Incentive to keep the cats inside May 22, 2006
Over the last couple of days Cosmo & Zelda have managed to spend some time out of the confines of the house and their enclosure, either because they’ve snuck out an open door or because they’ve hassled me to the point where I’ve let them out. Generally they’ve stayed out for an hour or so before Zelda has made her own way in through the cat run and Cosmo has appeared at the door begging to be let in.
As if I needed reminding that I really should be keeping them in, I just noticed Zelda watching a New Holland Honeyeater through the wire of the cat run. Although they’re supposedly common I’ve only seen one or two and one of those was in Cosmo’s mouth. The one Zelda was watching was feeding on the bottlebrush, completely unconcerned that there was a cat about 6 feet away.
One of the good things about having chooks is that wild birds seem to take their presence as an indication of food and, I suppose, safety. I’ve seen more of them in our yard in the last month or so than in years before. One of the bad things about having the chooks is that a lot of those wild birds are introduced sparrows, starlings or doves that I would rather not encourage. Still, one must take the good with the bad.
So I am rebuked and reminded that pusscats must be contained so that honeyeaters can enjoy bottlebrushes without being threatened. I will now go and clean out the litter trays so that I don’t have reason to feel bad about keeping the cats in.
Madam keeps asking why she is the only cat in the neighbouhood who has to spend her days in a wire cage watching the sparrows do their thing in the garden. I point out that we have no New Holland Honeyeaters and her free-ranging friends are probably the reason why.