Is your cat a hunter?
Discussion
Our Feline, Mac, is a bit of a hunter, mind you, we do live in the Cambrian Mountains of Wales, so there's plenty of wildlife about.
I never thought I'd see him drag in a tree rat though!
He's either mad, or brave, as the grey's have a cracking set of claws & teeth. The next day he dragged in a magpie and today a ten inch rat (excl tail). The cat knows his vermin!
Thankfully Mrs C doesn't mind him crunching through bones and flesh inside...lol.
I never thought I'd see him drag in a tree rat though!
He's either mad, or brave, as the grey's have a cracking set of claws & teeth. The next day he dragged in a magpie and today a ten inch rat (excl tail). The cat knows his vermin!
Thankfully Mrs C doesn't mind him crunching through bones and flesh inside...lol.
One of ours is very predatory, the other two not so much. We sometimes get rodents in the sheds. I can always tell, because she starts loitering outside the door. She was doing it last week, so I left the door open for her. An hour later she'd got something, which I guess must have been a mouse because she ate it and left no evidence. She usually just kills rats.
They get the very occasional bird, which is annoying, plenty of voles, which is what voles are for, and rather more slow worms than I would like.
They get the very occasional bird, which is annoying, plenty of voles, which is what voles are for, and rather more slow worms than I would like.
Both (Enzo and Shelby) seem to be very efficient hunters.. And butchers too, they're not fans of eating face or livers, so we tend to find masks and perfectly butchered offal on the patio..
We've had every type of mouse, vole and shrew that you could imagine, birds a plenty (of varying size, from sparrow to pigeon) and, bizarrely, a mole..
There's a good population of grey squirrels in the woods behind the house, so I'm waiting to see whether Shelby gets brave enough to take one down..
We've had every type of mouse, vole and shrew that you could imagine, birds a plenty (of varying size, from sparrow to pigeon) and, bizarrely, a mole..
There's a good population of grey squirrels in the woods behind the house, so I'm waiting to see whether Shelby gets brave enough to take one down..
Jake, our ginger stray we homed is very much a hunter. He's made friends with the farmer down the road as he clears their barns of rats. Recently he left us a squirrel on the front door mat. He's had a go at a group of male pheasants who ganged up on him. The other day I had to laugh as he was trying his luck with about 30 (Sea)Gulls landing on the front lawn. Today he brought home a large mouse which he ate completely.
Roland our other ginger used to hunt, he likes pigeons. He eats pretty much all of them, only leaving the gizzard and parts of the wing where the feathers join.
Roland our other ginger used to hunt, he likes pigeons. He eats pretty much all of them, only leaving the gizzard and parts of the wing where the feathers join.
Raoul Duke said:
Only a bit of newspaper tied onto an old shoelace!
He's obsessed with playing with that, but as for anything with a pulse not so much - watched him make a complete failure of trying to catch a moth once and was embarrased for him...
Not to worry, a friend's cats let the mice run around and just watch them. Actually, they watch the dog chase them. Once the cat was on the floor stretched out and the mouse ran straight over it's front paws and it still just watched it go... With the dog in hot pursuit........ So your cat is a real beast in comparison!He's obsessed with playing with that, but as for anything with a pulse not so much - watched him make a complete failure of trying to catch a moth once and was embarrased for him...
edc said:
In the late Spring/Summer my cat Ryu catches and half eats what looks to be little lizards. I didn't even know these creatures were around here as we live in the temperate wilds of the Surrey-Hampshire boundary!
Yep, Horatio loves those, but he only wants the tail to play with. Always leaves the lizard alive. As far as squirrels go Hora is in his mid 20's for the year, along with magpies, pigeons, rats, mice and voles. He has taken to just bringing in part of the squirrel now. He has also now started following the older cats example and being proactively territorial with foxes.
FTC (the older cat) has been fighting with them for ages and this year Hora has graduated to that as well. Hora was 8 months old and a ball off fluff when he brought his first kill home, a magpie, and now that he is 3, almost fully grown and has got big he is turning into a bit of a semi-feral Greebo type.
ETA -
sorry trickywoo but stoats is mightily impressive. People might think squirrelly are fierce but stoats are a different level again. Edited by omgus on Wednesday 25th January 16:22
Neither of them.
My 1st view of Alan was him chasing a squirrel with no hope of catching it. And he chased it right past a group of frogs. Given he'd not eaten for days, you'd think he'd go for the frogs 1st. Since we've taken him in he's not presented us with any kills.
Scraggy can't even be bothered to go outside to pee. Never mind chase something!
My 1st view of Alan was him chasing a squirrel with no hope of catching it. And he chased it right past a group of frogs. Given he'd not eaten for days, you'd think he'd go for the frogs 1st. Since we've taken him in he's not presented us with any kills.
Scraggy can't even be bothered to go outside to pee. Never mind chase something!
Mr Jasper often grabs small birds and brings them in to show them off. Once dispatched he eats the whole lot.
He manages to catch a few mice too. Plays with them before devouring the entire lot in one go.
He has been eyeing up next doors chickens, but I reckon they will put up a good fight befoer submitting.
He always eats his prey...............then snuggles up and wants to wipe his chops on your face as a sign of endearment.
He manages to catch a few mice too. Plays with them before devouring the entire lot in one go.
He has been eyeing up next doors chickens, but I reckon they will put up a good fight befoer submitting.
He always eats his prey...............then snuggles up and wants to wipe his chops on your face as a sign of endearment.
Henry, a Maine Coon, is. His particular favourite technique is to bring things in whilst I'm on telecons and he knows I can do nothing about it. He then drops whatever the thing is in the dining room, chases it a bit, then eats it and as a special present leaves some random body part or internal organ for me to step on later.
He has brought home rabbits, squirrels, birds, the usual assortment of various rodents including a rat which he let go and then couldn't catch because it disappeared under the kitchen units. The best was probably the time he came in carrying a snake.
He is curiously scared of other cats despite being nearly twice the size of any other cats around here and yet during the summer was observed taking a swipe at a fox that got a bit to close to comfort to him.
He has brought home rabbits, squirrels, birds, the usual assortment of various rodents including a rat which he let go and then couldn't catch because it disappeared under the kitchen units. The best was probably the time he came in carrying a snake.
He is curiously scared of other cats despite being nearly twice the size of any other cats around here and yet during the summer was observed taking a swipe at a fox that got a bit to close to comfort to him.
My Spider is only little. But she manages Mice and Voles from the fields. She likes to line them up outside, often in size order, three or four at a time.
Occasionally they'll be a bird thrown in for variety. I once stood on a mangled Blue Tit on the lounge rug, in the dark, at 3am Very rarely she brings a live vole or small rodent in, either via the barn roof and open bathroom window. Or French doors in to the dining room. Then watches, laughing sarcastically, as I try to catch it.
I've got mice in my barn at the moment. I've caught ten this week. She's caught maybe another five. I laughed.
Occasionally they'll be a bird thrown in for variety. I once stood on a mangled Blue Tit on the lounge rug, in the dark, at 3am Very rarely she brings a live vole or small rodent in, either via the barn roof and open bathroom window. Or French doors in to the dining room. Then watches, laughing sarcastically, as I try to catch it.
I've got mice in my barn at the moment. I've caught ten this week. She's caught maybe another five. I laughed.
GnuBee said:
He is curiously scared of other cats despite being nearly twice the size of any other cats around here and yet during the summer was observed taking a swipe at a fox that got a bit to close to comfort to him.
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