 |
 | Home | Contact Us | FAQ | Search & Site Map | Link to Us |
 | Sign In | Join | Other 45 Sites in Network |
| HomeDiscussion GroupsGeneral TopicsCat AnecdotesHealth and BehaviorRescue CatKB.com Contact UsLink To UsSearch & Site Map |
Cat Forum / Cat Anecdotes / May 2007Mowsie in the howsie
Hmmm. My ploy of leaving the back door open to let Boyfriend's latest "gift" escape obviously didn't work. I was in the house most of the day yesterday as it threw it down raing from morning until.. (well, it's still raining now) and was sitting in my armchair reading a really nice book when I heard a *noise* in the pile of logs next to my woodburner. A scratching noise, in fact, the unmistakable sound of a mouse in the house. Oh, great! Boyfie was snoozing right next me to on his donut bed (it was raining after all, don't forget) but the noise woke him up and he sprang across the room to do a bit of threatening presence and hard staring. It went on all the rest of the day. Boyfie would occasionally move to another part of the room, get behind the furniture and stare a bit more. Just to show me he was really trying, given that it's his fault in the first place ;-) I dug out from the depths of a cupboard this wonderful catch-alive mouse trap I have. It's a wooden box with cunningly contrived entrances that let the mouse in but not out, baited it with a few sunflower hearts from my wild bird seed, put it behind an armchair right against the wall and went to bed. Success! The mouse was in the trap when I got up. I released it 50 yards down my garden. It can get a living down there, plenty of poultry food around. Tweed > Hmmm. My ploy of leaving the back door open to let Boyfriend's > latest "gift" escape obviously didn't work. [quoted text clipped - 23 lines] > > Tweed Glad you caught the mouse and gave him another chance. I'll have to get another sack of sunflower hearts next week, the goldfinches love them.  SignatureAdrian (Owned by Snoopy and Bagheera) Cats leave pawprints on your heart. http://community.webshots.com/user/clowderuk >> Hmmm. My ploy of leaving the back door open to let Boyfriend's >> latest "gift" escape obviously didn't work. [quoted text clipped - 26 lines] >Glad you caught the mouse and gave him another chance. I'll have to get >another sack of sunflower hearts next week, the goldfinches love them. I am jealous that you have goldfinches. We have a lot of great birds here that surprise a lot of people in the big city, but I've got to get up and go to a wooded or open area to see goldfinches. Theresa Stinky Pictures: http://community.webshots.com/album/125591586JWEFwh Make Levees, Not War >>> Hmmm. My ploy of leaving the back door open to let Boyfriend's >>> latest "gift" escape obviously didn't work. [quoted text clipped - 31 lines] > here that surprise a lot of people in the big city, but I've got to > get up and go to a wooded or open area to see goldfinches. Until the apartment manager had the small tree in the corner of my patio cut down, I had a place to hang the thistle feeder and saw goldfinches all the time. If I get a few extra bucks I need to buy another shepherd's hook so I can hang the thistle feeder again. Jill "Kreisleriana" <kreisleriana2@yahoo.com> wrote in message kq41sba0o5mrjeef3ha0sif@4ax.com... >>> Hmmm. My ploy of leaving the back door open to let Boyfriend's >>> latest "gift" escape obviously didn't work. [quoted text clipped - 30 lines] > here that surprise a lot of people in the big city, but I've got to > get up and go to a wooded or open area to see goldfinches. American and English goldfinches are not the same. This is what ours look like: http://tinyurl.com/create.php Tweed > "Kreisleriana" <kreisleriana2@yahoo.com> wrote in message > kq41sba0o5mrjeef3ha0sif@4ax.com... [quoted text clipped - 20 lines] > > Tweed Wrong link! > I am jealous that you have goldfinches. We have a lot of great birds > here that surprise a lot of people in the big city, but I've got to > get up and go to a wooded or open area to see goldfinches. Actually, our goldfinches in Burope are a different species to the North American ones, both are beautiful, this is our goldfinch. http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/g/goldfinch/index.asp SignatureAdrian (Owned by Snoopy and Bagheera) Cats leave pawprints on your heart. http://community.webshots.com/user/clowderuk >> I am jealous that you have goldfinches. We have a lot of great birds >> here that surprise a lot of people in the big city, but I've got to [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] >American ones, both are beautiful, this is our goldfinch. >http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/g/goldfinch/index.asp Wow, that is a gorgeous bird! How exactly does that help my jeaousy? ;) Theresa Stinky Pictures: http://community.webshots.com/album/125591586JWEFwh Make Levees, Not War >>> I am jealous that you have goldfinches. We have a lot of great >>> birds here that surprise a lot of people in the big city, but I've [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > Wow, that is a gorgeous bird! How exactly does that help my jeaousy? > ;) I suppose it won't help when I tell you I've counted as many as twenty outside my window? ;-) SignatureAdrian (Owned by Snoopy and Bagheera) Cats leave pawprints on your heart. http://community.webshots.com/user/clowderuk >> I am jealous that you have goldfinches. We have a lot of great birds >> here that surprise a lot of people in the big city, but I've got to >> get up and go to a wooded or open area to see goldfinches. > Actually, our goldfinches in Burope are a different species to the > North American ones, both are beautiful, this is our goldfinch. > http://www.