This isn't punitive, as her mother likes to spin it. It is about trying to get this child to understand that money does not grow on trees, and that college is not to show off that you can hang with the "pretty rich kids" (her words), or about drinking whenever and wherever you want (again, she gained a ton of weight last year -- no doubt from drinking so much) but it is about making a future for yourself. It is also about teaching her that you can't give a parent "the finger" with one hand, while holding out the other for tens of thousands of dollars. It is simply not right.....and not the message that we want her younger brother to get!