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Flying Cat in the Outer Boroughs
By
Jen Chung
Published Jul 14, 2004
Modified Mar 6, 2008
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By
Jen Chung
Published Jul 14, 2004
Modified Mar 6, 2008
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New York State Senator Carl Kruger (D-Brooklyn) is trying to ban the Cole Bros. Circus, which is currently performing in Brooklyn, because of they make a Siamese cat jump/fall 50 feet through the air. Newsday reports that Kruger feels the circus is treating Rincon, aka Supercat, cruelly and that the circus should ship out. Rincon has made numerous jumps, all landing onto a pillow. Newsday talks to a few people about the situation and gets some great quotes:
- "I think if you ask the cat, I think the cat is going to say 'I don't like jumping in a circus. I don't like the circus.'He's going to have arthritis; he's going to have problems in the joints. It's OK to do it once in a while, but if you do it every time, like a football player, you're going to have problems in the joints."- Dr. Javier Ramos, a veterinarian at the Riverside Animal Clinic in Manhattan
- "There's always somebody out there who objects to anything," she said. "It was not harmful to the cat; the cat likes it." - Iris Fishman, resident of Marina Park and grandmother who took her grandchildren to see Rincon
- "If I were a cat, I don't think I would want to be doing that." - Special Agent Joseph Pentangelo, ASPCA
The Cole Bros. Circus says that Rincon enjoys the stunts, especially after being rescued from the mean streets of Brazil. Poor Rincon - we thought we had it bad.
You can see some footage of Cole Bros. Amazing Housecats, but Gothamist would stress that you should not do these tricks at home with your own cats. You can see the circus, if it's not thrown at in Brooklyn and Staten Island this month.
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Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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