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The litter tray

Join our community of cat lovers on the Mumsnet Cat forum for kitten advice and help with cat behaviour.

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Original poster

Mouseageddon 2019 Season

29 replies

MitziK · 09/09/2019 20:56

Well, it's Autumn. Season of mellow fruitfulness, misty mornings, glittering gossamer webs (with the fattest arsed spiders) - and 6.30am discussions on Sunday with DTwatCat, asking him what the fuck he has done with the head whilst giving the rest of the unfortunate rodent cadaver a ceremonial shroud of kitchen paper and committing its mortal remains to the loving embrace of the wheelie bin.

He spent 6 hours outside yesterday, largely thundering around the patio and plant pots - except when he chased another one over my fucking foot and then nearly knocked himself sparko by running headfirst into the shed door. Whilst I was simultaneously untangling my hair from the Rambling Rose I'd stumbled into and trying to not die from a heart attack as a giant garden spider promptly fell out of said Rambling Rose, onto my bare arm and then scrambled up my hair.

I am not phobic of mice nor spiders, but I simply cannot be doing with either of the fuckers touching me, especially when it's solely the doing of the wee furry shit. My heart rate is still probably elevated from the experience now.

Anyhow, I spluttered something to him along the lines of if he didn't deal with the issue properly, he'd find his P45 by his crunchies bowl by teatime.

We now have five corpses laid out on the patio. He thinks he's a fucking genius. I think he's only caught the babies so far - this only stops each year once he murders the big (relatively speaking) one. And then there will be no more Woodmice until next September.

I suppose at least he's trying to contribute to the household.

Anybody else' enjoying' the efforts of their home Verminator this season?

(and yes, I shall validate my post with an image in a minute)

OP posts:

Thread gallery

PhannyPharts · 09/09/2019 20:58

No cats. Dog owner. Or mice here yet although I do get them but I very much enjoyed your prose.

So thank you

Original poster

MitziK · 09/09/2019 21:07

Are any of these photos working?

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Fluffycloudland77 · 09/09/2019 21:12

He’s very cute though.

AgeingDurannie · 09/09/2019 21:13

I hear you.... my fuzzy terminator left 6 corpses for us to find yesterday, and 4 today! He's a ragdoll, supposedly a breed meant to be non-streetwise and best as an indoor cat ( rehomed to us when he was miserable as such)... somebody forgot to tell him that....

Allergictoironing · 09/09/2019 21:13

He does look very pleased with himself!

You probably got 5 because all the talk about the P45 made him feel he had to step his game up a bit

AgeingDurannie · 09/09/2019 21:14

We tried collars with (multiple) bells but I think we just taught him to be more stealthy as he mastered moving soundlessly in them....

AgeingDurannie · 09/09/2019 21:17

My psycho killer with giant bells on his collar in a failed attempt to foil his hunting attempts.,,,,

shallen · 09/09/2019 21:19

I got home tonight to find my dearest cat had literally turned a mouse inside out on the kitchen floor...... I can even work out how she did it...... it's like she would have needed a knife or something. 🤢

Frangipane · 09/09/2019 21:19

I'm with you. My boy rarely goes a night without leaving a headless corpse just inside the kitchen door for me to tread on when I stumble blindly downstairs each morning. Little micies are one thing, imagine the horror of a fully grown rat. At least, that is what we think they are. Having once had a pet rat, I am not sure these are also rats but the bodies are a good 4 inches long, plus tail, and so far there have been 3 dead ones and one live one let loose in the kitchen! Fortunately, the live one was found by my teenagers in the small hours of the night, and caught and released back into the garden, but I suspect it became the corpse I found on the lawn a day later.

I suppose this is why keeping cats is considered a good idea, isn't it? Keeping down vermin?

Original poster

MitziK · 09/09/2019 21:21

Can't do collars - they render him paralysed and he topples over as though he's been poleaxed. I'm not keen on having rodents quite so near to the house anyway, and if he deals with them, next door won't suddenly decide to 'help' by putting down poison.

I suppose he has good reason to be proud of himself, really - he's got Cerebellar Hypoplasia, so can fall off the floor when he's sitting on it. Means he doesn't go wandering in other people's gardens, either - he just demolishes mine.

It's his birthday on October 4th. He's going to be seven.

Don't be afraid to get a CH cat - I didn't know beforehand, but apart from the trail of destruction and corpses (only of rodents, he can't get birds), he is the soppiest twat cat in town.

