Wednesday, January 18, 2023

Dream big, I always say

I noticed our neighbor's cat in our pasture the other morning, focusing on something.

This section of pasture appears to be a rich hunting ground, and we often see our neighbor's cats making short work of voles and mice. But this time the cat was looking a little beyond a small rock outcrop. She seemed nervous, too.

But whatever she was stalking certainly had her attention.

Interestingly, a couple of turkeys walked past just about then. It seemed the cat and the turkeys completely ignored each other, though to be fair those huge (by comparison) turkeys could be why the cat appeared nervous.

Turkey: "Hey, watcha doing?" Cat: "Shut up. Shut up!"

I finally saw what the cat was focusing on: a couple of male pheasants.

Well, that's ambitious. Those pheasants are nearly as big as the cat. Dream big, I always say.

Another turkey walked by the pheasant. Can you imagine the conversation? Turkey: "Pssst. Hey Charlie, the cat is after you." Pheasant: "Thanks, Hank. Let him try."

Pheasant: "I seeee you!"

Cat: "Nuts. The jig is up. Retreat!"

Ah, kitty drama.

5 comments:

  1. Neighbor cats would sit and look at my chickens. I thought the cats were afraid of the chickens.

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  2. Excellent anthropomorphic dialogue!

    I believe that a cat's predatory instinct is equaled by its curiosity. Many times, they just want to watch and observe.

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  3. I look forward to reading that book when it comes out :)

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  4. One morning I went out on the porch. A chicken was underneath a chair clearly on her side with her legs sticking out. I went to check on her afraid she might be dead.
    Old Kitty was wrapped around her back with her mouth around the chickens neck but all the feathers were presenting a problem for the cat.

    This cat killed a squirrel once by doing this same maneuver and chewing the head off. This was her plan for the chicken and if I hadn't caught her it would have eventually worked. She is no longer allowed outside. My motto is, let her kill mice!
    Never underestimate the instincts of a true predator. My cats are well fed. This was just about getting a thrill from the kill.
    My young male cat has only accidentally killed some "squeaky toys". They tend to get away. So if I catch him with one I take it away and dispatch the poor terrified critter with a prayer for his forgiveness. Old Kitty has taken things away too, and killed them as well.
    He goes next door and, or just out in the woods, and brings things home. I find many moles dead in the yard and he is often carrying a new "toy" when he obediently comes to my call. Some of the moles get away too, because now they're in my yard.
    I keep wondering how he catches So Many Moles!
    The last time he was carrying a chipmonk. He took it to the dog and laid it down like a present then went off a ways to watch. The dog very gently picked up the terrified rodent, and shook it hard. Dead.
    Dog rules mean he only allows family in his yard, and he questions me about chickens being family all the time. So they can't go out unless he's in and I'm there to babysit.
    There truly is a lot of animal drama.

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