I have taken a day to gather my thought about Rocket Dog and I know that some of the things I will say will make some people mad but I fell like I have to say a few things to clear my head. I don't know about the rest of you but I'm not talking about R.I. P, Rainbow Bridges, meeting other dead Meerkats. I'm pretty much mad. I hope at least some others are also!!!
First off I think the Whiskers as a group are in BIG trouble. I mean what are the odds of Flower (one of the greatest Dominants of all time)being killed by a cobra (not some other family member or other group member but Flower)and then her daughter who lived a super stressful life (loosing litters all the time) trying hard to bring the group together gets killed by a car. Waht are the odds!!! How many cars go down that road a day 2 or 3. The oods of this happening in a year ae astronomical and I think the Whiskers may not recover (I'm just not sure a 2 1/2 year old Ella can hold this group together.
Secondly I'm not sure if it's time for us humans to just just step back and give the Meerkats a break. What has all of this fame and fortune from Meerkat Manor given the Meerkats. They still have rampant TB. They still don't have enough collars for all the Meerkats. They still can't follow onto adjacent lands (the research area is still super small). And now we run over them with cars( By the way, it had to be a KMP person that ran over her. If it was a local they would not have stoped).
It seems like the Meerkats have gained nothing from all of this except our respect and is that enough to offer them.
Wizzybun
This message has been edited. Last edited by: mod_kelly,
Wizzy- I am sad too...I just found out today; a few hours ago. I hadn't been online in a few days. I am devastated, and I went for a walk in the mountains earlier, and saw a dead rabbit on the road in the canyon. I moved it aside. It might have been hit by a car, and I immediately thought of RD. I hope she went quick. I am still in shock and can't believe she is gone.
It is so hard when we care about something to let it go, yet let it go we must. Nature goes on, and I sure hope that the Whiskers will be successful without her. As sad as I feel, I KNOW I am the better for knowing these beautiful animals and the gift of knowledge they have given me is tremendous. I hope to see your beautiful soul Rocket Dog when I cross over. Alyse
Hi Wizzy, I'm devastated about the loss of RD too. It's unbearably sad and we all need time to grieve.
To clear up a misunderstanding: A major public road runs right through the middle of the KMP property, which is actually very large. (For example, the Whiskers' original territory alone was 3 square miles.) Many non-KMP people use this public road, and because the area is scarcely populated and destinations are far apart, people drive fast. Even worse, some KMP mobs' territories span both sides of the road. Sounds like a recipe for disaster, doesn't it?
Tragically, it is not unusual for meerkats to be run over, and KMP workers are NOT to blame. We have been told by numerous MM fans who have been on Earthwatcher expeditions to KMP that the researchers love the meerkats too and root for their success. I can just imagine how attached these animal lovers get after working with the meerkats every day for months.
I'm sorry to tell scary news about the road, but IMO it's best to know the truth. FYI: My post on this page has a picture of the main road through KMP: http://community.discovery.com/eve/forums/a/tpc/f/2381948938/m/5971967569?r=7151989569#7151989569
RIP, sweet RD. We miss you! Hugs to you, Wizzy and Alyse and all of our other grieving burrow mates...
I wouldn't worry too much about the Whiskers (not yet at least). It's terrible that the group lost two dominant females in a little more than a year. But Ella could hold the group together (she will be three in August). Flower was born in March of 2000, and she became dominant in early 2002, after Vialli's extremely short reign. She was younger than Ella. I don't think anybody would have imagined her success back then.
True, Zettak. <sigh> But at least we will see her a lot in S4 beginning in about a month! I hope they capture her spirit and give her the credit she is due.
Hi alyse928: "I KNOW I am the better for knowing these beautiful animals and the gift of knowledge they have given me is tremendous."
I fully agree!!! Thank you! I know that life is sad, it ends in death, but to not have known these lovely little creatures would have been worse than never knowing them at all. I have known about meerkats since I was young (and that was LONG ago), so being able to see them has been a delight.
Hello kach5503, hope this finds you well. Recipe for disaster is right, the territories span the road. There was a stray cat hanging around here for a while, she thought she owned the road, but not owning a car, we know who lost. It seems meerkats like the road like this little cat did and it is a no win situation.
{{{sigh}}} Let's hope they give RD more regard than they did for Flower.
Good day zettak! Flower has shown that youth is no obstacle in leadership for these little cats. Do you know Ella's birthdate? My birthday is in August, I was just wondering.
Such a shame we will not see RD and find out what kind of leader she would have made...a shame.
Take care all! The Queen has summoned her Princess home. Rest well brave soul. Goodnight Sweet RD, Princess of the Kalahari
If that is still a Leo sign Ella is a born leader. If not, maybe she still has some Leo on her chart. One can only hope.
As for the TV hurting the kats, not really. This would have happened anyway. Maybe a reasearcher did run over RD (I hope not because they will feel horrid,) but my guess is that they drive slower than most because of the kats. Besides, they do get a bit of extra food (slice of hard boiled egg) to supplement their diet - although I know that's not the reason why they are given the egg slice. The kats get extra food and lots of attention and we are much richer for having them in our lives. Not a bad deal.