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SummerSnapdragon · 09/09/2019 21:22

Our ginger loves to leave us a vole every day, generally in one piece but occasionally head only, on the garden path. Less frequently he brings in dead things and leaves them under the kitchen table-most notably a large rat- not sure how long it was there before I noticed it!

Diplobrat · 09/09/2019 21:25

My catbastard is just learning to hunt (rehomed to me so he could go outside 5 months ago). He caught his first (live) mouse the other day, kindly rescued by my sister.

I sense we will have more....

Dontgiveamonkeys1350 · 09/09/2019 21:30

My cat doesn’t catch mice.
He tried once. He bought it in. Suddenly got scared of it and ran away from it

I live a charmed life.

SciFiScream · 09/09/2019 22:33

Oh goodness my cats are absolute killers. Birds, voles, tiny mice, frogs, worms, butterflies.

One day it was 4 birds. Today it was 2 birds.

At one point cat had four bells on her quick release collar. It didn't stop her. My queen is better at hunting than my Tom.

SciFiScream · 09/09/2019 22:34

My two. Girl is grey, boy is black. Siblings we think

CMOTDibbler · 09/09/2019 22:36

Theres a dead rodent in my hall right now that cat2 came in with earlier. We are on 4-6 a day at the moment, with the odd bird or two added in. The other morning there were two pigeons in the downstairs loo which was slightly odd

Toddlerteaplease · 09/09/2019 22:37

Oh but he's so innocent looking. He's gorgeous! This is when I'm very thankful to have a pair of, not overly endowed with brains Persians, who couldn't catch a cold!

Toddlerteaplease · 09/09/2019 22:38

Put a bell on Cheddar's collar and she absolutely freaked out!

Finfintytint · 09/09/2019 22:49

Mine is on a mouse a day at the moment. Drives me bonkers. I’m fed up of finding half a mouse in the utility room. We live in a village but have moved from a very rural location where it would be mice, birds, frogs and baby rabbits. Once caught her licking an adder in the paddock.
I think that cats and killer whales are the only animals that kill for fun.

carsleyladiessociety · 09/09/2019 23:11

I was woken up Sunday morning what a waste of a good dream by the kids squealing that the overlord had a live mouse in the garden. And was playing with it. The mouse's demise where it literally keeled over sideways and died was also observed before I had a chance to get out in the garden and do something about it. Said overlord then buggered off and left me with a mouse corpse to deal with when I should have been asleep. Usually we get the results of her efforts left outside the back door to admire, this time it just got left in the middle of the lawn.

The Overlord and I have had words.

lightlypoached · 10/09/2019 08:15

This is my mouser. I wouldn't mind but she comes in at 4 am shouting 'mwwwwwaaaaamaaaaamaaaaaamaaaaaaaaa' very loudly. Wakes the house and chases the poor half dead creatures around our shoes.

TailsoftheManyPaws · 10/09/2019 11:39

he's got Cerebellar Hypoplasia, so can fall off the floor when he's sitting on it

Mitzi, can you tell me more about this as we currently have a 4-week foster kitten with probable CH? How wobbly was he as a kitten (ours can't walk at all)?

Original poster

MitziK · 10/09/2019 16:52

I took him at just on six weeks (mum had complications from spaying) and he was more interested in being cuddled than moving around, so he just seemed a little younger than I knew he was, compared to his superstrong sisters. He then never quite grew out of the wobbly kitten stage.

But over time, he adjusted. He launches himself usually aiming for a point two foot above where he means to land and sometimes gets it first time - I have to 'spot' him by giving him a downwards pointing finger (instead of The Finger) as an aiming point and we've got fairly high contrast furnishings, as I think he's got very little depth perception.

Think of something rather like a puppy in a cat's body.

His litter mate was less affected and was slaughtering the Walthamstow wildlife within six months, DTwatCat took about two years to get there in the wilds of South of the River.

They both do a stiff legged trot rather like a dressage pony. And they're talkers. And they're incredibly messy and noisy eaters (when they aren't playing with their snacks). Their ears feel different - softer/squishier.

I think that if they learn to walk, though, they are fine. They're happy, clumsy and so affectionate.

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TailsoftheManyPaws · 10/09/2019 21:50

Thanks, Mitzi. Yes, the rescue said that learning to walk would be the vital thing . She’s completely unable to do that at the moment (rolls and head plants constantly) but she is only just over a month old.

Original poster

MitziK · 12/09/2019 20:46

Woo-hoo.

DTwatCat has just brought in a biggun.

He has been ejected by DP. With the latest ex-mouse still firmly lodged between his teeth.

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