The weather has finally started warming up yet there are still a few mounds of snow around as painful reminders of the Blizzards of February 2010!! The inside/outside kitties are getting restless with all the time indoors so I let them out to burn off some energy when I come home from work. Just like with children, I start calling them to round them up about an hour before they need to come back in and I go to bed.
Around 10:00 last night I made my first call out on the front porch. I could see two cat silhouettes racing around each other. Hmm, looks like something's up. Then, Oliver struts up the sidewalk and starts prancing up the front porch steps trilling away with a little mouse in his mouth. Oh no, I say, keep that little mousey down there. Oliver dutifully marches back down the steps and drops the little mouse. Little mouse then scampers off into the undergrowth. Oliver watches it for a few seconds then starts after it again. Well, that's enough excitement for me, I think to myself as I go back inside.
It's 11:00 and I'm all ready for bed. I look out the storm door onto the front porch and see Oliver sitting there looking pleased as punch and ready to come in. Next to him is the little mousey, now deceased. Oh, thanks very much Oliver. I open the door and Oliver starts coming in, stops, turns and picks up the mouse. I'm sorry Oliver, mousey stays outside. I'm not sure if it was my tone or not, but Oliver again drops the mouse and races inside. I then call Tobey and he runs up the porch steps, stops dead in his tracks and slowly walks up to the mouse. He sniffs it and looks up at me expectantly. I shake my head, no Tobey, mousey stays outside. Tobey then saunters inside while I say a little prayer for said mousey then close up for the night and go to bed.
4 comments:
First..every time I come to your blog I am cheered by the marvelous photo at the top...don't ever change it, please.
Second... I really hate it when my cats bring me gifts, don't you? They are never things I would have chosen for myself.......
Third, why didn't you save the poor mousie or would that just have postponed the inevitable?
Hi Lo. Thanks for the kinds comments on the photo of my porch! Yes, I really do hate their little presents and me, being a lover of all animals gets quite conflicted when one of my cats catches a mouse. They are so gosh darn cute! Honestly, I have thought of keeping them as pets. I then thought better and felt it would probably be torture to the poor mouse to be trapped in their cage with cats watching their every move!
But, I'm having a minor mice infestation lately. I caught two inside during the blizzards (well, the cats did actually). I can hear one in the wall of my tv room and I know "somebody" is hanging out under my sink as the cats stake it out every night. I won't use poison and I've tried humane traps but I haven't gotten one yet. I'm hoping if the cats can catch a few outside near the house it will be a deterrant to others to stay away. Obviously, they have no problem living in a house with cats, so that theory is shot.
I guess I should be thankful they are not rats as one of my neighbors had a few years ago!
This is a tough one--cats are natural predators. And, while I think mice are cute, not sure having them inside is what you want.
So your cats catching mice is a good thing. But, no, you don't need a gift of a deceased mouse.
We are divided on this one at our house - I know that it is natural and don't hold it against any kitties who go after them, but my first thought is still eeeeewww. The cats, on the other hand, are cheerinf for their kitty "brother" because he got to get a real live mouse (they are all indoor cats so they are always impressed with this kind of stuff).
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