My cat caught a mouse and she is beating the hell out of it!

[cedahlia]

I feel bad for the mouse, as kitty is just sadistically toying with it. I could easily catch it and save it, but should I just let her carry on with her fun?

If I capture it, it's going to have to wait til morning for me to drive it somewhere far away, and with all the snow outside it might freeze to death anyway. But I feel bad, damn it. Poor little guy...kitty has him cornered and she is thoroughly enjoying every minute of this.

What should I do?

[mopinko]

1. let her do her job.

isn't this why people have cats?
i have terriers, and they like to throw them around, and pretend they are still alive.

[MercutioATC]

4. Exactly. She's doing her job.

Don't discourage her.

[cedahlia]

20. I know she is

She's a very good girl! :-)

I'm just a big softee when it comes to animals...any animal. I genuinely feel bad for the little guy and feel guilty for not helping him out. But as I said, helping him out might wind up with him freezing to death anyway, so either way seems to be a loser.

Meanwhile, kitty has chased mousy into one of mommy's houseplants...

[bahrbearian]

10. Well toying with a mouse may seem cruel,, I perfer the quick kill

of a Rat, this Terrior killed 11 in one day out in the feild, with one big shake, then ate 9, before I could get to her to keep her from devoring them, she gets sick after a couple.

[mopinko]

14. alright!

good girl.
here are my 3 rats-

[bahrbearian]

19. So you have Rats too. Great dogs I'd like to see the pic though.

[mopinko]

36. you can't see the pic?

here's a link to the host-
http://community.webshots.com/album/120256731lXhYsk

some terrier lovers in this thread in pets-
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=243&topic_id=1544&mesg_id=1544

i always thought terriers were crazy things and didn't understand how people could own them. but i needed a mouser. now i'm hooked.

do you do the whole field trials and all that?

[MuseRider]

2. I always save them if I can.

I even have been known to grab a rat away from the cats out at the farm. I just can't stand it.

[cedahlia]

7. Do you think it will survive

if I take it and drop it off somewhere miles from here (so it doesn't find its way back inside the house)? I did this with a few we caught alive in the fall, but it wasn't below zero outside then. Do you think he'd have any chance for survival?

Well, the point may be moot anyway, as mousy hasn't made a move in several minutes (he's hiding behind the trash can...well, either hiding or dead.):( Kitty is patiently waiting...

[mopinko]

9. you're probably not doing them any favor.

they probably die of infected wounds anyway. cat's mouths are filthy. better to go quickly.

[bahrbearian]

12. They are very hardy creatures , and I'm sure they would be thankfull.

[MuseRider]

16. I don't know

they don't hibernate, my cat caught a rat just last week when it was in the teens outside. I was too late, I thought I had saved it by stopping the cat but it ran out of the horse stall right into another cat and BAM it was headless. They do have their little, warm homes I imagine but they don't seem to be hurt too much by the cold but I really don't know.

[mopinko]

8. i can't stand them.

they drive me crazy. and they do a lot of damage. i was squeamish for too long after i bought my house, and i am still trying to catch up.
i not only like to see them die, i have no problem popping them with a shoe.

[MuseRider]

18. I have to say that in my house

it is different. I HATE it but since we live in an area that is semi rural we get tons of mice and my husband traps them. I have also been known to do that but only when I see more than a few and I know we have been overrun. I hate it.

[bahrbearian]

3. Either send Lydia Pooch in or get a shoe box to put the mouse in.

in or get a shoe box to put the mouse in.

[mopinko]

6. is that your dog?

a rat terrier?

[bahrbearian]

13. Yes Rat Terriors.

[HeyManThatsCool]

5. Bring me Limbaugh & I'll beat the hell out of that

Dont take away kittys fun.
Unless he gets blood on the carpet.



Love your icon

[Moloch]

11. I think that's the natural order of things.

All things flow into each other.
'Tis the delecate balance of nature.

[mopinko]

15. yup, no life without death

just the way it is.

[Skip Intro]

17. Save the mouse. Please.

If you can prevent some pain and suffering tonight, why not do it?

I don't believe this thread.

[WindRavenX]

22. because it's part of nature

Nature isn't always free of pain- nor should it be. Cats eat mice- naturally.

[Skip Intro]

24. same if a pit bull is attacking the cat?

This isn't always.

The "well that's just the way it is" argument has always struck me as the lamest.


Would it disrupt nature to save that mouse from a horrible death?

And who's to say intervention by a clear-thinking human isn't just as natural?

[WindRavenX]

25. Pit bull analogy is false...

Do pit bulls naturally attack cats?

As to your question: Would it disrupt nature to save that mouse from a horrible death?


