# Stupid cats brought in a "friend" last night. Advice? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 24, 2011, 3:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-cats-brought-in-a-friend-last-night-advice/593905 "2011-08-24T15:55:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![anya\_marie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ebca7d/32.png) [@anya\_marie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anya_marie)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 9:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-cats-brought-in-a-friend-last-night-advice/593905/21 "2011-08-25T09:51:36Z")
Hershey’s Isn’t very good chocolate, and i’d rather use that for a trap than Ghirardelli ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 10:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-cats-brought-in-a-friend-last-night-advice/593905/22 "2011-08-25T10:12:26Z")
Waitaminit. The rat was _in a plastic bag_? What? Why? Was it a pet rat? An already poisoned rat that just didn’t die? A government rat inprinted with a micro chip with State Secrets that your cats stole out of someone’s attic? As for trapping the rat, I wouldn’t bother. Just make sure there is nothing edible set out for him, (putting edibles in tins and airtight plastic containers is smart to do anyway) and he can leave your house. Rats are smart, and he will know there is nothing for him in your house, which is unfamiliar, dangerous and has cats in it. Outside is much safer for a rat and it has cover and food. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 10:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-cats-brought-in-a-friend-last-night-advice/593905/23 "2011-08-25T10:27:29Z")
> [@anya\_marie](#): > > Hershey’s Isn’t very good chocolate, and i’d rather use that for a trap than Ghirardelli I’ve only had a couple of coffees so far today, and I read this as you wanted to use Hershey’s chocolate to catch Gadaffi. ---
**Author:** ![chiroptera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@chiroptera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chiroptera)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-cats-brought-in-a-friend-last-night-advice/593905/24 "2011-08-25T12:38:01Z")
You need the [Rat Zapper!](http://www.ratzapper.com/) ---
**Author:** ![ladyfoxfyre](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ad7895/32.png) [@ladyfoxfyre](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ladyfoxfyre)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-cats-brought-in-a-friend-last-night-advice/593905/25 "2011-08-25T13:39:11Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > But daughter cat was one of the fiercest hunters you ever saw. Lizards, snakes (we lived in the desert at the time), mice, birds, bugs of all descriptions (she loved cicadas because they buzzed in her mouth) and once she brought home a baby bunny. And she’d usually kill her prey, too, and eat it. She and her mother were inside/outside cats (I’ve since changed my catkeeping philosophy) and I would frequently go out the front door to find the feet and feathers of a bluejay or remains of a mouse. Wow, I had a cat like this when I lived in the desert too. She once took down a jackrabbit bigger than her. We would always find pieces of animals, a head of a mole, something’s liver. She brought a baby bunny home too! But didn’t kill it. Have you ever heard a rabbit scream? It sounds eerily like a baby. Once I finally caught it from her, it was unharmed, but died from fright a few moments later. ☹ ---
**Author:** ![BetsQ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/fbc32d/32.png) [@BetsQ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BetsQ)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-cats-brought-in-a-friend-last-night-advice/593905/26 "2011-08-25T14:30:36Z")
> [@Maastricht](#): > > Waitaminit. The rat was _in a plastic bag_? What? Why? Was it a pet rat? An already poisoned rat that just didn’t die? A government rat inprinted with a micro chip with State Secrets that your cats stole out of someone’s attic? > > As for trapping the rat, I wouldn’t bother. Just make sure there is nothing edible set out for him, (putting edibles in tins and airtight plastic containers is smart to do anyway) and he can leave your house. Rats are smart, and he will know there is nothing for him in your house, which is unfamiliar, dangerous and has cats in it. Outside is much safer for a rat and it has cover and food. :D:D I suspect one of the kids left a Target bag lying on the floor and the rat thought it looked like a good place to hide. As my trap, which ended up baited with Velveeta and Jif - just to cover all the bases - is still empty this morning, I’m going to start believing that you are correct and the rat has already made his way outside. ---
**Author:** ![Dread\_Pirate\_Jimbo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dread_pirate_jimbo/32/3897_2.png) [@Dread\_Pirate\_Jimbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dread_Pirate_Jimbo)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-cats-brought-in-a-friend-last-night-advice/593905/27 "2011-08-25T14:51:29Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > Bad kitties! The worst things my fenced-in backyard roaming cats bring in is dragonflies - my cat brought two in to me last summer - one just a little wet and mouthed-up (he went outside the yard to recuperate, hopefully), and the other mangled enough that I had to put it out of its misery. I don’t like killing dragonflies - I’d rather they stay alive and eat mosquitoes. > > Yeah, I’d be getting a rat trap, too. I don’t like the idea of killing a rat, either, but I won’t have a rat roaming my house. There are NO RATS in Alberta, so you need not worry. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Sanity\_Challenged](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9de053/32.png) [@Sanity\_Challenged](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sanity_Challenged)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-cats-brought-in-a-friend-last-night-advice/593905/28 "2011-08-25T18:43:32Z")
I don’t know if this scales up to rats or not, but the best mousetrap ever is a bucket with a ramp and a bit of food. I’ve had very little luck with lethal or non-lethal traps, but the bucket always works (and lets me release live rodents in the yards of my enemies). ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-cats-brought-in-a-friend-last-night-advice/593905/29 "2011-08-25T18:51:35Z")
