How do you eat a mouse?

[nes]

I know this is a strange question...

I was just wondering how cats go about eating mice. I remember my 'owl pellet' lessons from grade school - but what about cats?

I ask because MK caught a shrew half the size of her head this morning!! :O (good girl!) and she always eats them face-first. Hubby made a good point when he asked me, how does she crunch up the teeth and everything?

Anyone know?

MK almost always eats her catches (unless she's giving it to someone

) and she never eats the stomach. We always know she's caught something though because she drags it out of the field and plays with it in front of the house until someone comes out & acknowledges her skills

.

 

[auntie crazy]

"How do you eat a mouse?"

I like mine lightly sauteed with onions and a hint of garlic.
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Sorry, couldn't resist. It was the first thing that came to mind when I saw your thread.

My cats eat their mice exactly as yours do... head first and "no, thanks" to the stomach. I'm thinking rodent teeth are small enough to be swallowed as is.

 

[c1atsite]

Originally Posted by Auntie Crazy

My cats eat their mice exactly as yours do... head first and "no, thanks" to the stomach. I'm thinking rodent teeth are small enough to be swallowed as is.

Yes, our first family cat in the 80's (Ashlie) once ate a mouse like that and simply left the lower half. It was the first time I had seen something so primal; I was like 10 years old and was prety horrified. But now I know it's nature. (At 10 years old I would've guessed the opposite - that theyd eat everything and leave the head)

 

[furryfriends50]

Head first and then sit there shaking their head with the tail hanging out. A few of them are obessed with that...

Sometimes they do skip the stomach, other times they just about swallow the whole thing whole.

I haven't given them much mice, I'd like to do whole prey sometime but it is to expensive with all my cats.

 

[Willowy]

From what I've observed with farm cats, with mice they usually crunch, munch, and down the hatch whole. With larger prey they normally leave the stomach (or something....ewww).

 

[snake_lady]

Well, my snakes eat them whole

I've only offered small mice to the kitties, because of the "drag around the house" syndrome. So they get juvie mice that are a big mouthful. The bones on them are quite soft, so no crunching.

I've often wondered what they'd do with an adult one. hmmmmm.

 

[sharky]

mine either do the chunk out of middle or break the neck to start then some of the organs ... no heads , tails or feet eaten here

 

[jennyr]

It depends. Sometimes whole, sometimes they leave the head, sometimes they very neatly leave the internal organs. Or even a tail. Whatever, it is ME who has to clean up after them!

 

[koobe]

This is an amazing thread! I guess I am too new to realize how many people out there are feeding their cats mice.
I do not think I can handle this

for you all!

 

[sharky]

Originally Posted by koobe

This is an amazing thread! I guess I am too new to realize how many people out there are feeding their cats mice.
I do not think I can handle this

for you all!

Many of the above are indoor/ outdoor cats Ie they catch and eat mice

by themselves... Some do purchase online frozen mice to feed

 

[sweetseamus]

This brings back memories of our indoor/outdoor cats we had when I was growing up. We'd often find dismembered rodents on the welcome mat...one of the kitties definitely had a thing for decapitation as well.

 

[nes]

Originally Posted by koobe

... realize how many people out there are feeding their cats mice...

Yes our Miss Kitty is indoor/outdoor; she's a stray who adopted us, lived outside her entire life - we can't keep her in. Although it did snow today so she didn't get off the couch all day

wimp!!

MK also catches shrews not mice, shrews are NASTY buggers (they bite back!!), in fact I rarely find mice that she's caught (other then the one that was in my sink...), it's just shrews!

. I think she enjoys the challenge...

I doubt if I got her frozen ones that she'd eat them, that's not as much fun!

Did I mention I once stepped on half a dead mouse that Tasha had caught (or MK caught and gave her) in the middle of the night? I was asleep & checking on the toddler, didn't even realize what the 'squishy' thing I'd stepped on was until morning!! I thought it was a sock

. Tasha had accidentally bitten into the stomach (and throw up everywhere) because she didn't know better, and left the body strewn about our bedroom. GROSS.

 

[koobe]

Originally Posted by Nes

Did I mention I once stepped on half a dead mouse that Tasha had caught (or MK caught and gave her) in the middle of the night? I was asleep & checking on the toddler, didn't even realize what the 'squishy' thing I'd stepped on was until morning!! I thought it was a sock

. Tasha had accidentally bitten into the stomach (and throw up everywhere) because she didn't know better, and left the body strewn about our bedroom. GROSS.

NICE! I hope you had socks on that night.

 

[kalikat]

Originally Posted by Snake_Lady

Well, my snakes eat them whole

I've only offered small mice to the kitties, because of the "drag around the house" syndrome. So they get juvie mice that are a big mouthful. The bones on them are quite soft, so no crunching.

I've often wondered what they'd do with an adult one. hmmmmm.

My son feeds baby rats to his snake, are these gassed frozen rodents ok/safe for cats to eat.

 

[northernglow]

Brains, BRAIIINS!! *zombie voice*
No, really. I've been told they eat heads first because brains have so much protein and it's 'the best' part. I wondered this same thing when I was a kid and saw a cat eat mice and frogs head first.

 

[ut0pia]

I have seen cats eat mice but not Jake, and I've noticed they prefer the organs ...
And same with lions and tigers eating their prey, even though they may be a lot of muscle meat on an antelope they will eat the heart, lungs, kidney first...maybe because they are warmer.

 

[trillcat]

Well there are just some things I prefer to not know about cats, and this tread, well yuck!
My mouser was named Taco, she didn't eat them, just tore their heads off and left guts all over. She was quite proud of her work though. Me who had to clean it up, not so much.
For those in the weight loss thread, take a wander over to this thread, pizza and snacks not looking too good now, are they!

 

[nes]

Originally Posted by koobe

NICE! I hope you had socks on that night.

Not at all...

 

[kit e cat]

I have had one rodent in my house in 8 years. I didn't have the heart to kill him so I just left nature to take its course. a month later I found the dead mousie at the bottom of the steps, untouched. And cats walking past him. They had no interest in him at all. And I'm not sure they even killed him, because he was totally in one piece.

 

[ebrillblaiddes]

With fava beans and a nice Chianti?