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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.

Original poster

To askIf every cat brings mice in?

108 replies

CommuterMummy · 25/03/2023 20:58

Following up from another post from today, I just wanted to ask this to a wider audience.
I have a real mice phobia and am scared that getting a cat will mean having them bringing them home dead or, even worse, alive. I am reading of a lot of people saying their cats bring home all sorts of animals but I wonder how rurally these MNetters live? We’d be in a house in Surrey, not very rural, close to town centre and with a small garden.
DH had cats most of his life when growing up and says his ones never did it. They only went in the garden for a bit during the day and at night they’d be kept in the house and they never brought prays in.
I am panicking a bit reading comments from other posters with their cats brining mice in continously but DH is adamant that it doesn’t happen with all cats and depends on where you live, how free they are to go out etc.
Anyone here who has a similar experience to DH and what do you do to avoid unwanted “guests”?

OP posts:
Highdaysandholidays1 · 26/03/2023 10:48

I don't think what you want really exists- a cat that can be guaranteed never to bring in mice, but is out all day, in all night that never poops in the house! you need a litter tray anyway unless the cat is free to roam at all times and some people have one anyway out of kindness to their neighbours/some cats prefer that.

An indoor cat is just that, an indoor one. Ours has an enclosed area of a few m square that it also goes in and we also take it outside in the garden for short periods whilst supervised (like a toddler!) It's a ragdoll and not safe on roads, ours was brought up as an indoor cat and the owner made us promise it would never be allowed out to roam as it just isn't suitable as a roaming outdoor cat.

RudsyFarmer · 26/03/2023 10:50

I have to say ours did and the bloody thing chewed through the wires 🤦🏻‍♀️

I’ve had A LOT of cars in my lifetime and I wouldn’t be getting one if I had a mouse phobia.

RudsyFarmer · 26/03/2023 10:50

*cats

Rebel2 · 26/03/2023 11:20

Masterofcats · 26/03/2023 10:48

Make cats are ot as prolific hunters. Females are much better hunters and not as lazy. Rather like other species 😜

We had a female stable cat who was part Siamese. Absolutely ruthless. She brought 2 rabbits back once, dragged a pheasant home and had to be removed from eyeing up a deer
She was also obsessed with human food and if you tried to take it off her... it was easier just to let her eat your lunch
The vet described her as a split personality

OnTheRunWithMannyMontana · 26/03/2023 11:26

3 cats here.

DCat1 brings home dead field voles

DCat2 brings home live birds that I then have to catch and release.

DCat3 (still a baby really) has brought 2 dead moths home.

pensionconfusion · 26/03/2023 11:27

Most do. Mine doesn't bring in her catch that often. She mostly leaves them on the doorstep. In the past she's brought in mice and birds alive. The birds I've managed to catch before they fly as they were still in shock. The mice I've had the pleasure of lifting sofas and chasing them around the living room before catching them and letting them go. 🙄

Depends on the cat really.

The thing I would love her to catch but just looks at, are the giant house spiders!! Obviously don't taste nice.

pensionconfusion · 26/03/2023 11:29

Litter tray is always at the back door. Rarely used unless at night or the weather is bad outside. So yes, you need one at all times.

DelurkingAJ · 26/03/2023 11:34

DCat1 (tomcat) - prolific hunter, bringer of presents for special occasions (bringing home DS1 from hospital resulted in a lovely big - very dead - rat five nights running, he was also good at spotting Xmas and Easter and providing the first present of the day). Seen stalking a deer by our very amused neighbour.
DCat2 (female) - nothing beyond the odd earthworm as a kitten
DCat3 (female) - a fairly long list of small rodents and the odd bird.

All moggies. All in a semi rural location. Personality rather than location dependent, I fear.

EsmeShelby · 26/03/2023 11:40

depends on the cat. current cat brings in all sorts dead and alive, mice, birds frogs, eggs. Previous cats never did. Same house. He fights a lot as well. It's just him

ChaToilLeam · 26/03/2023 11:46

One of my cats never brought in a thing, he was just not a hunter. The other was unstoppable. There were always little “presents” at the back door or in the kitchen. My neighbours were very grateful as their persistent mouse problem was instantly solved.

You don’t know what kind of cat yours will be, so I suggest not having an outdoor cat if you have a mouse phobia.

FormerlyPathologicallyHappy · 26/03/2023 11:46

Fledglings are the worst. All bald & defenceless.

Gamerlady · 26/03/2023 11:50

My cat brings in mice and birds.. we put humane traps down as he'd let the mice go and we had to catch them
. I'm dreading the lighter months as that's when he brings them in

Allthegoodusernamesareused · 26/03/2023 11:59

My cat was a prolific and successful hunter for the first 5 years or so - we live semi-rurally and have had many mice and voles brought to us. Occasionally dead, mostly alive. Joy. Birds she liked to eat, so kept those in the garden because she knew we would take them off her in the house. We started locking the cat flap at dusk and only letting her out when it was properly light, and that mostly stopped her.
She's now 7, and almost never brings anything in nowadays. It's like she lost her hunting mojo.

