BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!

Subject: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: harpmolly
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 02:13 AM

I'm very sorry to do this, as this is totally non-music-related and really not anything that anyone needs to hear about, but I just have to get it out of my system.

Ew ew ew ew ew ew ew!!!!!

Nia (my beautiful kittycat) just came in from her outdoor ramblings, and I was thinking, "Oh good, now I can close the window and go to bed." And I look as she jumps down from the window, and she's got a dead (well, almost dead!) RAT in her mouth. I mean, this thing is HUGE. About fifteen inches long from nose to tail tip (yes, I measured, that's totally disgusting). And she drops it and I can see that it's still alive, barely--it sort of tries to get up, but can't quite manage it. I had to finish the thing off with one of my snow boots. I guess it's good that I'm getting some use out of them.

I love my kitty, but EWWWWWWW!!! She better not try to lick my nose tonight...

So anyway, just had to get the screaming heebie jeebies out of my system. I know this is a fairly common occurrence with cats, and she's caught mice twice before, but this was different--it's the first time I've EVER seen her catch anything this big. I mean, it was ENORMOUS. I almost wish I could have seen the fight, except that I'm queasy enough as it is. Ewwww.

Molly

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 02:50 AM

Rats that big are usually lone males that have gone 'walkabout' and so don't have the usual rat colony with them. With no dominant pack male to keep them in check, they eat anything and everything. 15 inches is pretty big, although our old arthritic Max cat brought in a very dead one that measured 18 inches. Seems the people over the back had been troubled by it so they put out some poison... Max cat just took the opportunity.

Check her carefully for rat bites, they can be nasty.

Why do cats always do this sort of thing on a Sunday morning when we're at our least dressed and most vulnerable?

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Georgiansilver
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 02:51 AM

Clever cats can take rabbits and have even been known to kill a large hare if quick enough to catch it off guard. Ever seen the way a confident cat can see a dog off....cats are pretty fearless creatures when allowed to exhibit some of their wilder traits.
Best wishes, Mike.

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Sandra in Sydney
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 06:01 AM

decades ago a friend was sitting in what his wife called the Reading Room (the downstairs loo) when their cat came in thru the cat door & deposited a snake on his feet! Fortunately it was dead.

sandra

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: mandotim
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 06:26 AM

Cat psychology is a hobby of mine; the consensus seems to be that cats consider humans to be really useless at important things like hunting, so they take it upon themselves to teach you how to do it by bringing you prey that is progressively 'less dead', and inviting you to kill it. This is how kittens are taught to hunt, and says a lot about how cats regard their 'owners'. Personally, I tend to agree with the statement that says 'dogs have owners; cats have staff'!
Tim (who has three cats, and a dog who knows his place.)

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: kendall
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 06:26 AM

So, your adoring cat brings you a gift, and you spurn it? hehehe

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Mo the caller
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 07:02 AM

We've been picking cherries and strwaberries this year, last year the birds got them all but we were catless then. Strange that we don't see rabbits on the lawn this year, either.
Any idea how to train him to catch moles?

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Mr Red
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 08:04 AM

Did kitty knock on the door first? sort of rat-a-tat-tat with a tatty rat?

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Ferrara
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 09:12 AM

Mr. Red -- "Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!! " (LOL)

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Donuel
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 09:29 AM

The biggest rodent is about 4 feet long.
Its called a beaver.

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Big Jim from Jackson
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 09:38 AM

Here is Missouri we've got a couple of politicians that are taller than 4 feet........

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Becca72
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 10:27 AM

Molly...caught my two 5 month old kittens playing with shit the other day...literally. I walked over to see what they were tossing around and playing keep-away with, and it was a turd. Bleck.

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: robomatic
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 10:37 AM

Nia was just payin' the rent. Me brother's moggie once brought home a squirrel, ate the head on the front steps, and left them the rest.

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 10:40 AM

It might not be a large bit of prey, but my calico Clementine nailed the darned B-57-sized house fly that was buzzing all of us last night. This was a true service and she was congratulated heartily.

They also catch geckos and tarantulas (though if we spot them first we rescue and release them outside).

Now the dogs. . . that's another story. Biggest things I've seen them catch are a possum and a snake. Birds (mourning doves) that are moving slow have been caught. Squirrels are a constant target, especially since they seem to be taunting the dogs lately.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 10:52 AM

My cat once caught a centipede, and then ate it, making a disgusting crunchy sound, and then tried to snuggle up to me.

