Cat Malfunction

[dogfriend]

This is not about a catalytic converter.

This is about a feline with deviant behavior.

Background:

About 6 years ago, we adopted a 2 yr old female white Persian odd-eye cat who was reportedly being kept in a small bathroom 24 hrs a day because it couldn't get along with other cats in the household. This is a foo-foo cat, and the previous owners had her front paws declawed which seems to have made her into a real head case. After initially trying to keep her indoors, she has evolved into an indoor-outdoor cat. About a year after we got her, we were surprised to find that she had an aptitude for hunting mice and as evidence we began to find freshly killed mice lovingly left for us on the kitchen floor. We (I) would dispose of the body and praise our kitty for being such a good hunter. You don't want to upset a serial killer.

Problem:

At some point a year or two ago, our kitty decided it was more fun to catch the mice, bring them in the house while still alive, and let them go. Then the mice(s) try to hide in various corners while the cat stalks them. I usually find them dead under the dishwasher or another cabinet or the cat finally kills them and leaves them out in the middle of the kitchen floor.

Last night, I noticed the cat was in hunting mode and found a huge mouse (or small rat) in the dishwasher (with the dishes). While trying to find a suitable container to trap the mouse, it escaped down the hallway and into one of the bathrooms where it is now trapped in a cabinet until it starves to death or chews its way out. I tried to get it last night using an old fashioned rat trap, but it was able to get the bait (peanut butter) and trigger the trap without getting caught (twice). This is not a stupid rodent.

Topics for Discussion:

1. Best way to remove mouse (rat) from cabinet without gruesome mess or getting bit. Poison free methods preferred because of the dogs and cat.

2. How to communicate to cat that although we appreciate her efforts to keep the property mouse free, we would prefer that she hunt and kill the mice outside where they belong. Is it possible to train a cat or am I doomed to be a part time mice exterminator?

[cheeper]

The best way, in my opinion to get rid of them is with some peanut butter in a spring trap you can buy in the grocery store. Poisons take a while and you never know where the may die. The smell will go away, but is not pleasant.

Your kitty is having fun. You won't be able to explain to her otherwise. Just check her carefully when she comes in that she comes in alone!

[dogfriend]

Originally Posted by cheeper

The best way, in my opinion to get rid of them is with some peanut butter in a spring trap you can buy in the grocery store.

That was what I tried last night when the mouse was trapped in our bathroom. I bought an old fashioned spring trap from the grocery store and baited it with peanut butter. The mouse managed to get the bait and spring the trap twice without injury.

The mouse is now trapped in a cabinet under the sink. The compartment is not the one with the plumbing, so it does not have an escape route unless it gnaws though the wood.

I'm all for the cat having a good time, I would just prefer it if she could do it outside.

[Godiva]

Peanut butter doesn't work. They love it but they can eat most of it without triggering the trap.

Use pepperoni. Let it sit out a day to get a little leathery, then firmly attach it to the trigger of the snap trap (those cheap wooden ones) so that when it is pulled it will set it off. This has never failed me.

If you want to humanely catch it live, get a very large bowl and grease the inside with Crisco. Then put a ruler "bridge" across to the bowl balanced so that when the mouse goes to the end of the "plank" over the bowl, the weight will tip him into the bowl where it's so greasy and slick he can't climb out. Bait the end of the ruler over the bowl with peanut butter.

Don't know how to train the serial killer to play with his prey outside and only present you with the bodies after the kill. Cats are food motivated and can be trained but it takes a long, long time.

BTW check out doggyspace.com and sign Digby and Dingo up. Ramses wants friends.

[dogfriend]

Originally Posted by Godiva

If you want to humanely catch it live, get a very large bowl and grease the inside with Crisco. Then put a ruler "bridge" across to the bowl balanced so that when the mouse goes to the end of the "plank" over the bowl, the weight will tip him into the bowl where it's so greasy and slick he can't climb out. Bait the end of the ruler over the bowl with peanut butter.

I like this idea. I don't want to kill it, but GF thinks that if I catch and release it, it will just end up back in the house again (she is probably right).

We do have a nature preserve nearby, so I could release it a couple of miles from the house.

Originally Posted by Godiva

BTW check out doggyspace.com and sign Digby and Dingo up. Ramses wants friends.

I will check this out when I have some time to post pics.

[cheeper]

Keep trying the trap! Sometime is works; sometimes not. Do you have the right size? Is it a mouse or rat? Mice can get through unbelievably small spaces.


My kitty almost brought in a live chipmunk once!

[SSimon]

It seems you may have conditioned your cat for this behavior by praising it for the kill. Could be wrong, but it seems to be logical. Maybe your behavior in how you handle the hunt could dissuade the cat from continuing the kill indoors. The best way I've heard to abruptly stop a bad behavior of an animal is to make a very loud unexpected noise, such as clanking pots together. In this way, you're not yelling at your animal or screaming at your animal while saying their name....which is bad and is usually counter productive. The loud noise usually stops them from continuing a behavior and I've found it to be very effective when managing my cat's behavioral problems. Right now I'm lucky to have no neurosis in my household excepting for me. So maybe before looking for a solution to the problem, you should try to recondition your animal to not present you with a problem by bringing the prey inside. Then maybe you can start to praise your cat while you and your cat are outside to recondition her/him to continue the hunt outside.

I'm not an advocate of outdoor cats unless they are in a closed pen and not let out during the day. Otherwise, they kill millions of migratory birds each year (hummers too). That's just a side thought. Don't think me rude for brining it up. If this matters to you as well, I have found it effective to let my cats out only at night in a fenced in pen. There have been no kills since inception of this.

Lastly, they do have humane traps in which you can catch rodents to release in a natural environ away from residences. They do have their place in the food chain and would be most welcome there. Which brings me to my last point that one should never use poisons to rid themselves of rodents since if they are able to get outside, they'll serve as a poisonous meal for a predatory species like hawk or owls. Poisons and wildlife aren't a good mix.

[dogfriend]

Originally Posted by cheeper

Is it a mouse or rat?

I'm actually not sure. Its either a big field mouse or a small rat. I would estimate the body about 5 inches long and the tail about 9 or 10 inches.

[cheeper]

If you want to live trap the little sweetie, I've caught them with a coffee can. Tape the lid so it swings in and out. Put peanut butter on the inside of the can lid. Tape across lid on the outside midway so it swings in, but will hit the tape if it tries to come out.

Here in NY it is illegal to transport such critters so do not tell anyone what you are doing.

[cheeper]

You've got a RAT! If it was a mouse trap, it won't be strong enough.

Also you need to put the trap with the bait at the wall as they mainly go along the wall.