calling all ***** lovers

[Anonymous]

 

[Hudson Carpentry]

Air riffle , Traps, poison. I would try anything I could before getting a cat as I hate cats with deep hatefulness.

 

[bugbear]

Any cat that's an effective mouse killer is probably going to decimate (or worse) your song bird population too.

BugBear

 

[Racers]

Hi,

Our cat catches mice although he gets fed, its instinct.
But if he was better at catching them there wouldn't be any to catch.
So there must be a balance between a good hunter and a starving one, unless its crash and boom for cats and mice.
We still get birds but the squirrels don't come round any more.

Pete

 

[RogerS]

Oh...wrong sort of *****

 

[marcros]

Avoid tigers. We had one, made a right mess of the house, and became aggressive when we entered the room

 

[Pvt_Ryan]

I love ***** but I hate Cats. .




*gets coat*

 

[Dibs-h]

Oh...wrong sort of *****

I'm with stupid. :mrgreen:

 

[Digit]

I take it that you mean the house Andy?
Mice enter our homes for one reason, food! Remove that source and they will depart.

Roy.

 

[barkwindjammer]

I take it that you mean the house Andy?
Mice enter our homes for one reason, food! Remove that source and they will depart.

Roy.

And a warm dry nest site
and nesting material

 

[Harbo]

I get mice in my workshop - definitely no food there!

Rod

 

[Digit]

Shelter yes, but without a nearby food source the shelter is pointless...

http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&source ... Yw&cad=rja

... and to be honest i doubt a cat would make that much difference if three Jack Russels can't handle 'em!

Roy.

 

[powertools]

Just bear in mind that a lot of cats will bring live mice, birds and voles ect into the house and let them go and cause a problem that you are trying to solve.

 

[Digit]

Yeah! Usually with a smug, 'Look what I've done' expression!

Roy.

 

[gus3049]

Any cat that's an effective mouse killer is probably going to decimate (or worse) your song bird population too.

BugBear

This of course, is unproven and out here in France, demonstrably not true. In our village many of the locals have changed from dogs to cats (mostly because of the noise the dogs make and the cr.p all over the place :lol: ) and they are everywhere you look. The air is full of birdsong, the birds are everywhere you look too and spring is full of nests and young birds. Most of the songbird populations are on the increase. We are seeing more an more examples of rarer visitors too. In our area, hedgerows are being replanted after years of doing it the American way, pesticide use is being reduced and so we are reviving the birds' natural habitat. I'm sure the changing environment is having an effect too.

Of course cats will catch birds. As with everything the survival of the fittest tends to weed out the lesser examples. We have four cats now. The best mouser keeps the house free although we rarely see any evidence these days and he brings in the occasional bird. If every cat round here managed one or two a day I would be amazed. That wouldn't begin to affect the population.

However, I would agree that the reason for mice being there is the availability of food. We keep our chicken food secure and everything foodwise is either in secure glass jars or cupboards with strong closers on. We expect rhodents out here but they don't bother us in the house. We keep traps in the greenhouse and we get the occasional body.

I wouldn't try and introduce a cat into your mix of bodies :shock:

Yeah! Usually with a smug, 'Look what I've done' expression!
Roy.

Yes of course. They are trying to share with you so you know they appreciate the fact that you give them shelter and a bit of love - Mr HC :lol:

 

[Digit]

We keep our chicken food secure and everything foodwise is either in secure glass jars or cupboards with strong closers on.

That what we now do, had no problem since.

Roy.

 

[Jonzjob]

Mouse traps and pioson are the way to go, but as has been said, they are after food and if you stop the reason then you will stop the infestation.

As for cats, not for me ta. Dog crip you can see, crat cap is usually hidden and you find it at the most inapropriate times #-o #-o Just a huge shame that a lot of dog and no cat owners ever clean up after their pets as we do!

Sorry Gordon, I wouldn't harm cats, but I just don't like them as you know!

 

[Mark A]

I like the double entendre!

Our cat was lazy and spent most of the time asleep in the airing cupboard and so was useless at hunting, apart from a vole it caught and ate on the front step. My sister's cat is still really a kitten, yet catches rabbits, mice, rats, birds etc all the time. And a wood pigeon!

I think the effectiveness of the cat as a mouse-catcher depends on the breed and its temperament, because if you get a bone idle puss like us then you'll be overrun with mice in no time!

 

[Paul Chapman]

We have lots of birds in our garden and our cat leaves them alone (probably because I give him a good telling off if he touches one!!). But he still goes after the mice. He used to bring the mice in but I made it clear to him that I didn't approve, so he eats them on the lawn now

Cheers :wink:

Paul

 

[Alf]

So wanting a moggy more to do a job than a pet what make do i need to look for? Will it try to eat our chickens and ducks that are in the garden? How do I ensure it doesn't run off and get splattered on our very busy road? Any tips on stopping the dogs ragging it limb from limb :?

You want one that comes from a mousing pedigree - you only find that out from asking about the mother. Some are just naturals and can't help but spend their time hunting; some couldn't catch a cold. Farm cats are an excellent source, if you want a hunter and don't mind that the darn thing probably won't speak to you from one end of the day to the other. If you want to avoid felix bringing in the fruits of its hunting, simply don't have a cat flap. If they can get in with the mouse/bird, they will - you've got to be taught how to hunt somehow, haven't you, you inept human? And that's their way of doing it.

Cats can learn the difference between "prey" they can eat, and "prey" that's actually part of the domestic scene - but it takes a while and often some biffs on the nose to get them to realise it. In my case, my parrots dole out the biffs themselves, and our cats have swiftly got the message.

Ensuring non-splattering on a road is, to some extent, in the lap of the gods. Personal experience shows that a genuinely all-the-time busy road is less dangerous than a road where one car may come by in a hour, but it's really luck. It helps if the cat you get is female and spayed - un-snipped toms are the worst for wandering furthest.

As to the dogs, get a cat that's been brought up with them; chances are it'll employ the biff on the nose tactic itself and keep them in line with one paw tie behind its back. Failing that, cats move a helluva lot faster...