• Bus shelter costs too high • Cats are not the problem Bus shelter costs too high When I read the front-page article “Makeovers by the millions,” I saw that plans are in place to build 16 to 18 more bus stop
• Bus shelter costs too high • Cats are not the problem
Bus shelter costs too high
When I read the front-page article “Makeovers by the millions,” I saw that plans are in place to build 16 to 18 more bus stop shelters this year. I think that will be great for passengers waiting for the bus to keep dry when it rains.
When I divided the cost of $600,000 by the 18 (hopefully not just 16) shelters it comes out to $33,333 per shelter. Seriously?! It’s no wonder why our taxes keep going up if we can’t build a bus shelter for less than that.
Michael Stauber
Koloa
Cats are not the problem
I agree with Rebecca Gursline’s letter entitled “Stop blaming cats for everything.”
My wife and I adopted Daisy Mae four years ago at the Kauai Humane Society. The moment she ran up to us at the fence and stuck her little paw out we knew she was the one. Daisy Mae is an indoor cat, and every morning when she hears me she will run upstairs, jump on our small table and have her morning brushing and daddy/big girl talk about the dangers of going outside. She will then rub her little head on my leg, which means she is hungry and wants her breakfast.
The Minnesota Stroke Institute followed more than 4,000 cat owners over 10 years and concluded that owning a cat can dramatically reduce a person’s chance of dying from heart disease. Specifically, people who owned cats were 30 percent less likely to suffer a heart attack.
That study merely adds to the existing evidence that shows how animals can benefit human health. For example, psychologists have found reason to believe that owning a pet helps lower your blood pressure and your cholesterol.
Other research shows that pets help us feel better overall and help us to deal with stress, which can be a source of illness.
Let’s not forget the benefits for the elderly. For example, one study observed neural activity in seniors, while they interacted with their pet. It turned out that gave seniors a boost in parasympathetic, nervous system activity, which is good because parasympathetic nervous system helps calm and rest the body.
Daisy Mae is now telling me she wants to play by lightly scratching the back of my chair. She loves to chase a bunch of sticks on the end of a long wire. After this, she will run toward my recliner, jump up with me to watch some television.
It hurts me to hear that the Kauai Humane Society has to put down over 1,000 cats a year. My suggestions for them is to visit every old folks home on the island and let our older citizens have a cat to love and keep them healthy.
Also, visit the correctional center and give the inmates a number of cats to love and perhaps adopt when their sentences are over. Maybe this will help cut down on crime in the island and give the prisoners something to love.
Perhaps our hospitals can take care of a number of cats with the help of their patients. Maybe a little imagination and hard work can save those loving cats from death.
Have to end this letter because Daisy Mae is rubbing her head on my feet, which means it is time for her dinner. Please adopt a cat now for yourself or for an older member of your family. You will live longer with a little Daisy Mae to love.
Richard L. Turner
Princeville
