So, a cat has had fun.

dreamdaisy

I was chatting to a friend this morning when it began to rain feathers. The wall of our walled garden is formed by the back of a row of garages, topped in corrugated iron (pretty that is not but the wall's OK). It turns out that a cat has savaged a wood pigeon and left its corpse nicely out of reach of any human agency so, in a few days time, I guess the smell of rotting flesh will be sending out its loathsome signals to various beasties. :roll: The roof slopes towards us so hopefully the corpse will eventually roll into the gutter and I will be able to dispose of it (seeing as how said cat couldn't be bothered).

I dislike cats killing birds but accept it's nature (as is the arrogant and disdainful action of the cat). Why not drag its un-necessary kill back to its owners? I'll tell you why. It's a cat and they don't do effort (our old back lawn was testament to that). DD

stickywicket

Isn't nature wonderful

toady

Speaking as someone whose neighbours' cat brought me a mangled mouse a few days ago :? the whole unnecessary kill thing is supposedly (as I always was given to believe) a cat bringing 'food for its family', seeing as how it observes that you the human don't seem to be any good at hunting.

In my case I always presumed that it brought its presents here because it liked me better than its owners (which I have reason to believe it does) , but I was talking to someone the other day who said their cat always took its mice next door, from day 1. So I'm not so sure of the explanation there.

Maybe the cat has taken an instant shine to you. Isn't that nice..

hileena111

As the owner of a cat {have always had a cat}
I detest it as well
We have woods at he back of our garden and she is always in there chasing mice etc......she even went for a mole one time :shock: She's not a particularly big cat :roll:
What I hate is the way they play with them
If they would kill them for some good reason that wouldn't be so bad but to half kill them and then have me look out in the garden and she is playing with the terrified mouse :? That is awful.....I have rescued quite a few mice and chased them back to the wood and her the other way
Other times they are so close to being dead that Peter has to go out and finish the job off rather than let it suffer......Aint nature horrible. {in that respect}
Love
Hileena

dreamdaisy

It's what cats do so detesting or not is neither here nor there - it's the untidiness that gets me. Bell 'em for starters because that gives their prey the heads up and maybe a fighting chance of getting away. I know that they bring their prey to their owners possibly to 'feed' them in return for their luxury meals (this is what I eat so you can too) but this cat (and I reckon I know the culprit, a grey and white stripy effort who prowls along the gutter twice a day despite my best efforts with a water pistol) couldn't be bothered to shift the corpse. Playing with the prey? That's how they hone their hunting skills, it's part of their natural abilities. Us humans are far too soppy about such matters.

The corpse has shifted in the night, it's closer to 'the drop'. Time to find the Marigolds and the steps. DD

hileena111

Hi DD
Don't want to Bell ours....there have been a few cats round here that have got stuck in the trees by getting their collars caught on a branch :shock:

barbara12

Oh no..must say I am a cat lover but hate how they hunt, like you say its instinct..we have wood pigeons nesting in a tree...and watch the mother or father go for food..and eying them up are the 4 cats next door.. :roll:

stickywicket

hileena111 wrote:

Hi DD
Don't want to Bell ours....there have been a few cats round here that have got stuck in the trees by getting their collars caught on a branch :shock:

You can buy breakaway cat collars which do just that under stress.

dreamdaisy

Curiouser and curiouser - the corpse has disappeared. :? Saves me a job - hurrah! DD

bubbadog

Being a cat lover and having cats in our family from when I was born I've watched them deliver all sorts to our homes! I've always been brought up to believe they are supposed to be presents!! Willow brought her 1st gift back the other Saturday, it was a field mouse and it was alive! My OH managed to get it off her and set it free. I have to say Bubba was the most unbelievable hunter, he brought back your usual mice and birds but also brought back a bat and totally dismantled a wood pigeon in our kitchen and I mean parts where everywhere it was like he was doing an autopsy of the bird on the kitchen floor!
Some cats do eat their prey, Bubba did eat the mice because now and again he was sick and lets say it wasn't a pretty site!

stickywicket

dreamdaisy wrote:

Curiouser and curiouser - the corpse has disappeared. :? Saves me a job - hurrah! DD

It's Easter Resurrection time?

numptynora

@ sticky'

daffy2

It's Easter Resurrection time?