The thought of the cat breathing on me, or licking me, with that same mouth really grossed me out. I had to politely decline the offer.

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: kendall
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 11:03 AM

Pedant alert...I believe the biggest rodent is the Capybara. Not many of them around here though.

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: SunnySister
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 11:07 AM

To add to this thread, I once saw a friend's cat bring him a HUGE black coot. The bird was bigger than the cat, but the cat was DETERMINED and pulled that dead bird all the way to her dad. Amazing!

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: harpmolly
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 11:49 AM

Oh my goodness! :)

In the interest of full disclosure, the rat's body was about 7 inches long and the tail another 8 inches. And it took a lot of nerve to get close enough to measure it. ;)

What's really funny is that, even though she brought the rat in from outside, I was still seriously freaked for the rest of the night. I did that thing where you sort of *leap* onto the bed from a few feet away, because I didn't want my feet standing right next to the space under the bed. Damn that Stephen King! Arrgh!

I suppose I should be proud of my little ratter. When she caught the mouse, even though I felt sorry for the little thing, I did feel a twinge of pride (sick, I know). But this rat was something else entirely. Eurrgh.

Liz--she doesn't seem injured, just all riled up. ;) I threw the catnip mouse around for her a bit and she attacked it with a vengeance. I'm glad she didn't run into the unfriendly upstairs kitty before she came in--usually she's smart enough to run, but in her state of carnivorous hyper-awareness she might have put up a fight, which wouldn't be good. Run kitty run!

OK, anyway. Thanks for listening and responding, all. ;) At least I have a story to regale my colleagues with this morning.

Cheers,

Molly

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Mrrzy
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 11:57 AM

Whenever I was pregnant my cat brought me live things. Otherwise she just displays the dead ones, sometimes neatly placing the head next to the body. The biggest thing she ever brought was an adult squirrel, I was impressed. And she could tell when I was pregnant before I could.
The biggest ewwwwww was my sister's cat who brought in a live mouse once that ran and hid under her sleeping boyfriend (the sister's,that is) on the floor, and we didn't find it till the next day when I suddenly wondered what was under my bare foot and lo and behold,it was the mouse. Have youever tried to lift both feet off the floor and curl all your toes while standing up?

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: harpmolly
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 12:03 PM

LOL Mrrzy!

My cat has caught two mice to date. Both were inside my apartment; however, both times were on a day after I had fallen asleep and left the window open all night for her (and anything else, apparently) to come in and out. Boy, have I learned my lesson. I had been thinking of rigging some kind of cat door for her, but now I wonder if I can't set up one of those doors that's rigged electronically to her collar, so only she can use it. Unfortunately I don't have any doors or windows that are really well set up for that...

Argh, must go off to work. Thanks for the empathy/anecdotes all!

Molly

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Greg F.
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 12:03 PM

Precisely why domestic cats shouldn't be allowed to run loose at large. Even tho they're well fed at home, they just can't help killing small creatures for the hell of it.

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Midchuck
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 01:07 PM

Check her over really carefully. Even a tiny bite from one of those things, too small to be seen under the fur, can infect really badly. And cats have this thing of wounds healing over on the surface and abcessing underneath. Rats don't wash much.

Peter.

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Clinton Hammond
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 01:11 PM

"She better not try to lick my nose tonight..."

Your cats mouth is cleaner than yours

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Wesley S
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 01:13 PM

What - no snakes yet? Where there are rats there are snakes. Our cat brought home a snake that was longer than she was. Still alive too. But be proud - you have a cat that is a mighty hunter - and loves you too. I'm sure there will be more presents to follow.

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Kaleea
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 01:32 PM

It never ceases to amaze me that our sweet little lap kitties, bring us trophies so we can show them our undying love. When my kitties (now in kitty heaven) were young, one would catch any mousies that dared to enter our home, as the other accompanied her (not musically), both with huge wild eyes. When my little mouser went to kitty heaven, years later her sister occasionally went over to the a spot along the edge of the floor, sniffed along a bit, & looked at me with huge wild eyes letting me know that it was time to go get some mouse traps. Very thoughtful of her, huh?

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: frogprince
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 01:44 PM

I think the farm dog I grew up with gave me all the biggest "ewwwwws"
I have had from pets. When dad carried a chicken to the chopping block, Tippy would almost turn sumersaults for joy. The chicken head would never hit the ground; Tip would catch it in mid air, and the crunching sounds for the next few minutes would be way beyond grape nuts cereal.

