If you get a rehomed cat how can you check it's mousing ability in advance?

[TheBlonde]

If you get a rehomed cat how can you check it's mousing ability in advance?

[ingles2]

ooo watching with interest.
our last cat was a rehomed farm cat and a brilliant mouser. we got him when he was a kitten though and encouraged him with lots of mouse on stick games. have been advised to get an older cat this time

[PinkTulips]

checking to see if it's lively and enjoys chasing things would probably be the only way.

a cat that will chase a piece of string or a toy will be far more likely to enjoy hunting than one that's bone idle..... although, that said, most cats will hunt a mouse they smell in the house even if they don't actively hunt outdoors

[blondieminx]

Chat with the owners (rescue centre?) and see if they are aware of a particularly high prey instinct?

And agree with your DP in advance who will deal wth "presents"! We have a 4yo girl cat(golden bengal-cross) who thinks the field out the back of our estate is her own personal buffet, it's vile. At one point we had 3 bells on her collar and she was STILL catching things!

But the purring makes it all worth it!

[Mumwhensdinnerready]

My friend wanted a mouser and asked for the meanest cat they had.

[TheBlonde]

[Joolyjoolyjoo]

We had a big fat mog who looked like the worst mouser in history, but within weeks of him arriving in our student flat, all the mice were gone! We reckoned the mice had died laughing at his pathetic attempts to catch 'em...either that or his very physical presence persuaded them to move on to pastures new..

[JingleBellaAllTheWay]

Easy peasy!

1. Take potential new cat

1. Show cat photo of mouse

1. Assess cat's reaction:

cat turns away from photo - forget it.

cat narrows eyes, twitches whiskers and starts trembling on its back legs: say 'I'll have this one, thanks!'

Good luck x

[TheBlonde]

now how can I get my mice to pose for the camera?

[JingleBellaAllTheWay]

Look - I've even found one named after you!

here

[snigger]

Get one that's been found somewhere where it would have had to go 'self-catering'.

That's what I asked for when we got Bailey, our rescue cat, and boy, we should have called her Buffy.

She was rescued from a window factory and was living on sandwich corners from the workers and what she could catch, and she has a fairly humourless approach to despatching rodents.

[mother3]

most cats have it in them to chase mice.Also most mice are not stupid and will not come near if there is a cat about.Heard of the saying why the cats away the mice will play.!!

[dinny]

get a young tabby female, preferably two of 'em

[JingleBellaAllTheWay]

Good point, Dinny. My young tabby female had polished off a mouse before we had all sat down to breakfast this morning

[whomovedmychocolate]

We picked the one who was beating the shit out of the other kittens. He now kills at least 10 mice a day (he eats them too he's HUGE)

[PinkPoinsettias]

females are far better mousers btw, male cats hunt for occasional fun.... females hunt as if it's their sole purpose in life to rid the planet of rodents.

our tom cat brought a mouse into the house a year ago... and refused to recatch it and kill it, within a week of moving in a few months back the female had him caught and had also brought home a few presents to boot.

agree that rescued strays are generally more efficient as they've had to do it for survival so are alot more acurate when they pounce as their lives have leterally depended on it, they also tend to kill and eat out of habit rather than bringing home a live mouse (or rat) to play with

[whomovedmychocolate]

Our female cat is the laziest sod in the universe. We have to wash her because she can't be arsed and you physically have to move her out of the way if she lies on the floor because she won't get up. Closest she's ever come to hunting was digging up a mouse our other cat had killed and buried (he thinks he's a dog) and bringing it home very proudly. We knew she'd dug it up, it was several days old and muddy

[PinkPoinsettias]

exception to every rule and all that

[reindeercantdancethetango]

wmmc - love your cats attitude

[phraedd]

my cat (maine coon) was a rescue centre cat. We got her at 6 months old and she is forever catching mice and birds but she keeps bringing them into the house to eat them

She is huge!

Occasionally, they get away from her and dh or i need to catch them before they run under the book case and die from fright!

My little tabby that we've had from 8 weeks, very rarely catches anything