# Predatory Cat Problem **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 2, 2002, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/predatory-cat-problem/130568 "2002-10-02T19:01:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![margot\_lane](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/58956e/32.png) [@margot\_lane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/margot_lane)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2002, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/predatory-cat-problem/130568/21 "2002-10-03T02:07:56Z")
I have a friend w/ 7 cats and he provides 'em w/ “kittie teevee”-- has a cage full of mice and a large tank of goldfish. 6 of 'em hang out and watch these critters for a good part of the day, the 7th is an outdoor killer. So maybe more toys & eye candy?Indoor/outdoor catgrass & nip? I should point out that the 7th is The Dominant Female: SHE is the one who has to hunt, to the extent that one of the very submissive males is only permitted to being live earthworms into the house. “It’s Atavism.” Krazy Kat. ---
**Author:** ![saber702](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f19dbf/32.png) [@saber702](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saber702)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2002, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/predatory-cat-problem/130568/22 "2002-10-03T02:21:29Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Guinastasia \* > \*\*Keep Kitty indoors then. > aside from the democrats I agree > That’s what cats do, I’m afraid. Despite being one of the Biggest Cat Freaks Ever, I will be the first to admit that cats are some of the most viscious, cruelest, blood thirsty animals on Earth. \*\* 🙂 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![saber702](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f19dbf/32.png) [@saber702](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saber702)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2002, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/predatory-cat-problem/130568/23 "2002-10-03T02:26:12Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by WSLer \* > \*\*Dogs are “predators” as well, but you don’t see them doing this kind of shit. > What do you call a lone dog in the woods? > CAT food! > Plus, cats are the only species that I know of where a male will kill all of the babies/kittens if he is not the father of said kittens, in order to _improve the gene pool_ and ensure that _his_ genes will be passed on. > > Nice.:rolleyes: :rolleyes: \*\* ---
**Author:** ![mnemosyne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c4cdca/32.png) [@mnemosyne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mnemosyne)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2002, 2:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/predatory-cat-problem/130568/24 "2002-10-03T02:37:20Z")
One solution to prevent animal pieces all over the house - eliminate the cat door. Let her in and out when she wants, but if you leave the house she is either inside or outside, whichever it happens to be at that moment. Then you might get “surprises” on the doorstep, but not inside. It’s a partial fix… ---
**Author:** ![AskNott](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/asknott/32/5790_2.png) [@AskNott](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AskNott)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2002, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/predatory-cat-problem/130568/25 "2002-10-03T03:28:46Z")
A comic panel a coupla days ago (Bizarro? Speed Bump?) showed a pride of lions. One was saying, “Did you ever wonder what the fast ones taste like?” “I like my food surprised and running.” --Hobbes (I sure miss Bill Watterson.) –Nott, who watched his cat Freckles catch two finches today. ---
**Author:** ![gruven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a9a28c/32.png) [@gruven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gruven)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2002, 2:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/predatory-cat-problem/130568/26 "2002-10-03T14:06:00Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by WSLer \* > \*\*Dogs are “predators” as well, but you don’t see them doing this kind of shit. > > Plus, cats are the only species that I know of where a male will kill all of the babies/kittens if he is not the father of said kittens, in order to _improve the gene pool_ and ensure that _his_ genes will be passed on. > > Nice.:rolleyes: :rolleyes: \*\* [http://www.massey.ac.nz/~i75202/lecture3/docs/hrdy.htm](http://www.massey.ac.nz/~i75202/lecture3/docs/hrdy.htm) "…the murder of baby monkeys by adult male monkeys was routine. Every time a male takes over a troop of females, he kills all the infants in the group. Exactly the same phenomenon was also discovered in lions a short time later: when a group of brothers wins a pride of females, the first thing they do is slaughter the innocents. In fact, as subsequent research revealed, infanticide by males is common in rodents, carnivores and primates. Even our closest relatives, the chimpanzees, are guilty. " Lots of male animals do that sort of thing. I found it shocking at first, but it makes sense if ya think about it the right way. ---
**Author:** ![Jimbrowski](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9a140/32.png) [@Jimbrowski](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jimbrowski)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2002, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/predatory-cat-problem/130568/27 "2002-10-03T15:10:46Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by WSLer \* > **Plus, cats are the only species that I know of where a male will kill all of the babies/kittens if he is not the father of said kittens, in order to _improve the gene pool_ and ensure that _his_ genes will be passed on.** Some birds, too: [http://newton.dep.anl.gov/askasci/zoo00/zoo00207.htm](http://newton.dep.anl.gov/askasci/zoo00/zoo00207.htm) In this case it’s a female replacing another species’ eggs with her own (in effect killing the offspring, albeit of a different species). However, the males of certain bird species will also kick eggs out of other nests of their own species. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2002, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/predatory-cat-problem/130568/28 "2002-10-03T15:12:54Z")
For cats that like to hunt a lot, we play hunting games with them inside. We just Hide their food & they have to hunt for it. They love doing this, I guess… ---
**Author:** ![booklover](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/85f322/32.png) [@booklover](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/booklover)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2002, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/predatory-cat-problem/130568/29 "2002-10-03T15:46:01Z")
If you do opt to make her an indoor-only kitty, you could always build a “kitty run” so that she gets the feeling of being outside without having access to other critters. I suspect that if my cat went outdoors, I would have much the same problem–he definitely has the hunter/predator action down pat. ---
**Author:** ![Emilio\_Lizardo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/898d66/32.png) [@Emilio\_Lizardo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Emilio_Lizardo)\ **Post date:** [October 3, 2002, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/predatory-cat-problem/130568/30 "2002-10-03T16:40:23Z")
[Here’s](http://www.quantumpicture.com/Flo_Control/flo_control.htm) a web page from some folks with the same problem. They solved it the geeeky high-tech way, by wiring a comuter with a camera and image-recognition software to the cat door, so it won’t open if she has a kill in her mouth. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/predatory-cat-problem/130568.md?page=1)