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Charmion
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 02:47 PM

Wouldn't you rather have that rat dragged in dead by the cat than find him wide awake and feasting in your pantry? I sure would! Ratting is a valuable skill in a housecat.

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: GUEST,Art Thieme
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 03:30 PM

Living on the Oregon coast, 1967, our cat, "Rinning Bear", brought in a nice little snake --- and put it in my boot. Imagine my surprise!?

Art

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 04:31 PM

So, Art, I guess that meant that you were "running bare" for a while until you decided to trust your feet inside those boots again.

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: GUEST,
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 05:38 PM

Someone told me that if your cat brings you a mouse it means you are pregnant (presumably it only applies if you are female).
The only time my cat brought a mouse and presented it to me I was a bit past that sort of thing, but it turned out my daughter was pregnant.

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: jacqui.c
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 06:28 PM

Not so GUEST. My cat regularly presented me with mice - dead or alive - and I had my last child many years before.

Nice story, but that's all it is.

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: GUEST,Bee
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 08:09 PM

My last kitty (died two years ago) was hopeless at small bird catching (to my relief). He was mammal specialist with a few sidelines, and brought me, over twelve years: moths, june bugs, a bat, a baby otter (live, likely abandoned, rehabbed succesfully by wildlife facility), rabbits (he was rawther beaten about by the first one), squirrels by the dozen, mousies in their infinite variety (house, deer, field, etc.), a large partridge, a mole, various shrews, a frog (which he did not like), several small snakes (unfortunately)and one live salamander.

Since he died, we've had squirrel and mouse problems regularly. He was a useful and fond companion, much missed.

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: GUEST
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 09:00 PM

From: Donuel
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 09:29 AM

The biggest rodent is about 4 feet long.
Its called a beaver.


The largest rodent is the Capybara. I'd like to see a house cat drag one of them home.

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Peace
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 09:03 PM

You rang?

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: GUEST,Joe_F
Date: 17 Jul 06 - 09:14 PM

It needn't be non-music-related. You can always write a song about it.

Molly is a good old gal. I brought her home a mouse, But when she come to find it out, All she did was grouse, lawd, lawd, All she did was grouse.

Molly is a good old gal. I brought her home a snake, But when she come to find it out, She said Oh, for Jesus' sake....

Molly is a good old gal. I brought her home a rat, But when she come to find it out, She up and smashed it flat....

-- The difference between cats & people is that cats know what people are for.

--- Joe Fineman    [e-mail]

||: The business of politicians is not leadership but compromise. Leadership is the business of martyrs. :||

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 18 Jul 06 - 05:32 AM

Over the years and via 6 different cats we've had: countless mice, baby rats, blackbirds, blue tits, sparrows, voles and shrews. There has also been an 18inch rat, a pigeon that at the time was bigger than the cat that dragged it in, a frog, a live rabbit (kitten training), a multitude of spiders, beetles, moths and flies, and a pork chop.

There was one jolly afternoon where we disposed of the remains of 5 baby rats. They were being brought in by the old and toothless Shadow, whom we thought way past hunting and certainly not dentally capable of crunching up rodents. Turns out she was waiting on the fence for Ceramin (young, male, toothy) who would trot along the fence with his latest acquisition. She would then smack him carefully around the head, whereupon he'd drop the rat. She'd pick up the rat and bring it in to us, and he'd go off and get another.

10/10 for enterprise eh?

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Big Mick
Date: 18 Jul 06 - 05:42 AM

Once, when I was a kid, I was laying about (I have a long history of this) in the front yard. I had a wonderful beagle friend whose name was Daisy Mae. I happened to look down the street and saw Daisy Mae coming backwards down the street, obviously dragging something. The block is about a 1/4 mile long so it took her a bit but eventually she drags into the yard a 5 lb. bag of dogfood. Where the hell she got it, I will never know but she promptly ripped it open and proceeded to eat enough of it that she laid in the front yard and groaned the rest of the afternoon. I laugh thinking about it all these years later.

