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Mon 12 Dec, 2005 08:35 pm
Since right before Thanksgiving I have spent about $400 on my dog's (Bird, here called Birdy for ease of reading) stomach distress.
X-rays showed Birdy's belly full of bones and debris.
I thought she must have snuck out and stolen trash from a neighbor although no neighbor complained about trash being gotten into.
Then today I noticed Biscuit (the cat) romping and playing with a dead bird in the garage. Oh what fun to see the food chain in such action! But Biscuit didn't eat the bird, she just batted it around and flung it in the air and leaped about.
I've seen her with other birds too. Cats. They're murderers. I cannot apoligize enough for their behavior.
Now I'm wondering if perhaps Birdy has been eating Biscuit's prey.
Would a well fed, suburban, pampered pooch eat such a bird?
I can't imagine that she would but what do I know?
Really, Birdy will turn her nose up at inferior hot dogs.
Would a bell on Biscuit help?
That dog would eat that bird in a heartbeat.
It's free food to him.
Oh.
She's never really been a scavenger but then my last cat was 20 something, way beyond birding years, when she died. Maybe Birdy just hasn't had the opportunity to eat the cat's prey before.
I really can't afford for Birdy to continue with this behavior so if this is what is happening I'll have to stop Biscuit.
And Biscuit is a good hunter.
Would a bell collar warn birds? I've always understood that cats cannot catch a healthy bird so I don't know if a bell would make a difference.
Also, I feed about six strays. The birds could be their presents to me. They would never allow me to put a collar on them.
But they don't have any money to chip in on the vet bills either.
I guess I never realized you were a crazy cat lady, boomer.
And I had you pictured with lighter-colored hair....
Strange. I had always believed dogs could digest bones. Maybe just one of those urban myths.
My hair IS lighter but that is really more to do with grey than anything else.
Did you see the thread I posted a while back linking cats to schizophrenia? Interesting stuff!
I'm not a crazy cat lady but I do love animals. There is an apartment building not far from here that accepts pets, one of the few that do. When people have to move they release their cats to the neighborhood. It's sad. I can't stand to see them starve. Everyone on the block feeds a few cats. It is part and parcel of living on the street.
"Big Orange" one of the strays that has eaten here for about a year is close to letting me touch him. He doesn't run from me anymore, anyway.
Callie, Spotty, Stripe and Huh are all too new at the stray game to even let me see them, hardly.
Sad.
Roger, she does appear to be digesting them.
I know because I am on poop patrol. (How fun!) Usually I just have to scoop but now I'm responsible for judging the dog's health through poop inspection.
My life is a joy.
I don't know if they actually digest them or not but I have not found tiny bones in any poop.
Perhaps my horrid vision is finally paying off.
edgar,
Picture a woman with the Elsa Lanchester "Bride of Frankenstien" coif, and about 20 more black and white cats and you'll know exactly what my ex-wife looked like.
My experience was...cats catch and play with critters...Dogs eat them.
Ususally twice.
Are you calling me edgar?
I'm flattered.
Especially when being called that by a man married to the Bride of Frankenstien.
LionTamerX - you deserve better. If I ever ditch Mr. B I'll look you up. I'm merely Bride of Zizzybulubhah.
And I only have one cat.
boomer,
You have lousy timing, my charming new wife and I just celebrated our first wedding anniversary in Oct.
You are, however, worthy of much flattery.
Supposedly cooked poultry bones are brittle, but dogs can digest raw bones. Supposedly.
Would the debris have been feathers? Most people don't pluck dinner themselves.
Oh thank goodness.
I'd hate to hear of you being married to such a nut-job and sticking with it. (This from a girl who loves animals!)
A newlywed! No wonder you're in there like swimwear.
Ahh the memories.
I know my timing is lousy.
One can never tell when vet bills and other angst will gang up on one.
Other angst is for the birds.
The birds that are batted around like catnip toys by fickle monsters.
I don't know what they meant by "debris", Noddy, but next time I imagine it will mean parts of my foot.
Really, if Biscuit wants to kill the dog I can offer her much cheaper ways to do it.
If I didn't love cats, I'd hate them.
Me, too. We even have a cat named "Biscuit."
Catchief increases as the square of the number of animals, so we currently have nine times as much catchief as we did prior to adding kitty #2 and kitty #3.
Make sure you get a break-away collar, and then make sure you have room in your budget for replacements.
Alternately, go on search and destroy missions for dead birds.
The strays are probably not contributing to the number of birds that Bird consumes. Hunting's entertainment for Biscuit, more likely a livelyhood for Big Orange and the gang.
Poop patrol. Hah! I've been on poop patrol for two years now, although we're back down to one individual needing diaper inspection....
You have a cat named Biscuit!? For real?
Small world.
Big Orange and the gang are all pretty well fed. They have unlimited access to the cat dish and I try to keep it filled.... unless the racoons invade and then there is no keeping anything full.
I am trying to keep an eye out for bird bodies so that Bird won't find the bodies first.
Luckily I don't have to do that kind of poop patrol anymore! That was a happy, happy day. The dogs however have yet to learn to use the toilet. The ingrates.
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