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/birdguide/name/g/goldfinch/index.asp I've only seen one in the wild once. I'd just been up a mountain in the Highlands and was sitting on the platform of the railway station to go back home when this tiny little thing perched on the toe of my boot and looked at me. It checked to see if I had any seeds stuck in my bootlaces and then whizzed off again. I've never seen a bird with so little fear of people. Round here they would all be catfood in no time. The only birds that survive are the ones that stay in the trees or at roof level. ============== j-c ====== @ ====== purr . demon . co . uk ============== Jack Campin: 11 Third St, Newtongrange EH22 4PU, Scotland | tel 0131 660 4760 <http://www.purr.demon.co.uk/jack/> for CD-ROMs and free | fax 0870 0554 975 stuff: Scottish music, food intolerance, & Mac logic fonts | mob 07800 739 557 Well, good, that got the goldfinch question out of the way then. Tweed > Well, good, that got the goldfinch question out of the way then. > > Tweed I've only seen a goldfinch (the state bird of New Jersey, BTW, I understand) once. I had planted sunflowers and of two or three that actually bloomed, there was a tiny bright little yellow goldfinch sitting on one of them. It didn't stay long and I have never seen another although a neighbor plants huge sunflowers in the hope of seeing a goldfinch. Do your cats want to get out and get the little birds? Woodgie eyes them like she can jump up on the telephone wire and get them ( they don't know she isn't a real huntress). Kathy On May 28, 6:06 am, "Christina Websell" <spamf...@tinawebsell.wanadoo.co.uk> A scratching noise, in fact, the unmistakable > sound of a mouse in the house. Oh, great! > I dug out from the depths of a cupboard this wonderful catch-alive mouse > trap I have. It's a wooden box with cunningly contrived entrances that let > the mouse in but not out, baited it with a few sunflower hearts from my wild > Success! The mouse was in the trap when I got up. Ever since my Punkers has been gone the mousies have been coming around. I don't think she ever really caught them any more, but she must have radiated a ferocious prescense because we never had any (that we knew of!) before. I got a couple of those no-kill traps, too, that I baited with dry Ramen noodles stuck on with peanut butter. Apparently they REALLY like Top Ramen. Hummm... I released them in a local park that gets lots of picnickers (crumbs). :) PatM > Ever since my Punkers has been gone the mousies have been coming > around. I don't think she ever really caught them any more, but she [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > Apparently they REALLY like Top Ramen. Hummm... I released them in a > local park that gets lots of picnickers (crumbs). :) I am (naturally!) a strong advocate of Natural Mouse Control, aka The Cat. I once lived in an apartment with a no-pets lease, and the landlady, when I reported the presence of a mouse and asked for permission to borrow a cat, gave me one of those humane mouse traps. I think the mouse must have fallen over its paws laughing; it certainly never entered the trap and probably died of old age somewhere in the recesses of the house. Some time later I moved into a place with a mouse problem. I removed all the trays of poison left by the previous tenant, and brought in my cats. I think the sudden disappearance of the mice must have been caused by the mere presence of the cats, because it was years before I ever saw any evidence of the cats actually catching a mouse - and in all those years, I also never saw any mice or any evidence of them; not even a dropping. I guess most of the mice weren't so stupid as to hang around in a place with two cats. SignatureCheryl . I >think the sudden disappearance of the mice must have been caused by the >mere presence of the cats, Our neighbours downstairs have persistent mouse problems and we have had several visits for the pest control people and as soon as they see we have cats (AKA Orcs, which stands for Organic Rodent Control Systems) they say we won't have a problem. In the many years this has been going on, I've seen one mouse and Isis (RB) gave it a little kiss and sent it on its way (Wish I'd had a camera handy!) Lesley Slave of the Fabulous Furballs >> Ever since my Punkers has been gone the mousies have been coming >> around. I don't think she ever really caught them any more, but she [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > guess most of the mice weren't so stupid as to hang around in a place with > two cats. Well that would be fine if it wasn't Boyfie that brought it in and let it go alive in the first place ;-) Tweed > Well that would be fine if it wasn't Boyfie that brought it in and let it go > alive in the first place ;-) Boyfie is clearly well-meaning, but has the implementation a little confused - reversed, even! And I bet