Cat's are killing everything!
Discussion
We recently adopted a couple of 1 year old female cats and in the last week they have been allowed out in the garden.
Each day when I get back from work it's looks like there has been a massacre in the house with bodies of various animals everywhere! Today on waking up there was a small dead bird, a dead vole and large live frog in the lounge. On returning from work there were 2 more dead voles, three dead birds and a dead mouse (this is a fairly typical hoard over the past week). Just prior to posting this thread one of the cats sauntered in with a mouse which I disposed of and within ten minutes and whilst I was writing this thread it re appeared with another mouse, which it then ate whole...
The cats are both black, so we have glow in the dark collars on them, they both have two bells each and they are very well fed. Initially I thought they just catch the animals to play with but now I see they are eating them it's hard to know how many they are killing a day.
Anyway of stopping this behaviour short of not letting them out of the house? Our old cat would only ever catch a bird every few weeks or so.
Each day when I get back from work it's looks like there has been a massacre in the house with bodies of various animals everywhere! Today on waking up there was a small dead bird, a dead vole and large live frog in the lounge. On returning from work there were 2 more dead voles, three dead birds and a dead mouse (this is a fairly typical hoard over the past week). Just prior to posting this thread one of the cats sauntered in with a mouse which I disposed of and within ten minutes and whilst I was writing this thread it re appeared with another mouse, which it then ate whole...
The cats are both black, so we have glow in the dark collars on them, they both have two bells each and they are very well fed. Initially I thought they just catch the animals to play with but now I see they are eating them it's hard to know how many they are killing a day.
Anyway of stopping this behaviour short of not letting them out of the house? Our old cat would only ever catch a bird every few weeks or so.
It's perfectly natural for cats to kill and eat small wild creatures. They've done it for millions of years and giving them a bowl of Kattoslop every day isn't going to change it. I don't think it's fair to try to change their behaviour, especially not by locking them up.
Personally I'd keep a tally with little silhouettes on the back door
Personally I'd keep a tally with little silhouettes on the back door
king hours i chased this little Simpo Two said:
Open a takeaway!
I think, though, that this is early days - new cats launched into Rodent Central and they won't keep this kind of haul up for long. The local population of rodents was clearly due for a cull!
These cats have moved from the town to the countryside, sadly I think it will be a long time before they deplete the rodent and bird population here.I think, though, that this is early days - new cats launched into Rodent Central and they won't keep this kind of haul up for long. The local population of rodents was clearly due for a cull!
They are presents. I often wake to a cat on my chest miaowing and a dead mouse. I then get dead mouse wrap in tissue and PRETEND to eat; so the cat doesn't feel bad.
The worst ones are when they put live or injured animals in your hands when you are asleep. Sadly I then have to finish of the poor injured ones
Recently we gave had rats, moles, squirrells and rabbits as well as pigeons voles and mice.
The worst ones are when they put live or injured animals in your hands when you are asleep. Sadly I then have to finish of the poor injured ones
Recently we gave had rats, moles, squirrells and rabbits as well as pigeons voles and mice.
s2sol said:
JD84 said:
I then get dead mouse wrap in tissue and PRETEND to eat; so the cat doesn't feel bad.
You have to be kidding, surely? Why not just thank the cat and say you're not hungry at the moment, but you'll keep it for later?Equally daft, but slightly less mental.
I have similar problems with my cat. I've often wondered if there is anything that could be done around the cat flap to stop them bringing their victims in.
Could you do it by weighing the cat on the way out and comparing it on the way back in? Or face recognition to see if it's got something in it's mouth perhaps? Hmm...
Sounds like there might be a market for such a device - A Dragons Den proposal perhaps?
Mine certainly doesn't treat his victims as presents for me - he eats almost all of the rabbits he catches but leaves a god awful mess on the landing carpet with the bits he doesn't like.
Could you do it by weighing the cat on the way out and comparing it on the way back in? Or face recognition to see if it's got something in it's mouth perhaps? Hmm...
Sounds like there might be a market for such a device - A Dragons Den proposal perhaps?
Mine certainly doesn't treat his victims as presents for me - he eats almost all of the rabbits he catches but leaves a god awful mess on the landing carpet with the bits he doesn't like.
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