Actually, yes, it would disrupt nature. For whatever reason- strength of the cat's genes or weakness of the mouse's genes or both- that cat caught the mouse. The flow of genetic material would be tampered if the mouse was saved.

Your questions are based on emotions and not scientific or rational thoughts- nature is NOT pain free by design...I'm sorry, but thems the facts.

[pres2032]

26. i agree

that's how nature survives and thrives. The herbivores eat the plants, the carnivores eat the herbivores, the big carnivores eat the smaller carnivores. If that is messed up in any way, it can absolutely DESTROY an ecosystem.

[Skip Intro]

27. Well, not so fast

Do pit bulls naturally attack cats?

Yes, if given the chance, I believe they would, many of them would, anyway. Some dogs don't like cats - that's a reality if not a scientific fact, yes? Make it a German Shepard, whatever works for you.

You know as well as I do that it'd be a different situation if a dog had a cat cornered. We'd try to save the cat. Well, most of us would. I think.

As to your question: Would it disrupt nature to save that mouse from a horrible death?

Actually, yes, it would disrupt nature. For whatever reason- strength of the cat's genes or weakness of the mouse's genes or both- that cat caught the mouse. The flow of genetic material would be tampered if the mouse was saved.

That one mouse. Really?

Your questions are based on emotions and not scientific or rational thoughts- nature is NOT pain free by design...I'm sorry, but thems the facts.

Ok, emotion talking. Why set it aside? Why dismiss it out of hand? So what if its based in emotion? I can't imagine the comfort from scientific "certainty" could keep me warm as I watch that living thing - in fear, in panic - pain unbearable, as its torn apart.

Yet the universe collapses should that mouse be spared.

That one mouse.

Who knew?

[WindRavenX]

29. You still aren't understanding me...

Are pitt bulls natural predators of cats? No- that's why we intervene between a hypothetical encounter between the two. I argue that because said hypothetical encounter is unnatural by nature, any intervention to prevent injury to the dog OR cat is kosher.

Cats, however, are very natural predators of mice and that is why it is entirely right and natural for the cat to kill and consume that mouse; human intervention is unnatural.

After all, think about Mitochondria Eve- that was but one organism that was responsible for us all.
The reason I object to using emotion in this case is that it raises the question for other scenarios: are you going to stop frogs from munching on cute Dragonflies? Or perhaps are you going to stop, say, Jays or other birds that eat small mammals and insects? The pain those prey feel is the same as the mouses- it isn't fair or right to single out a mouse.

It may seem that I am a bit callious- but I do understand the desire to stop pain. That's an odd human trait, but from a naturalistic sense, you can't take pain and suffering from nature because that's a key part of evolution- avoiding pain, living, and passing your genes on.

[Skip Intro]

30. clearly some obstacles here

I don't think for a minute saving that mouse from that cat would have any ramifications other than to prevent a little misery. But I do have questions about what you are saying.

It seems to me a cat attacking a mouse is just a natural as a dog attacking a cat.

Dogs do attack cats - I've seen it lots of times, in my own home. It isn't natural? What else could it be?

What is natural changes, doesn't it?

To include human intervention? In a human setting, at least?

[WindRavenX]

31. I think I need to define "natural" here...

You said:
Dogs do attack cats - I've seen it lots of times, in my own home. It isn't natural? What else could it be?

As a result of human intervention it is perceived to be, but biologically speaking, cats and dogs were never "natural" enemies of each other- we've conditioned some breeds of dogs to be agressive towards cats and vice versa...
Bah. It's late. Ill carry on later.

[yardwork]

37. It's too late to save the mouse. Once the cat has its teeth or claws

in the animal, it will die of infection.

[mopinko]

35. defending my home and family is natural, too.

the amount of damage that rodents have done in and to my home is huge. they have also infected my pet birds with diseases, eaten my food, and wasted much, much time scrubbing up their piss and shit.
mice live less than a year. then they die. and often, they die lingering painful deaths. a few minutes with an efficient predator is a merciful way for a mouse to go.
they are my REAL enemy. i squash them, and i don't flinch. i dance.

[DS1]

21. Be liberal and give the mouse first-round draft pick next year

/head still in football

[richmwill]

23. Just let it be

Don't drive in zero-degree weather to save a freaking rodent! Insanity. What's next- you're not gonna smash the "cute little cockroaches" if they enter the house? Gonna put them all in a box and drive them 50 miles to the nearest sanctuary?

[Benhurst]

28. Yeah, it's just the natural order of things, like a mountain lion

killing a jogger who ventures into its territory.