Hello ccatz, my computer will not let me update Adobe, so I can't look at the site. The computer is only about six months old and it is a piece of junk. I will only say the the company's initials are the same as Harry Potter.
tori, there is a good bit of info on the other hopping threads, i just wrote some on the "whiskers.....together..." thread. her meekat manor name is mango.
Just for all the Entertainment over the 1 1/2 yrs: R.I.P. : Rocket dog; Flower; Mozart; Kinkajou; Carlos; Tosca; Shakespeare; and any others that i may heve missed Good-Bye to you all and I hope i see you when I go too.
I believe our Whiskers are in jeopardy I just hope they can pull through this hard time and regain the power. I believe they can do it( I hope and hope every day)
COME ON WHISKERS!!! WE SUPPORT YOU ALL YOU CAN DO IT....
Hi Wizzy I'm with you-I am very fearful of what may become of not only the Whiskers, but all the groups under the microscopes of the KMP researchors. The Rascals numbers are down to the point that I dread looking at the LH in fear of the group being 'lost'. Naturaly, I'm quite biased in wanting the research to continue at the kMP so that Meerkat Manor will continue. But I do think it is time to change some of Tim Cluton Brock's systemology or whatever the correct word is. He makes the rules, and everyone (including the meerkats)have to live by them. How unjust!! If he is such a great behaviourlist, why haven't they tried to determine how, when, where and why so many of our beloved meerkats leave the KMP area? This should be a very HIGH priority that fits directly into his expertese. They keep saying that the TB issue is not part of behavior research, but how can they just print 'last seen' next to a meerkat and forget about it. Wizzy, looks like you and I are alone on this island of "dispair".
I always had the feeling they were kind of putting the "kabosh" (I had a supervisor who always used the word - it fascinated me - where did it come from?) on the TB situation not to cause mass panic. I don't think enough researh is going into it - too little too lae.
I agree that the TB situation is serious, and that the subject is not even discussed. What is the outcome of the infectious disease study (including TB) in the KMP?
poco72 and wizzybun
You are not alone. I posted regarding TB in the KMP very recently (again). Individuals try to apply statistics (percentages of infection in populations, and of diseased individuals, of mortality rates, etc.) regarding humans to meerkats. Humans lived with TB forever, a lot developed some kind of immunity. Some percentage of infected individuals is treated, even in developing countries. The disease was almost eradicated in developed countries after the appearance of antibiotics, but there is a resurgence recently, due to other factors (HIV/AIDS, the breakdown of health systems in former Eastern block countries, etc.). Meerkats do not have immunity to the disease, because it is relatively new (or some strains of it) to them. Whole groups disappeared due to TB, only last year: The Vivian, the Balrog, the Gattaca, the Young Ones (more, or less), the Starsky. Murray of the Whiskers was euthanized, because he was at the last stages of the disease. Meerkats are not treated for the disease. TB was introduced to the area from the outside, i.e. cattle in the area (even the KMP purchased some, in order to compensate for some of their expenses), and other animals infected with TB, local residents infected with HIV/TB, etc. TB should be considered as a serious problem by the KMP, because it did not originate there. The departure of habituated meerkats from the KMP study area should be studied. It seems it is within the area of expertise of the KMP Behavioral Research.
They have the chat every Friday night, so should we "ask the researchers" about the TB crisis? I do not know if they will respond to it but we can try.
Hi all! I understand that the research area is quite small, apparently the kats are widespread, so I do see not being able to keep up when a kat leaves the research area. Hopefully it can be expanded. Someone said the farmers are now allowing some researchers on their land, but what the extent of this has not been said.
I did mention the TB a while back and it seems that the opinion is that it only hits the sick and weak. Tough call on that one, I just don't know the numbers, it seems it affects at least a little more than the sick and weak.
Hopefully the research area can be expanded and more research can be done. Thanks for explaining where the TB came from, I was wondering.
Good to see you c9691! Take care all! You are not alone in your thoughts.
All these groups that disappeared had a lot of young, healthy kats that became sick and weak because they were infected with TB. Some of the dominants of these groups were older, but this was a tiny percentage (not to mention that these D kats managed to survive for so long when they were not infected with TB).
Thanks zettak! It did seem that it was more than the weak and sick, we are talking whole groups here. And as you said, the D's were surviving prior to the TB. Hopefully is can be addressed. Take care!
They have a chat every Friday - online? Was this in the non-spoiler. Apparently I've been missing a lot by avoiding the non spoiler, so I'll go on and try to keep a tight hold on my tongue (fingers) so as not to let anything slip.
As zettak said...check the Talk About MM and go to "ask the researchers".... They have a video on Friday nights and you must check it out. They answer a few questions that we have submitted previously. Last Friday was the 1st time...The Meerkats are actually there in the video....You will LOVE it!
