"Lis" wrote in message
ps.com...
On Jun 17, 7:58 am, "Garret Swayne" wrote:
Well thanks for all the comments. I know hunting is an instinct in cats.
But really, that doesn't make me feel any better about it when I have to
pick up the broken body of a terrified, mortally wounded bird! There are
a
lot of instincts which we civilized types would like to discourage in our
kitty companions! The two suggestions that I found most interesting
we

-to stick a bell on Zack's neck to warn the birds of his stealthy
approach
(This is a practical suggestion I will seriously consider.)

-to not react with anger or displeasure at the sight of his kill, for
it's
really a "gift" that he's offering me and I don't want to appear
"ungracious".

Now this latter observation, I must say, I can't help but be skeptical
about. Is that really true? Or are we just stretching to ascribe
"positive" human attributes to our feline buddies, whom we love and
cherish?
If cats were really "givers" by nature, I'd think they're smart enough to
figure out a lot of other things we'd prefer to receive rather than a
dead
carcass! Seriously, is there any scientific research to suggest that
they
really are bringing us what they consider a "gift"? And that by my
expressing displeasure, I will only encourage more of the offensive
behavior? I would think that by praising the animal, that's what would
encourage more of the killing behavior! But I'm open to being educated
about this, from valid scientific sources.

Cats are social animals; they're not pack hunters, but they are social
animals. Feral and semi-feral colonies have been videotaped; females
share prey with their offspring and with their sisters. They not only
babysit but actually nurse each other's kittens. Even the males, who
rove more, will sometimes share prey with the resident females.

When we bring cats into our homes, we make ourselvs part of their
"colony," their social grouping. And they respond to us in some ways
as if they were our kittens, in some ways as if we were their kittens,
in some ways as if we were their siblings. Sharing prey is a normal
and natural part of that. And no, even though sharing is normal for
them and they are bringing us a gift when they bring us prey, they are
not smart enough to figure out that it's not the kind of "gift" we
want--nor would they have much ability to bring us a different kind of
gift even if they did figure it out. It's not like they can take their
American Express card and pick up something nice at Nordstrom's, after
all. What they do is hunt, and they share with us what they catch. It
_should_ give you a warm glow.

It's too bad Zack has apparently focused on birds as his preferred
prey, rather than rodents. You do want to prevent or discourage that,
if you can. Keep him indoors, or put bells on his collar.

The question I'm really asking is this: Is there any way in the world to
teach a cat the concept of compassion? That'd be a nice trick, eh? Like
maybe a cat who's been traumatized by a larger predatory animal like a
dog
or a cayote might be able to develop some sense of identification with
the
smaller victims they terrorize? No, I'm not suggesting throwing the cat
to
a pack of cayotes! But I'm wondering, can cats be taught compassion, and
if
so, how?

No, you can't teach your cat compassion for members of its natural
prey species. They're cats, the most efficient predators on the planet
(number of species killed, number of individuals killed, hunting
success rate--cats are deadly hunters.) Sharing with colony members is
part of their repertoire; compassion for prey species is not. A cat
traumatized by a larger predator will not feel any sense of
identification with its own prey; it will just be a traumatized cat.

The most effective way of preventing your cat from killing the local
bird population is by keeping him indoors. If that's not practical,
put bells on his collar, and that will reduce his success rate.

Lis

Yes....Our cats think of the raccoons we feed as part of the family, but
then, the raccoons are big enough to take care of themselves, and so it's
really the raccoons who don't kill the cats that I should be talking about.
The birds, even though we feed them, are considered fair game by the
cats....fortunately, the cats aren't fast enough to kill very many of
them.....I can only remember about three or four birds total in over 10
years, and we have fed many thousands of birds all Winter during that same
time period, so the birds are way ahead....We are careful to hang the bird
feeders out of the reach of the cats......Well fed cats aren't very good at
hunting.....It's not a matter of life and death for them, so they just play
at it.....It's significant that our feral cat never hunts for birds (or
anything else) at all. He has become totally dependent on our cat food, and
couldn't care less if he never had to hunt for anything again.
I doubt if you could teach your cats compassion....They have identified
over 100 different sounds cats make to communicate, and compassion is not
one of them.......