2 doves gone-RATS!-a rather interesting surprise!

[Ducklove334]

well, in just ONE hour I am down to three doves, they were fine ALL day, but right at sun set they were all flying around the pen like something had spooked them, I found a RAT perked rather happily on one of their perches, helping itself to the food, it saw me and split, clearing the intire duck house in one jump and landing about 2 feet from me, and hurrying out of the bars on the gate, one of the cats saw it and started after, but lost in in the grass.

I had to go get Becca from our nieghbors, saw a couple doves on the ground,and only counted 4, I looked around, I couldn't find my original guy...intend to look in the morning I left them, well, when I got back..I saw one of the doves on the ground...well, HALF of it. the other dove is COMPLETLY gone, no body, so that means that the rat would have had to have killed one, drug it OUT of the pen, then came back and killed another. I'm just thanking the heavens that none of the ducks were hurt!

I one of our cats was IN the pen, however the cats KNOW better, even the maddie knew better, and she was our biggest hunter, Tyler her brother is scared of the ducks, but HE was in the pen, the way the bird was eaten, it wasn't a cat..

this is the second time I've seen a rat IN the duck pen, the chickens killed a small one a few weeks back, but this one was bigger.

I am hoping the cats will take care of it. I've got nothing against rats, we've got pet rats, but wild ones, ew!

 

[allaboutdemchicks]

Goodness!! I hope the cats do get them....and soon! I have seven, yes, seven cats...there's not a mouse anywhere to be seen, nor a chipmunk.

I'm sorry you lost your doves, that is soo sad.

 

[lorieMN]

if you have feed of any sort there,the rats are eating that..I think its your cat that ate the dove...I have yet found a way to train a cat NOT to chase birds..still get rid of the rats,,but keep the cats out of the pen..

 

[monarc23]

I dont wanna be a party pooper too but I bet it was the rat too. A rat normally will just eat what it has there esp if it's too big to drag and a dove would be pretty big to drag without being noticed by predators.

If you saw the rat eating feed it more than likely was just after the feed. The cats could have killed some easy to catch doves and the rat may have taken a few protien nibbles of it when the cats werent looking. Cats were full from the one dove, so they didnt bother to go after the rat is my thinking. I love kitties and I sitll bet it was the cats or cat.

 

[gabrielle1976]

Dont discount the cat .. lol my cat is smart and just because he knows better dosnt mean he dosnt figure out ways now and again to get around it.

 

[nzpouter]

A rat will normally rip the crop open, eat the content, a bit of meat then leave the rest... never did I come accross one that'll eat half a bird.

 

[magikchick]

So sorry about your doves. I loss my best quail to a snake Saturday. It sucks!

 

[Ducklove334]

the crop of the bird I found was ripped open, I didn't discount the cat, the neck had been bitten, down to the bone...I'm not sure who got the birds, the cats USUALLY don't go near, or IN the pen, I didn't find anywhere the cat COULD have gotten in, he's a nine month old tomcat and has a fairly big head already, the pen fencing is small, the gate has bigger wire but he still can't fit through...I do not trust any of my cats around the birds, I get after them every time they look if I see them looking, It'll be a waiting game tonight, if there is another attack, then I know it's not cats..we have pet rats who have....eh, "helped" dispose of a few senior citizen cage mates who happened to die in the night

, so i'm quite familiar with the eating habits of rats when meat is put in front of them...

I'll just have to wait and watch, and if it happens again, then I'm going to rehome the birds, as having them inside is not an option at this point.

 

[monarc23]

Quote:
I hope it doesnt happen again. Also cats can fit their head into suprisingly small spaces, not when forced but when they willingly want to enter.

 

[lorieMN]

Quote:
I hope it doesnt happen again. Also cats can fit their head into suprisingly small spaces, not when forced but when they willingly want to enter.

and if their head fits,,the rest of the body fits..