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From: booter@lll-crg.ARpA (Elaine Richards)
Newsgroups: net.pets
Subject: Re: Cats killing birds
Message-ID: <928@lll-crg.ARpA>
Date: Sun, 20-Oct-85 15:16:03 EDT
Article-I.D.: lll-crg.928
Posted: Sun Oct 20 15:16:03 1985
Date-Received: Tue, 22-Oct-85 04:49:26 EDT
References: <301@drutx.UUCP>
Reply-To: booter@lll-crg.UUCP (Elaine Richards)
Organization: Chocoholics Non-Anonymous
Lines: 36

In article <301@drutx.UUCP> slb@drutx.UUCP (Sue Brezden) writes:
>
>I have reason to believe that one of my cats has become a BIRD
>KILLER.
>
>Is there any way to disuade him from this practice?  I have 
>seen people put bells on cats for this--but that would probably
>drive me up the wall.  We feed the birds in the winter--I hate
>to attract them to their deaths.

Bells are very cute and they serve as a warning system to birds.
You know if Kitty is being coy about coming home when you call.
If you holler "KITTY!" and you hear the jingle you will be unlikely
to slam a door in its face. It warns the sleeping owner of Pearl
Harbor tactics.

Best bet (my personal favorite) is to keep your moggies in the house.
They live many years longer and are cleaner. My cat used to be an alley
cat. She LOVED being in the house after all the hassle outside. They
adapt. Your property, unlike dogs, have no legal rights outside. You
have no recompense if your animal is shot or molested by others. ( I
have heard of rural types playing target practice on cats, bells or no).

Stop feeding the birds. You cannot serve two masters :-). The cats will
not stop eating birds. If anything, put up a scarrecrow. Go to an aviary
for your avian fix.
>
>By the way, these are the declawed cats that people have flamed
>me about, and claimed were maimed for life.

My mother's cats are declawed. They are massive,too. Never lost a
fight with sheer bulk. Bird eaters, too. They just can't climb
trees, they leap over them :-).

E
*****