Weekly News Comment

The puppies of the ocean are getting sick. In the article, “What’s Killing California’s Sea Otters? House Cats,” from the New York Times, states, “toxoplasma infections contribute to the deaths of 8 percent of otters that are found dead, and is the primary cause of death in 3 percent.” Toxoplasma can most commonly be found in feline poop. Scientist in this article discussed how one way to help the sea otters would be to keep your cats indoors and do not flush your cats poop down the toilet. However, house cats can not only be blame. Toxoplasma can be found in all feline poop including mountain lines and bob cats. I am a huge fan of nature and love all wildlife. I have had personal exepeinces with otters. A small river otter came up to my canoe and began tapping on the side in a playful way. These adorable, fun loving, and outgoing creatures need all the help they can get to stay healthy. There are simple things the scientists in this article said we can do to help. Even if the disease doesn’t fully kill them we are. Symptoms of toxoplasma also can make the sea otters sluggish and they then cannot move out of the way for boats. Once again we are hurting these cute creatures. We cannot blame the house cats for the decline in sea otters when we are the root of the problem.

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1 Response to Weekly News Comment

  1. crstaff says:

    This is OK on summary, Anna. When it comes to commenting on the article, keep your focus on the news elements. For now that would be objectivity, news values, and possibly audience. You might ask yourself: who is the audience, and what will be of value in this article? Why is this story relevant outside of California?

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