The Old Folks Home

[Highcotton]

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I don't know how to tell the difference. I have one and he gets along with the chickens fine and the ducks as long as they stay on the ground. When the Mallards start flying he gets excited and tries to catch them. I haven't been able to break him of that. I like having him around because the only predator that I know of a problem with around here is foxes. He will keep any kind of land based predator scared away.

 

[ozexpat]

For a while, there was a system in place around here where people could maintain local "cat colonies" if they would care for them - you trap the cats, bring them in, they get spayed/neutered at a reduced price and have the tip of an ear clipped to mark them, then you release them where you found them. The problem was, the caregivers would move away, leaving all those altered but still hungry feral cats; the neighbors would complain about the cats messing up their flower beds, etc. As things stand right now, feeding a feral cat is a fine-able offense here in New Hanover County.

Coming from Australia, where we really value our unique wild life, feral cats are the biggest threat to native birds we have.

The only predator that has killed my birds in the Philippines has been a feral cal. It also stole Bernies fish dinner. He got even - he trapped the cat and had it for dinner.

I have a special voodoo doll I use for those that let cats go into the wild.

 

[ronott1]

Coming from Australia, where we really value our unique wild life, feral cats are the biggest threat to native birds we have.

The only predator that has killed my birds in the Philippines has been a feral cal. It also stole Bernies fish dinner. He got even - he trapped the cat and had it for dinner.

I have a special voodoo doll I use for those that let cats go into the wild.

Feral cats are a huge problem around Sacramento. They really should be controlled since Feral cats kill a lot of birds here too.

 

[Bunnylady]

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I think a lot of people underestimate the impact that non-native species can have. With all the romantic mythology associated with them, even feral horses affect the natives.

Lots of people know the movie, "Milo and Otis;" live action animals and dubbed voices telling a story about a Pug puppy and a tabby kitten. My kids both loved it as little kids (they are now 17 and 13 years old). The creators made another movie, called "Napoleon." It features a cream-colored retriever puppy living in Sydney, Australia, that dreams of being a wild dog. When he gets lost in the Outback, he decides to pursue that dream. He encounters a variety of native wildlife, all of which tell him he's out of his element and that he should go back where he belongs. Eventually he meets up with a wild dog (dingo) family and he decides that, though he has proven that he can survive out there, the other animals are right, he doesn't belong, and he goes back home. One animal that he encounters is a feral cat. It is said that she had a job (killing mice) when she lived in civilization, but she had gone crazy in the wild. Everything is a mouse to her, and she tries to kill it. That cat is scary! Knowing how much my kids liked "Milo and Otis," I rented "Napoleon" without knowing about the cat. I did it the first time when my son was 3 years old. When I watched it with him, I realized that cat was pretty intense, and wondered how he'd deal with it. His answer was to fast-forward through the parts with the cat; he enjoyed the rest of the movie. When my daughter was 3, I rented the film again, having forgotten about the cat in the interim. How would my sweet, sensitive little girl deal with that maniacal cat? She became the cat, wandering through the house with her pretend claws, pouncing on her big brother, the "mouse!"

(Incidentally, the cat follows Napoleon back into civilization, so the creators included the possibility of the cat becoming sane again)

 

[apteryx]

Coming from Australia, where we really value our unique wild life, feral cats are the biggest threat to native birds we have.

The only predator that has killed my birds in the Philippines has been a feral cal. It also stole Bernies fish dinner. He got even - he trapped the cat and had it for dinner.

I have a special voodoo doll I use for those that let cats go into the wild.

Coming from New Zealand which also has unique wildlife, feral cats and ferrets/stoats are a major threat to native bird species, many of which are either flightless, or prefer not to fly. It is astounding how destructive a single cat can be. Another, somewhat surprising threat to the native bird species is the Australian brushtail possum. They seem to have a taste for eggs.

At my parents place they have an ongoing battle against the introduced animal species to keep the morning chorus alive. Even bringing a pet cat into the area is frowned upon.

 

[Pozees]

Arielle, you need to find some folks that are familiar with Field Trials. Sometimes those breeders will let pups go when they refuse to chase birds, cannot get used to guns being fired, etc. I was friends with people here in CO who showed their sporting dogs and one of their bragging rights was that their dogs also participated successfully in Field Trials. Ask at the local sporting goods stores, feed stores, etc., or if there is a local kennel club you could try contacting someone there.

 

[Arielle]

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I don't know how to tell the difference. I have one and he gets along with the chickens fine and the ducks as long as they stay on the ground. When the Mallards start flying he gets excited and tries to catch them. I haven't been able to break him of that. I like having him around because the only predator that I know of a problem with around here is foxes. He will keep any kind of land based predator scared away.


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The life of a feral is a tough life. We used to adopt feral cats and strays-- my favorite was Beemer-- a slur of BMW from Black 'n White. He would come in the house if I left the house door open, but freaked out if the door closed. He slept in a plastic tub lined with a sheep pelt and covered with a second pelt to make a flap door. He eventually trusted us to reach in and place food dishes. We never could pat him, but he was a wonderful cat. THe two I have now were trapped in Boston as kittens. DH brought 2 home and third went to a coworker willing to adopt it. No excuse for a feral cat or dog. None. Sorry this is one of my pet peeves. Pun intended.

 

[Cynthia12]

Had a Feral cat right in the middle of our neighborhood take one of my Heritage RIR pullets year before last.

 

[ozexpat]

Had a Feral cat right in the middle of our neighborhood take one of my Heritage RIR pullets year before last.

The cat we had visit took 4 of my 8 white Guineas. It takes such an effort to get the egg sto the Philippines, then to hatch them.

When Bernie ate the cat, he did say it tasted like chicken.

 

[insanity]

My DH had the "great" idea to get our boy a bunny for X-mas. I have spent the whole day searching only to find the closest quality french lop is 1000 miles away......I sometimes hate living in Wyo.