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  • From: list@ginda.us
  • To: North American Fruit Explorers <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [NAFEX] hungry voles and tasty trees and maurauding domestic cats
  • Date: Fri, 06 May 2005 18:40:10 -0400


On May 6, 2005, at 2:33 PM, Pat Meadows wrote:

On Fri, 06 May 2005 12:53:26 -0400, you wrote:


Hi,

Just the circle of life.

I have never seen a cat catch a bird, as in the countryside, birds are
much too wary when on the ground to be caught.

I have. We live in the country. Our cat *very
occasionally* catches a bird. Again, I wouldn't know this
except that she brings all her catches to the front porch.

. ..

My cats are very well fed, but two of the three are good hunters and since I've had them I've been able to harvest currants and even the occasional strawberry. One of the girls likes to catch things that fly. We had to remove some birdfeeders (too many gifts of goldfinches) and now she mostly hunts butterflies, although I've seen her take small mammals and snakes, as well. Baby rabbits are a particular favorite. The boy seems to exclusively hunt mammals. For a while he was killing two chipmunks a day. He also kills squirrels, and I've seen him chase a groundhog. (He might have been afraid to actually grapple with it.) But he never eats his prey. It's actually pretty funny, because hunting makes him hungry. So he'll kill a fat squirrel, drag it home, and meow loudly at the door to be allowed in - whereupon he promptly bolts down catfood. The other girl mostly hunts leaves and feathers.

If you want a cat to hunt varmints, it's probably best to get one whose mother is a good hunter of whatever you have too much of. Cats learn to hunt from their mother, as well as from experience. I don't think you need to keep them hungry, although I certainly know cats who prefer to eat their prey rather than cat food - they may not require much supplemental feeding.

Ginda





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