Mick

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Emmells
Date: 18 Jul 06 - 06:39 AM

I'm the proud servant to two cats. One will kill anything and regularly brings presents home for me. The other, obviously feeling left out, has decided to join in. So far she's brought me:
a leaf (quite a big one though. It rustled quite loudly...)
a piece of string (not very big or snakelike, but one has to start somewhere)
a slug.
Hmmm

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Crystal
Date: 18 Jul 06 - 06:53 AM

When my grandfather died my grandmothers cat started bringing in prey. Sometimes it was mice, whole or partial (little mousey entrails on the carpet, not nice at 6am!) and occasionally alive and trying to remove mice from behind the court cupbord was the job of my mother and I for a while. Once he brought her a squiril which he laid carefully in the bath although his best kills were pigins. He used to actually eat the pigins, usually when we were sitting down to tea. My sister sat with her back to the garden, but I sat facing the glass door so gor an unriveled view. I think that the sounds of little bird bones crunching was the worst bit!
Once her brought her a strange bird, it was black and white with a slightly hooked beak. Three doors down were some light sussex bantems (black and white with slightly curved beak) My mother put two and two together and we spent a morning removing feathers from the lawn!

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: jacqui.c
Date: 18 Jul 06 - 07:52 AM

I had a cat at one time who specialised in frogs.

In the summer the garden was alive with frogs so she had a great hunting ground. I always knew when she had one - she would sit in the hall with her head bobbing up and down as she watched the poor little thing hop across the floor to try and escape. Unlike the birds and mice she bought in she never, to my knowledge, actually killed a frog and I had the job of reinstating them in the garden - my ex-husband wouldn't go near any of Bitsie's captives.

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Becca72
Date: 18 Jul 06 - 08:24 AM

Mick,
LOLOLOL!!

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Big Mick
Date: 18 Jul 06 - 11:04 AM

Then there is my Esmerelda. She is a calico cat, fat and gorgeous. And an absolute terror to any rodent, or other cat, that happens onto her turf. And as an aside, if you sit in one certain chair, your chest is immediately fair game for perforation as she stares in your face, purrs at a decibel factor that threatens the tympanic membrane with rupture, and contentedly shreds you through your shirt.

When my youngest daughter Ciara decided she wanted a hamster for a pet, we decided we could successfully do this and teach her how to be responsible for it. We had not reckoned with the will of Esmerelda. One night we came home, she had managed to get up on the shelf, knock the lid off, and the hamster was minus a head. Ciara was very upset with her. We decided to try again, got another wee rat, put the lid on with twist ties and stacked books around the cage. Came home one night, the whole cage was on the floor, broken open, and the blessed remains sitting there. I counseled Ciara that we could not be upset with Essie as she was doing what cats do. I then went and bought a habit trail environment. This is that thing that twists together, plastic tubes. No way that cat could get this open. Worked for several weeks. It was actually fun to watch the hamster in the habitat and Essie watching but not able to do anything. We went away once, came back, and the habitrail is in pieces on the floor, and the hamster has departed for the great environment in the sky. At this point, I sat down with Ciara and we decided that it was cheaper to just buy catfood and decidedly fairer to the hamsters. And Esmerelda just walked around with her chest puffed out, as if boasting of the fine job she had done protecting us from destruction at the hands of the evil hamster empire.

All the best,

Mick

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: harpmolly
Date: 18 Jul 06 - 11:42 AM

*trying in vain to stop laughing and failing miserably*...

Well, OK, maybe my Nia isn't the Ultimate Predator after all. ;) At least she didn't bring in anything last night, thank goodness.

I used to live with a girl who had two big puffy Persian cats (one sweet as pie, the other a total sociopath). She also had a goldfish in a bowl on the mantel, and the cats would sit up there and watch it intently, and even stick a paw tentatively in the water every once in a while. We kept expecting to come home one day and find the bowl in pieces on the floor and the goldfish...how did you put it, Mick? departed for the great environment in the sky? ;)

Amazingly, it never happened, and the more I think about it, the more it surprises me. I mean, these cats were huge--I can't see why they couldn't have easily got the better of this goldfish. I guess it was a case of the hunt being more fun than the conquest.

Cheers,

Molly

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: SINSULL
Date: 18 Jul 06 - 01:14 PM

Freddie came from an apartment in NYC and taught himself to hunt. He started with worms - Godzilla size wormms that dragged the ground out of both sides of his mouth. My neighbors used to sit on their front steps every night and watch Freddie "worm". He has graduated to mice, birds, squirrels, and chipmunks.

When he comes home at night, he scratches on the door and looks up so I can see his mouth is empty. Too many dead things in my bed.

He did come home with the cutest little mouse who got loose in the house and ran around for days. I finally trapped it under a vacuum cleaner in the bathroom and caught it in a Tupperware container for release outside.

