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rex123 · Oct 12, 2008, 02:50 AM

OK, where can I start. Well about 6-7 years ago(before we had rex) my dad brought home two shelter cats,(who were unfortunately not fixed) so they had kittens,(a few batches actually) and we were lucky because all of them got to go to good homes and after a few batches of kittens we decided to get the ones we had left spayed. Unfortunately the two first cats we had, well the mother of all the kittens became extremely aggressive and had to be euthanized and(what we assumed was) the father had ran away and so we were left with two cats who thank god were spayed(and unable to multiply:rolleyes:)

A few months later we got rex, at first he was a bit scared of them but him and one of my cats got along very well they were the best of friends, the cat would even run up to him and rub up against him. One day a friend of the family was looking for a cat though, and so I rode down to her house with my cat sox(the one who was attached to rex) and my mom told me she would have a good home there. So I got out with tears in my eyes and put the cat down on her new property which was like a 2 minute drive from my house. The next morning I woke up and who's sitting on the step but sox, and so my mom called the lady up and told her we would just keep the cat. But soon my brother got a dog. And his dog was overly aggressive with my cats, my cats were scared and they ran away. One ran across the road to live with a family over there, but sox she stayed down at my gramma's which is just down the hill. Now a few weeks ago my brother moved out with his dog, and miraculously enough since a couple days my cat has been back at my house, and her rex get along great just like before. But I think she likes him too much and this is my problem because she brings home dead mice and places them in front of rex.

So my question is what will eating mice do to him, (other then make my mom scream in disgust)

starbuck8 · Oct 12, 2008, 04:04 AM

I'm glad Rex is back with his buddy Sox! :) Wow, I'm just not sure about this one. I've never heard of a dog that liked to eat mice. Especially a working breed like Rex. We know that some mice may carry disease, but if your cat eats them, I don't think it would cause any ill effects on dogs either. But again, I'm just not too sure about this one. You might just want to give your vet a quick call and ask what they think about this, since not often do you hear of dogs eating mice. I know the vet hosp. that I take Niki to, will answer quick questions like that over the phone for no chg. I'm not sure if it is the same where you are. If you can't do that, I would be happy to call my vet and ask for you, if they are not too busy there at the time.

I think it's so cute though, that Sox is trying to bring his buddy a treat! How sweet is that! :)

rex123 · Oct 12, 2008, 05:32 AM

Thanks starbuck8, my mom doesn't think its to cute.LOL the look on her face when she watched him eat it was priceless though. And I didn't know it was abnormal for them to eat mice, when we go up to the camp my grandfather's always glad we bring him because he catches all the mice in the wood pile, he's a better mouser than any cat I know, that's one of the reason he can not be trusted off leash. He doesn't run like most huskies, he goes in our back field and digs for hours on end looking for mice(and trust me he succeeds.) I love having the cat back, though and it suprises me how well they get along, I can even feed them together outside.

froggy7 · Oct 12, 2008, 08:46 AM

Lots of dogs eat mice. Wolves live off them when larger game are scarce, and one of the main jobs of terriers is to kill vermin (i.e. mice, rats, rabbits, possum... ) And if you think that they didn't eat them after they killed them...

Call up the vet if you want, but the biggest problem you will likely get is parasites. Worms and fleas are the biggies.

Now here's the question... cats, as I understand it, bring back prey to help the kittens learn to hunt. So does Sox see Rex as a really, really, really big kitten? :)

wildandblue · Oct 12, 2008, 12:18 PM

Yes.
Or just a friend she's comfortable sharing a good meal with. One of my dogs will sit at the kitty door with her head blocking it, they can't get in unless they hand over their mice first, a sort of door prize or cover charge for admission.
I think it's mostly rats that carry diseases like lepto that could hurt your dog, rats are known to eat horrible stuff like carrion and feces unlike the seed and plant eating mice, mice breed awfully fast plus he would need to eat more of them to get the amount in a ferret sized rat.

froggy7 · Oct 12, 2008, 01:16 PM

Although it does occur to me... if anyone in the neighborhood is putting out poison for the rats/mice, that could be bad. The poison stops the blood from clotting, and the mice often crawl off to die. If a cat or dog eats the poisoned mouse, the poison will affect them as well.

SweetDee · Oct 15, 2008, 03:23 AM

Well it's protein. He's getting "free range" protein.

They are probably field mice...

If he were eating RATS, now that's something to worry about.

Honestly, if you don't want him to eat it just teach him, "Leave it". Or keep him close to you and in your room/field of vision so he won't be out of sight and getting onto the porch... where the buffet has been delivered. No wonder he loves the cat!

Perhaps their relationship is more than just family related... They could be in business together... LMAO! I think Rex might have hired the cat to do his bidding... LOL!