my cats keep catching birds and mice...?

Question

ok, so a common problem, but my 2 cats keep catching mice, birds, and occasionally frogs, dead or alive into the house and garden.
how can i discourage this???


oh, and because their are 2 i generally dont know who has caught it...i sometimes try to take away their food or treat them badly, but i dont know which cta has caught it and at what time of the day-i could be punsihing them for something they did last night, in which case they wont work out what they are doing wrong.

please help! thanks x

ok, first i dont mistreat my cats!
i am a vegetarian, and thats why i really dont like seeing the dead mice etc cos it makes me sad.
i do NOT need to leanr more about cats, i have had cats ariund me all of my life. I KNOW its natural, PLEASE do not be so patronising.
thanks for the ideas about the bell on the collar, they already have this, but hey.

i realise they will hunt if i take their food away, but they never ever ever eat the creatures. esp not frogs cos cats dont like the taste.

i certainly do not hit my cats, i just mean i would just stroke them a bit rather than giving them a big hug and fuss when i get in.

i just was hoping for a way to minimise the amount the catch.

and no, im not keeping them in all summer thast just cruel. which im NOT

ok dont mean to be ratty, but this is so not what i was hoping for.

thanks for the ideas about taking the animal outside.

Answer 1

Your cats are being cats. Period. it's in their genetics, it;'s instinct. Cats are predators. They hunt. it's what they do.

taking away their food is not only cruel but is also counter-productive... if they're hungery what do you think they're going to do? hunt!

Punishment after the fact is pointless since the cat won't assosciate the punishment with the behaviour, similarly punishing when it could have been the other cat is simply being mean to your cats.

You can't stop them hunting, if they bring stuff into the house just calmly remove the animal, throw it away if dead, release it if alive. if you catch a cat 'in the act' just take cat and prey outside and firmly say no. don't punish the cat for hunting, but don't allow the cat back in with it's prey. in time they'll learn to leave stuff outside.

Answer 2

It's a cats nature to hunt and he's providing for his family! It's a gift.
Chastising a cat if it has hunted will not stop it from doing it again as a cat will not recognise the punishment as relating to the fact it has caught an animal. In a cats mind returning with its kill is a way of bringing back a present. Remove the kill and distract the cat with a toy.
You can also minimise it's ability to hunt, such as keeping them in at crucial times i.e. dawn or dusk.
Neutering can also diminish the cats desire to hunt (but this hasn't worked in the case of my cat!)
My friend (a vet) has mentioned ultrasonic cat collars which omit a high pitched sound to deter the cat when it's prowling.
Not sure if they are on sale yet over here but she got a hold of one from an American site.

Answer 3

I dont really like cats and wouldn't want any mice, birds etc myself,

BUT

I dont think you can punish the cats. They are just doing their ' natural' thing, they cant help it, they dont have the thought processes to think
'ok ive given them a present, now i've got no food, so i wont do that again'

I'd agree with an earlier answerer - use a collar with a bell to warn the prey they're on the way!

Answer 4

They most likely won't realize what they're being punished for, no matter what time of day they caught it.

Cats are hunters by nature, however, because they are fed regularly they have no need to eat the prey. Instead, they bring it to their humans as a gift. Your cats are trying to show their love and appreciation for you by bring you their prey, much in the same way a mother cat would bring food to her babies.

So, essentially, you've been punishing them for doing something nice for you.

The best way, I've found, is to ignore their offerings. Eventually they'll stop. But by showing any sort of attention or acknowledment you are encouraging them, even by your negative attention. It just pushes them to find better gifts!

Answer 5

Cats will always hunt. You really can't stop them. Some cats are great hunters while others stink out loud. You should in courage your cats to keep hunting, not punish them. If they are females that have been fixed, then they are treating you as their own kittens. They want to teach you how to hunt and eat the prey. My one female does this a lot, but I kept throwing her prey outside. She doesn't bring too many things into the house now.

Answer 6

They're doing what cats do! My kitty is indoors only, and she still leaves me "prey." She takes her toy mice and places them on my bed for me almost daily. Don't punish them - they're just trying to show you that they love you! Give them bell collars so it will be harder for them to catch things...other than that, I really don't think there is much you can do...

Also, to keep the "gifts" out of the house, keep the doors and windows shut so they have to be let in instead of coming and going on their own. That might help a little...I know I wouldn't want dead critters on my floor!

Answer 7

Firstly, don't punish your cats for natural behavior, they are only acting on instict. Taking away their food would only encourage them to hunt more because they are hungry.

Invest in collars with a dangling bell on them, at least the critters will have a warning before they pounce.

Answer 8

You shouldn't punish an animal by taking away its food or treating it badly. (I hope you don't hit them)

It is in a cat's nature to catch creatures and sometimes kill them. Make life more interesting for them, by having cat toys, tunnels for them to go through, catnip growing (in pots, so you can take them indoors, or you'll get ALL the local cats around) in the garden. Also things for them to climb on.

You need to learn more about cats.

Answer 9

First things first, cats catch animals and take them alive usually as presents to there owner.
Its in the cats nature to hunt, trying to stop them from doing this is like trying to stop yourself from eating, having sex, staying alive and all that is instictive about you, so you should not treat them badly as you said for doing this, they cant help who they are. You are just gonna have to accept that you have a hunting pair of pu55ys to contend with.

Answer 10

You can't stop a cat being a cat...
It is really irracional to treat them badly or starve them because they don't know they are doing anything wrong.
They are giving you a gift.
The only thing you could do is either put a bell on their collar or just learn to deal with it.