He was very alive when Freddie brought him into my bedroom and set him loose on my pillow. Four cats and a mouse with me in the middle - Yuk.

The worst is the dead birds he sneaks in and de-feathers. Feathers everywhere. I keep reminding him about bird flu but ...

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Little Hawk
Date: 18 Jul 06 - 01:31 PM

What you need to do, Mick, is wall off an entire small room with a thick, bullet-proof armour glass wall, and make that the "rodent room". In it will be housed several hamsters, rats, and gerbils, running around happily on their exercise wheels while your cat Esmeralda watches in total frustration from her side of the glass wall. Entrance to the room will only be achievable through a double set of security doors in a small antechamber with a cat-annihilating electrical beam set to go off if Esmeralda gets past the first door.

This should do it. Your daughter will experience the joy of having rodents in the house, and your cat will be forced to put up with it.

I should think this could be done with a modest expenditure of funds, as long as you put aside purchasing any more musical instruments for, oh, maybe five or ten years.

It's worth doing! Get to it.

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Big Mick
Date: 18 Jul 06 - 03:15 PM

Then, from my youth, there was my old yellow tomcat whose name was Cookie. The stories about this feline neer do well are numerous and legendary.

My blessed Mother hated this cat. The fact that the children loved this cat is all that saved him. I never understood why she disliked him. Just because my Mother loved her tropical fish, which she kept in a very nice, very large, aquarium, and she happened to find ole Cook on top, up to his shoulders trying to swat at the fish. Who said cats don't like water. Every so often he would get one, but only a few. My Mother went after him with a broom once when he was up there on top of the fish tank, lost her balance, fell into the tank and over it went. Wisely, Cookie went into hiding for a few days. But other than that, I never could tell why she didn't like him.

Well, there was one more thing. A small thing really. It seems that Cookie, like all cats, really liked to leave a load of shite in dirt. And his favorite dirt to do this in was the dirt in my Mom's favorite potted Dieffenbachia. Every few days, this god awful smell would emanate from the living room. Upon inspection, one found the plant knocked over with a load of cat shit in the root ball. And no cat to be found. No matter where she moved that plant, somehow the phantom Cookie would find it and leave a surprise. Last I knew, that plant is still around and huge. But my Mother never saw the humor in it.

Old Cookie was Ard Ri of the neighborhood pets. I suppose he would have been a handsome devil, had it not been for the various body parts with pieces either missing or mightily scarred. One of his rituals was, upon evidence of a new dog or cat in the neighborhood being found, to march over to the interlopers place of residence, stake the area out, and promptly whip kitty ass on them when they showed their face. The old yellow cat just had to make sure that everyone understood who was boss in the neighborhood. One day, a neighbor brought home a St. Bernard. Big old dumb guy that just liked to lick things. Dumbass tried to lick Cookie. Huge error in judgement. That old cat jumped straight up in the air, came down in a fury of slashing claws and shredded that big dumbass. The dog was too dumb to understand pain, so he just took that massive paw and pinned the cat down. Out comes Cookie and tears his ass up again. The St. Bernard thought this was a lovely game, even though he was bleeding from places that I didn't know one could bleed from. Discretion being the better part of valor, and with no evidence that killing the dog would stop it, Cookie lit out for home with dumbass dog on her tail as if there was more playing to be done. The dog cornered Cookie in the basement window, whereupon Cookie lit into whatever else was left of this guy. Eventually the dog managed to push Cookie through the basement window. Ole Cook fell about 8 feet, hit the floor in front of my Mother who was doing wash, shook himself off, and according to her, gave her a dirty look and walked away with a pride that seemed to indicate that he had meant to go through that window.

In those days, we had a milkman. Every week he would leave 8 bottles of milk in our back entry sitting on the top step. As we emptied the bottles, we would set them on the top step beside the landing that led down to the basement. Cookie had a secret entry into the basement that none of us could ever figure out. If Cookie was out at night, and came in through the passageway known to none but him, he would find himself at the top of the basement stairs but unable to enter the house proper. First he would stand on his hind legs and bat the door handle back and forth with his front paws until he woke my Da or Mom. He would do this for 15 or 20 minutes. If they ignored him, he would go to plan B. One at a time, every minute or so, he would knock one bottle down the 15 or so stairs where it would land and break. Eventually he got let in. Once again, my Ma failed to see the humor in this, but us kids would just roar.

