Cat in Charge of Rodent Control

Hello Sondra. This sort of thing is uncomfortable for me. I guess feral cats need a place too but to take a cat and not name or pamper them is just foreign to me. Clearly the Orange cat has a friend in the horse.

Sondra ~ Cats, indoors or out, are very effective mousers. My Kitty Thunder brings them to me after he plays with them, (to death). He's an indoor cat and he still does his duty. Great story. All cats, no matter where they grow up have that natural instinct and every once in awhile, even the feral cats love attention. Even if it's just a treat.   :)

Since there are so many unwanted animals in this country, I think this is a great idea.  I actually feel sorry for indoor cats (and I've had them, safety comes first.)  For a cat to roam freely without fear of being run over or poisoned is a wonderful thing.

BYW, we call our dog a barn dog (no barn anywhere nearby) - she is pampered to pieces, but she loves just hanging outside.  We got her an invisible fence and let her hang out all she wants.

I took in a stray at my office and he did NOT want to be an inside cat.  I tried my house with other animals, nope.  I tried keeping him inside only at the office (it's on a very busy road).  Nope.  I finally took him to my parents house.  He is loved and petted and pampered and in bad weather can come into the garage or screened porch or into their root celler if he chooses.  He does have a name, Jack.  But he wanted to be a hunter and live outside.  He is happy.

The Barn Cat Buddies program sounds like a wonderful win win for adoption of the right kind of cats and the lifestyle of the farm and ranch. The spaying and neutering with the program is so important too. That photo of Slick and the orange cat made me smile Sondra. In Florida the cats brought by the lizards and snakes to the doorstep. I can just never figure out with cats like homing pigeons despite how far they wander they still find their way back home. I think it has something to do with the food.

Our local shelter use to do a program very much like this one, only barn cats were free. We usually ended up with a donation anyway, and that was nice. Now due to budget problems, this program has come to an end. But I'm glad to see your shelter does something like this. It's a great idea. This is yet another option for homeless pets. Maybe we can spread the word and other shelters will develope similar programs.

They don't call them cat-like reflexes for  nothing, eh?

Love and light,

Laura

As mom to two rescued cats, this is totally the way to go! Indoors or outdoors, I also cannot imagine living in a rural area without a cat to control the rodent population. Of course, mine has brought me "presents" at times, even a half ravaged rabbit through the dog door once!

Sondra, Our cats also seem to be pretty good at whacking the occasional garter snake.  We wish they'd leave them alone, but our kitties aren't selective about what they play with when it gets on their turf.  But happy to see them whack all the rodents they can, especially the ones that tunnel through our yard.

I've never been a cat person, but if I lived in the country I probably would be.                                                                  

Hi Sondra, nice post about cats and living in the country. I think it is very natural to have barn cats there, especially when they earn their keep and keep out the rodents.

Yeah, cats are definitely a good help indoors and out as well. But to think that cats want to be spoiled everytime, I don't think that it's a good idea to outcast them. They may be very wild and cocky though when  always left outside living on their own when it have its owners that should take care of them.

Great blog post Sondra, and I agree that barn cats are very happy with their lot in life. As a rural agent I'm in and out of barns all the time and people shouldn't confuse barn cats and feral cats (although feral cats have been known to "colonize" abandoned properties). Barn cats love their freedom and they would not be happy indoors at all.

Hi Sondra ...I can't imagine a barn without a cat or 2 ....   Barn cats are Americana !!!!  Congratulations on the Featured Post !!

Sondra, some of the barn cats I've met are truly the happiest well-adjusted kitties in the world!  I absolutely LOVED the pic of the horse "kissing" miss kitty!!

I enjoy your posts.  Some of us in urban areas do not know much about country living or barn cats.

Have an outstanding week.

My cats never went outside, but now when I live in a house, they like to have a little walk around the property. They come home to eat, so probably no hunting in here.