Gifts delivered in house

Question
We have three cats.  One of them is an adorable, one-year old, neutered male cat, perfect in every way except, he is an an incredible hunter.  He brings everything, alive and dead into the house through his cat door.  It is bad enough if they are dead but when he brings the mice, snakes, lizards in alive and they get away it is even worse.  Last night we found a dead, full-size squirrel; this morning it was a live mole.  We are trying to figure out how to get him to at least drop everything by the cat door before he enters.  Thanks for any help.

Answer
Florence,

What a hunter! It's usually calico cats that are the big hunters.

He is bringing in his prey to keep it safe from other cats. It is an inherited trait from the wild. In the wild they will hide their catches from other predators until they can eat it. He is not catching things to eat it, but the inbred trait and behavior is still there. He is also proud of them and probably gets upset when you take them away. With a cat door it is nearly impossible to keep him from bring in his prizes.

Mine would do that with mice and birds. I had to set up electronic mouse traps because they would bring them in and they would get loose and hide! Once in a while a bird would still be alive and it would get loose. Then it was Laurel and Hardy time with a bunch of cats and me trying to catch a bird in the house!

I didn't have a cat door but I left my door cracked open so they could go in and out. When I caught a cat bringing something in I would say "NO! Take it back outside!" firmly, and go to the door and boot the cat back outside with his prize. They finally learned (though occassionally they will still try). Another one would scratch at the door (if it was closed) to come in with a prize in her mouth (usually it was a bug). I would say "drop it!" and not let her in until she did. It was cute watching the indecision on her face. She wanted in really bad, but didn't want to let go of her prize. Coming inside usually won out.

What I suggest you do is say "NO! Not in the house!" firmly and loudly, and take his prizes back outside, then come back in the house. Let him know that having his prize outside is OK, but in the house is not OK. BUT don't let him think he is bad for hunting and catching something. That will screw him up mentally because what he is doing is normal behavior and instinct for him. If he brings his prize inside again, repeat it until he get the idea that he is not supposed to do that and you don't like it. Cats usually try to please.

Cats do not have any reasoning ability, they go by association and habit. He needs to learn 'prizes' outside....cat inside. He will (hopefully) learn if you are consistant and firm with him and his behavior. He will (hopefully) learn to find another 'safe place' for his catches somewhere outside. Or like my cats do (most of the time!), play with it until they are bored with it, THEN come inside.

If he is not getting it, you can ratchet up firmness of the message. This is if he has something in his mouth and he comes in.....have a rolled up newspaper handy and slap him with it while pushing him out the cat door with his catch, saying "NO! Outside!". The noise of the newspaper will scare him, but it won't hurt him. Don't scare him TOO much or he will drop his prize in fright! If it is still alive, you hope that he will catch it again...then make him go outside with it.  When he comes back in after that with no 'prize', then pet him, tell him he's a good kitty, and give him a treat (tuna, a piece of tinned sardines in oil, etc.) You want him to be scared to bring something inside, but NOT scared of you. Keep doing it until he makes the association that when he bring a prize inside he will get the newspaper after him.

The only thing you can do is try to break him of the habit. It depends on the cat's personality, stubborness, and willingness to listen to, and please, you, and your determination and patience.

Since you do have a cat door, and if you can't break him of it, then I would put something as a block between the room the cats comes in to through the catdoor and the other part of the house so the cats have to jump the blockade to get past it but his 'prizes' (hopefully) can't.

I hope this gives you some food for thought.

Tabbi