you don't get a whole lot of mice moving into the house voluntarily! SignatureCheryl >> Well that would be fine if it wasn't Boyfie that brought it in and let it >> go >> alive in the first place ;-) > > Boyfie is clearly well-meaning, but has the implementation a little > confused - reversed, even! He just hasn't got the hang of that killing bite yet! and he *will* insist on opening his mouth to meow if I look at him when he comes in. Without prey that is fine, with prey it's a disaster. Tweed >> Boyfie is clearly well-meaning, but has the implementation a little >> confused - reversed, even! > He just hasn't got the hang of that killing bite yet! and he *will* insist > on opening his mouth to meow if I look at him when he comes in. Without > prey that is fine, with prey it's a disaster. The other night, I heard a lot of banging around right outside my front door. Or, I should say, Roxy and I heard banging around. My ears didn't swivel around at the sound, but hers did. I cautiously opened the door. Fortunately, I have both a solid, wooden door and a screen door on the outside. So I opened the inner door and looked out. Smudge was lunging at something just out of my line of sight. So I closed the door again, to leave her to it. About 20 minutes later, I heard Smudge's standard, let-me-in scratch at the door. Again, I opened the door cautiously, keeping the screen door shut. I demanded to see her face full-on before opening that screen door! It was dark out, so hard to see, but something didn't look quite right. She trilled at me and, sure enough, dropped a small mouse, which moved. Again, I shut the door. I didn't let her in until quite some time later, after I'd seen proof positive that she had nothing in her mouth. The pandemonium of a mouse running loose in my apartment was not something I wanted to deal with! Joyce > >> Boyfie is clearly well-meaning, but has the implementation a little > >> confused - reversed, even! [quoted text clipped - 23 lines] > positive that she had nothing in her mouth. The pandemonium of a mouse > running loose in my apartment was not something I wanted to deal with! You are a meanie. It's *really* fun to have a mowsie in the howsie. Does this sound convincing? Tweed > You are a meanie. It's *really* fun to have a mowsie in the howsie. Does > this sound convincing? Uh... not really. :) Joyce >> >> Boyfie is clearly well-meaning, but has the implementation a little >> >> confused - reversed, even! [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] >> It was dark out, so hard to see, but something didn't look quite right. >> She trilled at me and, sure enough, dropped a small mouse Yes, I can that the "Hi Mommy!" effect. ;) Stinky does that too, with and without mousies. The without-mousie version goes like this: He's doing his once or twice daily around the house swagger patrol, yowling his head off, defending his territory against all enemies real and imagined, and if he sees me, he'll just veer off course towards me, stick his tail up in the air, headbutt me and brush past me, then continue on his appointed rounds. "COME ON OUT YA BUGGERS, I'LL KICK YER-- oh hi, Mommy!" Theresa Stinky Pictures: http://community.webshots.com/album/125591586JWEFwh Make Levees, Not War >>> >> Boyfie is clearly well-meaning, but has the implementation a little >>> >> confused - reversed, even! [quoted text clipped - 31 lines] > and brush past me, then continue on his appointed rounds. "COME ON > OUT YA BUGGERS, I'LL KICK YER-- oh hi, Mommy!" LOL! Boyfriend likes to patrol too. He likes to amuse the rats around my poultry huts by staring the death stare at the big ones and sometimes catching the small ones, He used to be bullied big time by a black cat that we call The Enemy who lives a couple of houses away and would come into the garden and beat Boyfriend up regularly. One day, he got fed up with it. He is a total pacifist, but it was really enough. Huge fight and The Enemy does not dare to come into Boyfie's yard again ever since. I sometimes see The Enemy on the street and if Boyfie comes out to join me he just seems to melt away. Tweed > >> Boyfie is clearly well-meaning, but has the implementation a little > >> confused - reversed, even! [quoted text clipped - 24 lines] > >Joyce Aww, you haven't lived a full life. ;) I'll never forget the night when Stinky dropped his still-live catch in bed with me. :O Theresa Stinky Pictures: http://community.webshots.com/album/125591586JWEFwh Make Levees, Not War > Well that would be fine if it wasn't Boyfie that brought it in and let it go > alive in the first place ;-) > > Tweed Oh, Miu used to do that regularly! Not mice but those little charcoal and white "fruit" rats so common to Southern California. (They're kinda cute - I've seen "pet" rats for sale that were not nearly so attractive - but they ARE rats, and really didn't belong nesting in my broom-closet or under the butcher-block top of my portable dishwasher!)
|
Reply to this Message |
 Sign In
 Join
 My Latest Posts My Monitored Threads My Blog My Photo Gallery My Profile My Homepage Start New Thread Enable EMail Alerts Rate this Thread
|
©2008 Advenet LLC Privacy Policy - Terms of Use
This website includes both content owned or controlled by Advenet as well as content owned or controlled by third parties.