> [@ladyfoxfyre](#): > > Wow, I had a cat like this when I lived in the desert too. She once took down a jackrabbit bigger than her. We would always find pieces of animals, a head of a mole, something’s liver. She brought a baby bunny home too! But didn’t kill it. Have you ever heard a rabbit scream? It sounds eerily like a baby. Once I finally caught it from her, it was unharmed, but died from fright a few moments later. ☹ We got the baby bunny away from Fluffy, and put it in a dark quiet box in a closet, but it died. It looked unharmed, but maybe it had internal injuries. Or maybe Fluffy did scare it to death. Fluffy never left livers. I used to fry up chicken livers for my husband, and she would fight him for them. She also picked fights with our German shepherd. Fluffy wasn’t a very bright kitty. Fierce, but not real bright. > [@Sanity\_Challenged](#): > > I don’t know if this scales up to rats or not, but the best mousetrap ever is a bucket with a ramp and a bit of food. I’ve had very little luck with lethal or non-lethal traps, but the bucket always works (and lets me release live rodents in the yards of my enemies). I like the way you think. At least the bit about releasing live rodents in the yards of your enemies. ---
**Author:** ![Laggard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/9de053/32.png) [@Laggard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Laggard)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-cats-brought-in-a-friend-last-night-advice/593905/30 "2011-08-25T19:05:32Z")
Unless you know for a fact that your cat would never kill a bird, they should never be left outside anyway. It’s estimated that cats kill hundreds of millions of birds and more than a billion small mammals yearly. > **[CatPredation2011.pdf](https://abcbirds.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/CatPredation2011.pdf)** > > 1219.79 KB I watched a cat kill two tiny bunnies last week. Because someone was too lazy and irresponsible to make sure their cat stayed inside, two creatures died. Pissed me off. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-cats-brought-in-a-friend-last-night-advice/593905/31 "2011-08-25T19:26:52Z")
Eh - the birds seem to know enough to stay out of my cat-proofed back yard (but sometimes the magpies and crows have a lot to say about the cats - usually early in the morning). The birds and bunnies can have the rest of the city - this backyard belongs to us and the cats. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-cats-brought-in-a-friend-last-night-advice/593905/32 "2011-08-25T19:47:23Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > I’ve only had a couple of coffees so far today, and I read this as you wanted to use Hershey’s chocolate to catch Gadaffi. Well, he was known as the Desert Rat. Okay he wasn’t but should have been. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [August 25, 2011, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-cats-brought-in-a-friend-last-night-advice/593905/33 "2011-08-25T20:31:16Z")
> [@Laggard](#): > > Unless you know for a fact that your cat would never kill a bird, they should never be left outside anyway. It’s estimated that cats kill hundreds of millions of birds and more than a billion small mammals yearly. > > [http://www.abcbirds.org/abcprograms/policy/cats/materials/predation.pdf](http://www.abcbirds.org/abcprograms/policy/cats/materials/predation.pdf) > > I watched a cat kill two tiny bunnies last week. Because someone was too lazy and irresponsible to make sure their cat stayed inside, two creatures died. Pissed me off. I understand, but there are a lot of bunnies. After all, they breed like rabbits. ---
**Author:** ![Baker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bb73d2/32.png) [@Baker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baker)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2011, 5:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-cats-brought-in-a-friend-last-night-advice/593905/34 "2011-08-26T05:13:59Z")
My cats have chased a bat that got into the house, but I managed to catch it myself and throw it outside. Last weekend I found a dead one in the hallway. Major gross out. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2011, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-cats-brought-in-a-friend-last-night-advice/593905/35 "2011-08-26T06:15:57Z")
> [@Laggard](#): > > Unless you know for a fact that your cat would never kill a bird, they should never be left outside anyway. It’s estimated that cats kill hundreds of millions of birds and more than a billion small mammals yearly. > > [http://www.abcbirds.org/abcprograms/policy/cats/materials/predation.pdf](http://www.abcbirds.org/abcprograms/policy/cats/materials/predation.pdf) > > I watched a cat kill two tiny bunnies last week. Because someone was too lazy and irresponsible to make sure their cat stayed inside, two creatures died. Pissed me off. These days, all my cats are inside only. Having said that, cats that live part or all of their time outside DO kill birds and rodents and the occasional rabbit. And I think that for the most part, this is a good thing. There are some species of birds that I think need extra protection. However, if Fluffy manages to kill a grackle or a roof rat, then she’s doing a favor to humans. ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2011, 8:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-cats-brought-in-a-friend-last-night-advice/593905/36 "2011-08-26T08:02:58Z")
Peppermint oil is supposed to be offensive to rodents so if you want to be sure he’s left get some peppermint essential oil, put it on cotton balls and put them in cabinets and places he might hide. I don’t know if it actually works but it’s mentioned on several websites for pest control. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stupid-cats-brought-in-a-friend-last-night-advice/593905.md?page=1)