Does anyone feed their cats live mice???

I'm not sure if I'm totally out of the loop, but I was just watching animal planet and they did a raid on a bengal cat farm more or less. They house had a lot of mice, possibly for feeding the cats.

Does anyone do this on the cat site? I've always wondered, but I'm afraid of my kitties getting bit or scratched. It scares me enough to see Enzo catch wild mice



Edit...I just realized I probably should have put this in health/nutrition.....sorry

almost www.miceonice.com

Originally Posted by hissy

almost www.miceonice.com

Click to expand...

I've wondered about that also!!!! Are pet store ones healthy/clean enough to feed cats?

Miceonice are still around?! I remember the last time I was over on their site it was down (there used to be an adoption section).

I don't suggest live. I think it's cruel to feed reptiles live, and a cat would play with it's food first.

Generally the ones you get from a pet store, live, haven't been kept that well (crowded at the very least) and are typically fed diets that aren't that great. It was on a forum that's dead now, but there was a study someone link to about mice in some pet stores having a certain type of worm -one that would use mice and humans as hosts....

If you choose to feed frozen you can order online in bulk or try some pet stores. If you order online you can be more picky about your source, but packing materials + overnight shipping is high. If you choose to look around pet stores that may carry frozen you have to be careful about freezer burn.
I'm pretty sure that either or both petsmart and petco does sell frozen though.

Too many issues with live that have been mentioned ... frozen just fine

OMG, am I allowed to be disgusted??? I have seen baby mice and they are sooo cute!! I can't imagine feeding them to my kitties! I also seen a cat kill a pinky one time and it was an experience that stuck with me! When you live on a farm thats what the outside kitties are for, but its still heartbreaking to see a cat break into a mouse nest and steal a pinky and play with it. I do think that getting them frozen would be a decent alternative! I couldn't do it because I would open the bag and cry! (Im a wussy) But I think that they are really good for your kitties...

Wow - I guess if one of my guys caught a mouse at large in our house - bully for him, but purposely buying live mice? Forget it!

I have entertained the idea of feeding live mice to Suka...my Asian Leopard Cat hybird....but we have pet rats...and I think it would be confusing to him and dangerous to our pets...to allow him or encourage him to hunt. I also worry about infectious disease.

I am trying a raw diet...and raw meat is pretty much the only thing he will eat. He also eats some holistic canned meat based pet foods. I worry about proper nutrition so have research some pre-made fresh or frozen raw diets that have measured out viatimans/minerals/taurine exc.

I have herd that NOTHING compares to a whole (bones, fur, stomache contents exc) prey diet like animals get in the wild....and the "hunting" of prey is the best type of simulation and enrichment that you can offer to a animal...especially a cat. But the idea of watching him maime a live animal...especially sence I own and love rodents as pets....is a bit creepy for me personally.

Originally Posted by strange_wings

Generally the ones you get from a pet store, live, haven't been kept that well (crowded at the very least) and are typically fed diets that aren't that great. It was on a forum that's dead now, but there was a study someone link to about mice in some pet stores having a certain type of worm -one that would use mice and humans as hosts....

Click to expand...

Thanks for posting that!

Everytime I go to the pet store, I look at the mice cages and just wonder what the cats would do if I let a mouse loose in our house.

No parasites allowed in this house!! That's staying final! Besides...knowing my luck I would have to catch the mouse for them

There is also now the option of a treat that is ground whole mice, raw, dehydrated, formed into little rounds of treats. Nothing in them but mouse. New to the market, it's for dogs, cats etc. Brand is POgOS.

Ewwwww!!! I would never be able to give my cats a live mouse. Poor little mice! I can't stand to see them "play" with one they catch in the yard. It just hurts my feelings! I know it's their nature, and I accept that, but I just can't watch it!

Heck no.

I realize that mice are the perfect food for cats but I would never do it.

Im too big of a wussy to do it! I think mice are adorable and just couldn't do the whole feeding of the mice to the cats! We had a tanantula once and my DH wanted to feed him pinkies but I absolutely forbid it! Some kids my DH brought home once picked on the spider and I kicked them out of the house! LOL never to see them again!

In Australia it is illegal to feed one live animal to another - So any reptile owners, for instance, have to feed with dead feed.

Even the zoo's are not allowed to use live prey to feed to their carnivores.

Mice can make a cat's sick.My cat eats stuff Mice.
lol.
Good Day,
John
Stuff Mice> The ones you buy at Wal-Mart.Not the ones in the grass field.

Originally Posted by Pat & Alix

There is also now the option of a treat that is ground whole mice, raw, dehydrated, formed into little rounds of treats. Nothing in them but mouse. New to the market, it's for dogs, cats etc. Brand is POgOS.

Click to expand...

That sounds like a really good alternative!!! I'll have to see if I can't find any!


I do agree with everyone else, I just don't have the heart to do it. I had a few mice a year or two ago and Enzo got a hold of one and nearly killed her!!!! I was screaming at him and yelled at my SO to pry Enzo's mouth open while I got the poor little mouse. She made it through though!!!! She just had some scaring on her back

Originally Posted by jane_vernon

Even the zoo's are not allowed to use live prey to feed to their carnivores.

Click to expand...

That's a really good point, thank you for that!!!!

Originally Posted by jane_vernon

In Australia it is illegal to feed one live animal to another - So any reptile owners, for instance, have to feed with dead feed.

Even the zoo's are not allowed to use live prey to feed to their carnivores.

Click to expand...

That's a decent law to have. There are sprays and other tricks to help get reluctant snakes to eat - so there's no excuse for people to use live.


Just to add, I won't allow my cats to have wild mice either. Both of my cats are parasite free and I intend to keep them that way for as long as I can (fleas are inevitable). Since neither cat has caught anything on their own, I don't have much to worry about.

Wild rodents can carry round worms, so if you know your cat has been catching and eating mice - Please have them vet checked every few months. (you're not as likely to see rounds in the stool, they are easy to see if a cat vomits them up through)

I would be too worried the mouse would get loose in my apartment, then it would be living in the walls and chewing up my stuff!

My Alley was indoor/outdoor (we lived far in the country) and she used to bring me dead mice and chipmunks all the time but I definitely could have done without them

www.rodentpro.com has a much better selection, stellar prices and killer service. I get a local group together and order about every 6 months for my reptiles.