Wild Life

[poliphilo]

A fat, brindled-grey  pussycat appears in the backyard. He is looking up at something that interests him in the ivy on the side wall. I stare at him through the window. He catches on- and returns my gaze. I think hostile thoughts. He drops his eyes, turns and hurries away.

I'm sorry, but I'm not having it. This backyard belongs to a family of blackbirds and a robin. Go back to your house and eat kitty-chow, fat, brindled-grey pussycat. You're not welcome here-  beautiful though you undoubtedly are.

As the cat disappears round the side of the house I notice the robin watching from high up in the bare branches of the hawthorn tree. He's not stupid. He knew.

Comments

[pondhopper.livejournal.com]

Our neighbour next door used to have 10 cats. They were always here and not even the dogs could chase them away as the kitties loved to climb our olive trees that are full of birds. You must have cat scaring powers.
;)

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I dunno. I find with any animal that you can usually stare them down. Either that, or they'll tear you throat out.

[daisytells.livejournal.com]

I dont know if he had bad eyesight or what, but my old Siamese Tim would look a person right in the eye and never waver. I believed he was an old soul.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

We had a cat like that. We called him Churchill- because he was bandy-legged and looked like a bulldog.

[mummm.livejournal.com]

I was told a while back that cats only catch the birds that are not well.
Personally, I think it depends on the cat.
Rudi can't catch anything... spoiled rotten fat cat that he is. He just tries to stare them down.
Right now he would never go outside anyway. It's -20ºF.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

I don't believe that either.

It's my main objection to cats- that they decimate the wildlife- and I'm very fond of wildlife- birds especially, but also mice.

-20. I'm not sure I can even imagine what that must feel like!

[mummm.livejournal.com]

-20 plus wind chill... imagine your skin freezing within minutes.

Personally I think that humans have done FAR FAR more to decimate the wildlife than cats. I'm fond of wildlife too.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

And, of course, it's the humans who own the cats.....

[mummm.livejournal.com]

okay

[sculptruth.livejournal.com]

Ha haha! And yay, for the robin, who is smart!

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

The robin owns the yard!

[daisytells.livejournal.com]

When we lived in the country the cats were able to go outside for most of the day. When they returned for supper I kept them in at night, so that they would not meet a skunk.
My poor old Siamese cat was the underdog in the cat-vs.-bird battle. He would go outside in "his" yard to enjoy the sun, and suddenly from above, the mockingbird would attack, diving at him. When Tim was not fast enough, the bird would peck at the top of the cat's head and then continue on his flight. He would come back again if Tim did not find another place in the yard to hang out.
The other two cats completely avoided that spot.
Obviously there was a mockingbird nest someplace close by.

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

Poor old Tim!

Our...

[mikesmaddie.livejournal.com]

...lady cat (Spook) is strictly an indoor cat.

As was her companion cat (Sparks (our gentleman cat who passed away in October 2007)).

Besides, there's no way I would let any animal out where we live. There's too many cars, people (some of them being idiots), and things around here that would prove dangerous to a cat.

God bless and take care.
Olga/Maddie