[cedahlia]

32. update

Following my heart, I tried to save the mouse. I just can't stand to see any animal suffer, and the only reason I didn't act right away when she first brought him in the room was that nagging "let nature take its course" idea (which I am still torn about...it involves me witnessing suffering and not doing anything about it...I just can't agree with that.)

Anyway, I attempted to save the little guy, but as I attempted, he shot off way across the room, and I can't find him now. So it really wasn't as easy a catch as I thought it would be. Well, I guess nature may indeed "take its course" after I go to bed, if kitty finds him. (It's probably more like "when" she finds him.)

I think there's some deeper philosophical, ethical issues to ponder here, but I am frankly too deliriously tired to coherently do so. So I'll just say thanks to everyone for the advice, and goodnight!

[Freebird12004]

44. and now you'll be looking for mouse tracks

[MissMarple]

33. Was she purring?

Mine have done that. It is so weird.

:evilgrin:

[Jose Diablo]

34. Instinctive behavior of a 'mother' cat

We sometimes think of cats as having a somewhat human set of behaviors. The actions of a cat should dispell all such notions.

If you observe a 'house' cat when it is let outside, you can see it revert to it's natural set of instinctive behaviors. It becomes a predator of the finest order. Watch it in the garden, you will see what I mean as it stalks it's prey.

For example, sometimes a cat will kill a field mouse and bring it home. Some would say "ooh bad cat" and then throw the mouse away. What the cat did though was treat it's owner in the finest way, to it's way of thinking, the cat 'brought home the bacon'. It is no wonder pets can become what we would call psychotic, or at least confused. The cat should be complemented if it should bring food to its owner. It is an act of love to a cat.

What a cat is doing when it 'plays' with its food is behaving as a mother cat would do to train her kittens to be predators, like herself. Yes, it is 'mothers love' you are seeing.

[yardwork]

39. You mean the cat is trying to teach its humans how to hunt?

I never thought of that. It makes sense.

Cat: These stupid humans. Why aren't they paying attention?

[Skittles]

38. sick

it may be your cat's nature to do that but is it YOUR nature to WATCH IT? :puke:

[cedahlia]

47. actually it's not

in my nature at all to want to see any animal suffer...quite the contrary in fact. Please see my "Update" post above.

And as I said in another post, this really was a no win situation any way you looked at it. I did try to catch the mouse, and had I been successful, I would have had to release him someplace far away from the house, out into a foot of snow in zero degree weather. So he probably would have suffered til he froze to death had I been able to do that. We used humane live traps in our old apartment (which was before we had this kitty who is apparently an expert mouser) but we never caught and had to release one during a period of freezing cold weather. This was my dilemma...save the mouse and release him outside, or just "let nature take its course." If this happens again this winter, I still won't know what the best thing is to do. My first instinct is to save the mouse, but when I considered the eventual outcome of doing that (the freezing to death factor) that made me hesitant. I certainly didn't hesitate because I am a "sick" person who was enjoying the show. And I'm sad that anyone would take me as such.

[Squatch]

40. I'll put 5 bucks on the cat.

[blueknight]

41. people

i love you guys, BUT WE ARE TALKING ABOUT A DIRTY FUCKING MOUSE! they carry diseases and will infiltrate your house and take over it.

[Squatch]

42. Agreed. Go cat, go!

[Freebird12004]

43. a cats gotta do what a cats gotta do

don't watch

[noonwitch]

45. Take it from her and kill it yourself, put it out of it's misery

When my cat was a kitten, she got hold of one. She was too small to give it the final killing blow, but had tortured it badly. I grabbed in in a plastic bag and hit it hard with a broomstick. I considered it a mercy killing.

They're mice, if they make it into your house they have to die. You can try to trap and release them, but they keep coming back. If your cat won't kill them, you must.

[NoSunWithoutShadow]

46. Last year I caught a mouse in the basement and let it go outside

in the snow. In the spring I found three dead baby mice, starved to death. I felt horrible.

Now we have another mouse and I won't live trap it until the weather is warmer. Even if we have to trap four instead of one.

Then, we'll plug the two holes where I think they're getting in. Should have done this earlier.

[cedahlia]

48. Update 2

Well, it's morning and there's no mouse that I have been able to find. So it either found its way back into the walls (where it might die) or the cat ate it (which she has never done before...she always has just left them on the floor.) I still don't know what the best thing would have been for the mouse...death by cat or death by freezing outside, so I don't even know what I will do if this happens again. My husband is all for the "just let nature take its course thing" but he also once owned a snake he had to feed live mice to, which I just could not do. I personally don't ever want to be a witness to such "nature" again. So I think I'm going to have to start going to bed earlier, before kitty goes into hunter mode...ignorance is bliss, right? :eyes: