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A pair of scrub jays in my backyard have been very vocal lately. They actually drove off a neighbor's cat that likes to sleep on our back porch cat tree.
So I wasn't that surprised when I went out into the backyard the other day with our indoor/outdoor cat Beatrice and saw a baby scrub jay perched awkwardly on a bush, flapping its wings and not getting anywhere. As soon as I saw him I grabbed her and brought her back in. She hasn't been allowed outside unsupervised since.
A friend of ours has a cat that's allowed to roam freely and often brings home prey. So far it's been a baby gopher, bats, hummingbirds, mice, California giant salamanders and (sadly) a baby rabbit. We'd rather not let our cats do that.
A pair of scrub jays in my backyard have been very vocal lately. They actually drove off a neighbor's cat that likes to sleep on our back porch cat tree.
So I wasn't that surprised when I went out into the backyard the other day with our indoor/outdoor cat Beatrice and saw a baby scrub jay perched awkwardly on a bush, flapping its wings and not getting anywhere. As soon as I saw him I grabbed her and brought her back in. She hasn't been allowed outside unsupervised since.
A friend of ours has a cat that's allowed to roam freely and often brings home prey. So far it's been a baby gopher, bats, hummingbirds, mice, California giant salamanders and (sadly) a baby rabbit. We'd rather not let our cats do that.
Those "cute" baby rabbits grow to be big rabbits and are dang destructive. They've dug under my garden fence in several areas, eat my vegetables, eat my flowers, eat my plants. My dog keeps snuffling around the garden...I suspect there is a nest in the corner where the raspberry canes are. Not too happy about that. Eliminating mice is DEFINITELY not a bad thing! That's a very good thing!
My cats are inside cats, so they have to be content hunting any bugs that get inside.
Those "cute" baby rabbits grow to be big rabbits and are dang destructive.
Oh, I know. We don't kill anything, though. Not mice, squirrels, snails, spiders... I understand some people think all those creatures deserve killing but we think it's not our job to decide what lives and what dies.
Oh, I know. We don't kill anything, though. Not mice, squirrels, snails, spiders... I understand some people think all those creatures deserve killing but we think it's not our job to decide what lives and what dies.
I kill any mouse that gets into my house. In the fall I will put bucket traps around the outer perimeter for mice. Any spider that stays outside is fine....but if it crosses into the interior of my home, it's fair game for whoever sees it first....me or the cats. And I'm at war with ants....ant hills in my yard, ant hills by my sidewalk, ant hills in my driveway....lots of diatomaceous earth and some sugar/borax bait has helped a LOT.
Location: Los Angeles>Little Rock>Houston>Little Rock
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Quote:
Originally Posted by fluffythewondercat
Oh, I know. We don't kill anything, though. Not mice, squirrels, snails, spiders... I understand some people think all those creatures deserve killing but we think it's not our job to decide what lives and what dies.
Cats like to get a little sunshine and fresh air especially in the warm days of summer so if at all possible you might want to build a enclosure for them.
The other night at the shop, when Mama Cat came to eat her nightly meal, a bird flew down and started making a hell of a racket. It kept working it's way closer to Mama and she retreated under my car for safety. I put her food inside the shop and she was able to eat in peace.
The next night, she came running up the parking lot and a flock of birds were flying close to her and she was very afraid. My Son chased them off but Mama was still really spooked. Tonight I didn't see any birds, so maybe the nesting season is over.
I've never seen birds so aggressive toward a cat, they were obviously really mad at her for something. I guess they were protecting their nest. We have had residents at our apartment complex divebombed lately too. If it keeps up I am going to break out the BB gun at the shop and solve the problem of them bothering Mama.
It's also baby chipmunk season, and it's a bumper crop this year. The cats are huddled around the home-entertainment system (aka glass doors overlooking the patio) from sunrise to sunset as the little stripey things speed back and forth beneath the bird feeders. It's all quite a sight!
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