Or Last Supper?
I've often wondered if pigeons have more feathers than other birds, or if it's just because they're such lumping great things that the quantity of detritus seems to be so large and linger for so long. I once watched a peregrine dispatch a pigeon on the lawn, and the pile of feathers when it had finished seemed much larger than the original bird.

toady

stickywicket wrote:

It's Easter Resurrection time?

That's too brilliant for words, thank you

dreamdaisy

Oh Sticky and Daffy, what a pair of clots you are! I think the feather quantity is in direct relation to the size of the birds - wood pigeons are the B52s of the bird world, how the heck they manage to fly bewilders me.

Has anyone any experience of the 'sonic' animal scarers? I would be quite happy to keep rats, mice and cats at bay but do they actually work? And do they upset birds? I will go to a jungle river site and research. 8) DD

aralph

Hi,sonic scarers appear to work (not on foxes),I only used them in a loft to get rid of squirels (vandals) but it got rid of them!
Al

bubbadog

stickywicket wrote:

dreamdaisy wrote:

Curiouser and curiouser - the corpse has disappeared. :? Saves me a job - hurrah! DD

It's Easter Resurrection time?

Fantastic Sticky!! That made me laugh!!

Boomer13

I don't know anything about sonic scarers but I do know that my cats are terrified by human sneezing. A possible use for your allergies?

tkachev

I'd asked OH to get something to clear off the spiders but he bought a mice sonic scarer instead. As we never had mice in the first place I couldn't tell you if it worked.

Elizabeth

dreamdaisy

There are scarers that claim to deal with everything but opinions on their effectiveness vary. It's definitely mice in the roof space above our bedroom (I thought it was a bird nesting) but Mr DD stuck his head up there the other day and spotted mouse traps (empty) and droppings. Every attic space in the house has mouse traps - :shock: . The previous owner had a cat called Mouse but it didn't seem to be very effective at pest control - or maybe it was which is why the mice have moved back in. :roll:

I am re-thinking the cat-killing-the-wood-pigeon thing because of this: the corpse has reappeared. Earlier today it was being fought over by a seagull and a crow, Mr DD saw the crow beheading the corpse on Tuesday and apparently it's been returning to snack on the remains. It was in the gutter of the garages and the gull swooped, picked it up, was trying to fly away when the crow appeared from nowhere; there was much squawking and the body tumbled from the gull's grip into the flowerbed. It has disappeared under the foliage and I cannot retrieve it because the flowerbed is raised - I can't clamber up. Mr DD is happy to leave it there. :?

I wonder if the crow killed the pigeon? DD

frogmorton

Wow!!

What a saga!

Daisycat is a terrific hunter! As many as 4 a day sometimes live and also as large as a moorhen and a Magpie (still alive :? )

She can't have a bell because she has a 'magnetic' cat-flap :roll: I managed to get some from E*ay and they were made of...copper maybe? Look lovely but have 'ordinary' metal inside ::) typical

I suppose it is possible that the 'Murder' (read in Scottish accent please) was not committed by your neighbourhood feline.

Naughty pusscats.

In your shoes I would try the sonic thing if it's not toooooo expensive though as you don't have a cat yourselfhttp://www.cosgan.de/images/smilie/tiere/k040.gif

love

Toni xxx

stickywicket

dreamdaisy wrote:

The previous owner had a cat called Mouse but it didn't seem to be very effective at pest control

Perhaps it was called Mouse because it was timid

daffy2

Perhaps it was called Mouse because it was timid

Or because it kept bringing them in.