NEWS AND COMMENT: This news story from Japan once again polarises opinion between animal advocates and the authorities. Residents in Japan have had been warned to steer clear of a poor, stray cat, perhaps a domestic cat, who fell into a commercial vat of hexavalent chromium at the Nomura Plating Factory near Hiroshima.
It is a carcinogenic chemical which can cause skin irritation and blindness if it comes into contact with the eyes and it is used for metal plating. It is yellow in colour which is why the authorities reported that the cat left yellow paw prints.
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Officials in Fukuyama say that people must steer clear of any cat that is behaving ‘abnormally’ and contact the police rather than try to catch it. Fair enough. We get the message but what about the cat?
This cat is going to die by the sound of it and it would be nice if somebody who is efficiently protected could catch the animal and take him or her to a veterinary clinic for treatment as a matter of urgency.
No doubt that won’t happen and it’s likely the cat will simply quietly die in a secluded spot. I can visualise right now the cat licking themselves all over to clean their coat and ingesting lots of chromium 6.
Social media animal advocates have criticised the commercial plant for not protecting animals from this kind of incident. Some cat lovers are outraged. They accuse the company of failing to take proper precautions to protect animals.
For example, one cat lover wrote on social media: “Wasn’t there anything done to the lid? Isn’t there a law? Irresponsible”.
Another wrote the following: “Why wasn’t such a harmful item kept in strict storage? I feel bad for the cat”.
Others, preferred to defend the company with one remarking: “I’m sure the cat won’t be okay. But we shouldn’t blame companies that openly disclose these things.”
I presume that this is a reference to the fact that the company informed the authorities and the news got out to the public.
Comment: there should have been a lid! 🤢. Common sense.
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