We recently moved to a farm and took along three small dogs and a mama cat and her 3 kittens. My daughter ran in very upset and had found that one of the kittens had been killed. It was a very hard thing to see and it was badly mangled. I have a hard time thinking that a coyote came right up on the porch and only took the one kitten. Any ideas on what else might have done this??
2006-09-22 16:22:14 · 14 answers · asked by artie 1 in Pets ➔ Cats
Our shelter is located in the boondocks, and this sounds like an owl to me. If it tried to get the kitten, and got interrupted by the return of the mama cat or one of the dogs, it may have taken flight and had to leave it behind. There may even have been a struggle over it, which resulted in it being mangled. Owls are pretty rough with their prey.
Most anything else would have carried off the kitten to eat it instead of mangling it and leaving it behind, including coyotes, foxes or coons. They would have to be very desperate for food to get that close to your house, especially if you have dogs, so I vote for an owl.
We have enormous owls out here, and they've become very bold, including eating left-over dog food at night. We're very careful with our kittens and puppies because of them. They are wonderful birds, tho, it's just nature, so please don't hate them for being what they are.
I'm so sorry your little girl was the one to find the kitten. She will need lots of reassurance that there aren't "bad things" outside at night now. We use a lot of lights around our animal kennels to deter unwelcome visitors. This might help her a bit. The country is a great place to raise kids. Please don't take the one incident to heart. GOod luck to you.
2006-09-22 16:34:55 · answer #1 · answered by Charlotte M 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I kind of agree with your assessment of the incident. Coyotes are creatures of the night. Were the kittens out there after dark? And a predator that large would have eaten them all most likely, not simple killed one and left it for you to find.
Is it possible that one of your dogs could have done this? Since it was right on your porch? It wouldn't even have been terribly malicious of a dog if it was sort of "experimenting" with a kitten and hadn't been exposed to them before. A raccoon might kill a small kitten and I don't think that is likely. I'm not sure what they have as prey. Usually if raccoons are around a house it is because people feed them They come around at night too. I honestly can't think of any other predator that would come so close to the house, kill and not consume one small kitten and leave the others.
I had not thought of an owl (not a country person here). Maybe Charlotte is right.
2006-09-23 00:35:06 · answer #2 · answered by old cat lady 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A dog! Honestly I've seen some kittens/cats get pretty mangled up by dogs. Or it could have came across an opossum, raccoon, or something along them lines. Kittens are pretty small and fragile. I wouldn't be surprised though if it was maybe a stray dog out running in the country!
2006-09-22 23:25:10 · answer #3 · answered by nameizmel 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There are dozens of animals that may have done this. However, most predators would have taken the kitten and eaten it. Since the attacker left the kitten behind, my guess is that the culprit is another male cat. Male cats will kill kittens that they haven't fathered to make a female cat go into heat sooner. You have probably moved into a tom cat's territory, and he is interested in mating with your female. She won't go into heat while she is nursing, so he's getting rid of the kittens. You should consider keeping your cats indoors to protect them not only from ferrel cats but foxes, raccoons, owls, and other wild animals that might attack them.
2006-09-22 23:33:10 · answer #4 · answered by melissahalvorsen 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
To be on your porch it was likely a racoon possibly a weasel if their in your area. Like someone else said most predators would carry it away. In barns rats will kill kittens too. Don't leave food out at night to keep racoons and oppossums from coming to eat. Even a porch light won't keep them out of an easy meal.
2006-09-22 23:40:39 · answer #5 · answered by emily 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If it was a small kitten, it might have been a dog, a racoon or any medium sized wild animal that might hang around a farm.
2006-09-22 23:26:54 · answer #6 · answered by kids and cats 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
the coyote would have taken the kitten not left it there
foxes eat cats but again it would have taken the kitten
out in the country there are so many animals that could do this
we would all be guessing all night
it would help if we knew what state you were in
2006-09-23 02:53:54 · answer #7 · answered by Loollea 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
One time the male cat killed one of my kittens on our farm. It didn't eat it but it tore him up.
Racoons have fun doin that too depending on where ya live is the type of animal.
2006-09-23 00:52:01 · answer #8 · answered by redneckgirl 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
anything with claws that doesnt eat meat normally....probs a racoon or if you have any mean natured animals near by (like hippos, but of course you have no hippos) or it could be one of the dogs started playing too rough with the kitten and it might have fallen...ask where your daughter found the late kitten...poor thing (=^<
2006-09-22 23:38:38 · answer #9 · answered by michelle 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Fox, Raccoon, Another Male cat. I've even heard of Hawks picking them off, but they don't usually leave them behind.
2006-09-22 23:26:25 · answer #10 · answered by Jennifer R 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