In the way of old tomcat's, Cookie would disappear from time to time to visit with the ladies of the area. One day he took a ramble and didn't come back. Months went by, us kids would look high and low, but we couldn't find our old buddy. Finally we resigned ourselves to him finally being a completed chapter in our life. My Ma would always say she was glad the old rake was gone, and how much she disliked him. But I swear I saw a little smile on her face when she said it. Me and my Da would sit and tell stories about this old rake. One day, must have been 6 to 8 months later, there came a rattle at the downstairs door. My Ma looked like she had been shot. I ran over, opened it, and all four of us kids hollered "Cookie" in unison. My Mother just said "Oh No!!!!" as if the world had ended. The old boy was filthy black, as if he had been living in a coal bin, missing a tooth, not in good health. He hung out for a few days, as if to say goodbye, then disappeared for good.

Quite a character. Here's one to old Cookie.

All the best,

Mick

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: frogprince
Date: 18 Jul 06 - 03:55 PM

When I was in my late teens, my elder sister acquired a sweet widdle kittums which evolved into a large, evil tom named "Puddy Tat". How many bleeding bites and scratches that #%^&@ inflicted on unfortunate souls who tried to befriend him, God only knows. When Sis and her houshold went on vacation, dear "Puddy" would be a guest on the old family farm, locked in the combination milking barn and chicken house, where he at least served to decimate sparrows that found their way in. If he ever tried to take on any of the leghorn chickens, they apparently held their own.

Now our rural area was plagued by Moorman livestock feed salesment. That's not a typo; I have no idea if the brand still exists. Get one of them on the farm, and you damn near had to shoot him and bury him in the back forty to get rid of him. One of 'em shows up one day and latches unto me, and I couldn't locate Dad to pass him off to. I told the guy I thought we had what we needed at the moment, but he insisted on following me into the barn to check.

There was an old refrigerator, for cooling separated cream, just inside the barn door. The salesman followed me in the door, and suddenly, out of the corner of my eye, I saw him break into a rather remarkable dance routine. Old Puddy had sailed off the top of the refrigerator, landed on the guy's shoulder, and ripped a strip out of the back of his shirt all the way down to his belt. The guy left soon, I never saw him again, and for one moment in time I had kind thougts for "Puddy Tat".

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Nigel Parsons
Date: 18 Jul 06 - 05:29 PM

Not mine, (possibly Cynthia McQuillan?)

"I remember the first mouse she brought me,
A month or two back, I recall.
Just try to explain to Mousetronic
How cat-spit has gummed up the ball!"


CHEERS
Nigel

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Little Hawk
Date: 18 Jul 06 - 05:39 PM

We had a big orange Tabby named "Taffy" who was very similar to Mick's cat from the sounds of it. He lived to beat up other cats and dogs, and never lost a fight that I know of...nor did he ever seem to suffer much damage in them. The local dogs developed a real grudge against him, all having had the stuffing beaten out of them at least once. So one day three of them decided to form a pack and finish him off. I saw them coming over to our place. King was in the lead. He was a nasty, medium-sized German shepherd sort of dog...smaller than most German shepherds you see nowadays. Following him was Baron, a clumsy and not very smart long-eared hound of some kind. Bringing up the rear was Perky, a hysterical cocker spaniel. King was the only one in the trio who was serious business, and Taffy knew that.

Taffy was in the front yard, and they quickly moved in to corner him against the wall of our house. Taffy sized up the situation in an instant, spat a threat, and sailed into Perky like a meteor. The cocker spaniel shrieked and fled instantly as Taffy rebounded straight into Baron and starting carving up his face. Baron gave a startled bark and yelp, backed off and thought better of it. He also turned and ran. That left King, who had fruitlessly attempted to get hold of Taffy in the couple of seconds it took the cat to rout the other two dogs. In a furious skirmish with King, Taffy lacerated his old adversary's face and back thoroughly, and King also fled, no doubt cursing his chicken-hearted confederates who had let him down when the time of testing came.

It was a superb demonstration of feline martial arts on Taffy's part, just like one of those Kung-Fu movies where the master takes on the gang of thugs.

Subject: RE: BS: Ewwwwwwwwwwwwww!!!
From: Georgiansilver
Date: 18 Jul 06 - 05:52 PM

To those of you who think your cat should fit neatly into its little compartment....why? It has a natural wild heritage and with it go the instincts which will never die. Your cat tolerates you because you take care of it and it may even allow you to remove the odd thorn or tick. Don't however get the idea that you own your cat...it owns or tolerates you..that's it...no messin'
Best wishes, MIke.