Original poster
CommuterMummy · 26/03/2023 12:04

@Highdaysandholidays1 ans does your catch mice this way?

OP posts:
Original poster
CommuterMummy · 26/03/2023 12:08

Oh dear. I think the only solution would be a housecat but I am not sure it’s possible to never let them out? Is it possible to keep them out only if supervised for example? Sorry have no idea of how all this works!

OP posts:
FormerlyPathologicallyHappy · 26/03/2023 12:15

Cats can run at 30mph and get over a 6 foot fence easily. A lot of them want to roam too & if their unhappy they can scratch furniture or wee/poo outside the tray.

Mine never goes out but she never asks & I got her on the understanding she would be indoor only. She’s an old lady cat who likes sleeping and trying to trip me up. I have window screens for summer so I can have the windows open. A colleagues cat fell out of a window and broke a leg.

I had a Bengal before and keeping him in would never have worked. He would have had the window screens off.

Rebel2 · 26/03/2023 12:19

CommuterMummy · 26/03/2023 12:08

Oh dear. I think the only solution would be a housecat but I am not sure it’s possible to never let them out? Is it possible to keep them out only if supervised for example? Sorry have no idea of how all this works!

I would speak to a rescue and see, they will know the cats
Mine just wants a lap and kisses, he couldn't care less about catching anything. His motto seems to be why hunt when mama brings you nice food anyway

Ionacat · 26/03/2023 13:14

So our mogs, both male and now quite elderly:
DCat 1 one mouse - saw him with it in his mouth, looking very pleased with himself and shut the door and cat flap until he had disposed of it.
DCat 2 few birds and fledglings - mostly dead thankfully.

Then odd corpse outside and we have no clue which one was involved! We keep them in at night. Our DCat growing up was a prolific hunter, he brought anything and everything home - rabbits, voles, mice, rats, frogs, toads, shrews - if it moved he would have it, but he stayed out at night.

I hate mice, rats etc. but I overcome my revulsion because I love cats more! I now have a routine - gardening gloves, shovel, bags….. as the DCats always seem to do it when DH isn’t around!

A rescue that fosters its cats might be able to give you a better idea of their personality.

mumof31968 · 26/03/2023 13:19

My cat regularly catches rats (Ewwh) and leaves them on the step for me only for me to Stand on them 🤮

SallyWD · 26/03/2023 15:44

CommuterMummy · 26/03/2023 12:08

Oh dear. I think the only solution would be a housecat but I am not sure it’s possible to never let them out? Is it possible to keep them out only if supervised for example? Sorry have no idea of how all this works!

I know there are (apparently) some happy house cats but I have to say most cats do want to roam outside. My cat would be extremely distressed if we kept him in! The cat charity would only let us have him if we gave him access to the garden. Can't you get a cat who's being fostered? Then you can ask the people who have fostered him whether he catches mice or not. I know it's no guarantee but it would give you a good idea of whether he's a hunter or not.

mrssanchez · 26/03/2023 21:52

My cat used to catch mice, despite having a bell and only being out during the day Hmm
She didn't kill them though and they were quite easy to catch and carry outside, gorgeous little brown things, quite terrified though, I hope they recovered ok.

We had a few birds too but they didn't often survive being rammed through the cat flap. They were a pain if they did though, kept flapping and pooing and ignoring the open windows and doors I tried to encourage them towards.

Bluelightbaby · 26/03/2023 21:53

I have three, they e never bought anything in

Original poster
CommuterMummy · 27/03/2023 09:49

@SallyWD DH had lots of cats who were mostly housecats (they weren't forbidden to go out, they just preferred to stay inside).
Yes I think the best solution would be to get an adult cat from a shelter or fostered so we already know their personality and preferences and keep him/her indoors only.

OP posts:
OnTheRunWithMannyMontana · 27/03/2023 09:55

CommuterMummy · 27/03/2023 09:49

@SallyWD DH had lots of cats who were mostly housecats (they weren't forbidden to go out, they just preferred to stay inside).
Yes I think the best solution would be to get an adult cat from a shelter or fostered so we already know their personality and preferences and keep him/her indoors only.

A lot of rescues have cats that have to be kept indoors for health reasons. Usually FIV positive cats. May be worth looking in to?

Snailsaresweet · 28/03/2023 08:57

Town, with medium sized gardens all around. It seems to go in phases. Cat One had a bit of a mouse phase, and a (really horrible) slow worm phase, but hasn't bought in much for the last year or so (although there was half a mouse on the doormat a few months ago). Cat Two only started going outside last summer, and got fascinated by the local frog population - both alive and dead. I really hate it, and have resorted to a long-handled dustpan and brush to collect the dead things. Frankly, they're marginally easier to handle than the live ones - especially the frogs which tend to spring everywhere.

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