feeding a live mouse?

dreamangl686 · 04-04-2012, 11:39 AM

i know it is ethically questionable, but i have been considering buying casper a live feeder mouse. is this terrible/unhealthy/horrible? he is an indoor only cat, minus his little adventures outside on a leash, so he won't have the opportunity to chase prey otherwise. if the mouse does escape, my family has an indoor/outdoor cat that is quite the hunter, so i am not worried about it causing issues in my house. opinions?

BotanyBlack · 04-04-2012, 11:56 AM

I understand the need for cats the hunt, it is very natural. My opinion is use a dead one because if your cat really is not used to hunting a bite or scratch around the face (eyes) or paws can be a issue. Bites infect easy. most live feeder mice bought at the pet store are not bred in great conditions. This is my main issue with feeding live.

now to the part people will undoubtedly say... why torture a mouse? I have seen Pepper catch wild mice and I got to say, I feel for the little buggers they do not die easy.. where Sherbert would catch and kill in a single bite. Pepper would take her prey to the tub and play with them forever, I am sure she broke every bone in their little bodies twice over before Sherbert finally just killed it for her. My cats are just as happy to catch live crickets I can buy for them (which are a good source of taurine BTW).

dreamangl686 · 04-04-2012, 11:59 AM

never considered crickets! casper happily caught a moth the other day, maybe i'll start with crickets!

BotanyBlack · 04-04-2012, 12:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dreamangl686

never considered crickets! casper happily caught a moth the other day, maybe i'll start with crickets!

And they are not so gross to step on at 3 am if your cats doesn't get around to eating it either.

catloverami · 04-04-2012, 01:21 PM

I agree that particularly when young cats have a mouse they usually end up playing it to death, hearing a little mousie squeal in pain isn't nice either. Many years ago I did have indoor/outdoor cats, who hunted in adjacent field. The problem with mice being eaten is they can be somewhat messy. Most cats learn not to eat the bitter gallbladder which makes them vomit and will separate it out from the other organs, so you have this to clean up and I remember having a cat that didn't like to eat feet, and another that only ate the head.....so yeah....can be yucky! Crickets are a good cleaner alternative. My guys used to love them and grasshoppers.

Dave_ph · 04-04-2012, 01:32 PM

Don't tule out the possibility of them becomming buddies. Are you ready for a pet mouse?

catinthemirror · 04-04-2012, 03:09 PM

Definitely forget the mice and go for a nice bag of feeder crickets! I've brought home a few for my cats, and they think that little bag of crickets is the best toy in the world. I only have one cat who will actually kill the crickets however, and she won't even eat them. I feel that's kind of wasteful so they don't get crickets often. But if you're cat will eat them they're supposed to be full of taurine, so they're not just fun they're healthy too!

yingying · 04-04-2012, 03:38 PM

Hi Catinthemirror, do you just let the crickets loose in your house, or you put it somewhere (along with your cat I guess)? The idea is very interesting, but what if my cats don't kill the cricket and let them escape? I can't bear the thought of living under the same roof with a cricket :/

BotanyBlack · 04-04-2012, 03:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by yingying

Hi Catinthemirror, do you just let the crickets loose in your house, or you put it somewhere (along with your cat I guess)? The idea is very interesting, but what if my cats don't kill the cricket and let them escape? I can't bear the thought of living under the same roof with a cricket :/

I toss em in a tub. The cats can sometimes carry them elsewhere, but its really no worse then them chasing a fly through the house otherwise. But then my cats usually just eat them. you can always shut the bathroom door til playtime is over.

catinthemirror · 04-04-2012, 06:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by yingying

Hi Catinthemirror, do you just let the crickets loose in your house, or you put it somewhere (along with your cat I guess)? The idea is very interesting, but what if my cats don't kill the cricket and let them escape? I can't bear the thought of living under the same roof with a cricket :/

I let them loose in a big storage container. I think the tub would work great too, but my cats don't like going in the tub - when I put the crickets in there they won't go after them.

My Dad would NOT be happy if I let crickets loose in his house

04-04-2012, 11:39 AM	#1 (permalink)
dreamangl686 Jr. Cat Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: tri-state area, new york Posts: 40	feeding a live mouse? i know it is ethically questionable, but i have been considering buying casper a live feeder mouse. is this terrible/unhealthy/horrible? he is an indoor only cat, minus his little adventures outside on a leash, so he won't have the opportunity to chase prey otherwise. if the mouse does escape, my family has an indoor/outdoor cat that is quite the hunter, so i am not worried about it causing issues in my house. opinions?

04-04-2012, 01:21 PM	#5 (permalink)
catloverami Cat Addict Join Date: Jul 2010 Location: Cobourg, Ontario, Canada Posts: 3,147	I agree that particularly when young cats have a mouse they usually end up playing it to death, hearing a little mousie squeal in pain isn't nice either. Many years ago I did have indoor/outdoor cats, who hunted in adjacent field. The problem with mice being eaten is they can be somewhat messy. Most cats learn not to eat the bitter gallbladder which makes them vomit and will separate it out from the other organs, so you have this to clean up and I remember having a cat that didn't like to eat feet, and another that only ate the head.....so yeah....can be yucky! Crickets are a good cleaner alternative. My guys used to love them and grasshoppers. __________________ "There are no ordinary cats." "Time spent with a cat is never wasted." ~ Colette "A loving cat can mend a wounded heart." ~ Unknown Author

04-04-2012, 01:32 PM	#6 (permalink)
Dave_ph Premier Cat Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Palm Harbor, FL Posts: 3,734	Don't tule out the possibility of them becomming buddies. Are you ready for a pet mouse? __________________ The last time people tried to elimate free roaming cats it resulted in The Black Plague.

04-04-2012, 03:38 PM	#8 (permalink)
yingying Cool Cat Join Date: Jul 2011 Location: Toronto Posts: 1,326	Hi Catinthemirror, do you just let the crickets loose in your house, or you put it somewhere (along with your cat I guess)? The idea is very interesting, but what if my cats don't kill the cricket and let them escape? I can't bear the thought of living under the same roof with a cricket :/ __________________

04-04-2012, 11:56 AM	#2 (permalink)
BotanyBlack Cool Cat Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Ky. Posts: 1,451	I understand the need for cats the hunt, it is very natural. My opinion is use a dead one because if your cat really is not used to hunting a bite or scratch around the face (eyes) or paws can be a issue. Bites infect easy. most live feeder mice bought at the pet store are not bred in great conditions. This is my main issue with feeding live. now to the part people will undoubtedly say... why torture a mouse? I have seen Pepper catch wild mice and I got to say, I feel for the little buggers they do not die easy.. where Sherbert would catch and kill in a single bite. Pepper would take her prey to the tub and play with them forever, I am sure she broke every bone in their little bodies twice over before Sherbert finally just killed it for her. My cats are just as happy to catch live crickets I can buy for them (which are a good source of taurine BTW).

04-04-2012, 11:59 AM	#3 (permalink)
dreamangl686 Jr. Cat Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: tri-state area, new york Posts: 40	never considered crickets! casper happily caught a moth the other day, maybe i'll start with crickets!

04-04-2012, 03:09 PM	#7 (permalink)
catinthemirror Cat Join Date: Jun 2011 Posts: 290	Definitely forget the mice and go for a nice bag of feeder crickets! I've brought home a few for my cats, and they think that little bag of crickets is the best toy in the world. I only have one cat who will actually kill the crickets however, and she won't even eat them. I feel that's kind of wasteful so they don't get crickets often. But if you're cat will eat them they're supposed to be full of taurine, so they're not just fun they're healthy too!

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