Putting Bells on Collars

Let’s talk for a moment about the practice of putting bells on the collars of cats to keep them from hunting.  While I totally get that walking into the kitchen to see Tigger chomping on mouse entrails is a little disconcerting, I think the practice of denying cats their natural tendencies is a bit harsh.  It sort of reminds me of some vegetarians I knew who insisted on feeding their cat a vegetarian diet, right up until it nearly died from starvation.  It isn’t right to make a totally different species live by our ideals – they aren’t made that way.

Yes, those pretty little songbirds are a delight to behold when they play you a tune from your backyard tree, but your cat sees something totally different.  Do you eat meat?  Why can’t your cat do the same? 

Letting your cat hunt, as it is naturally inclined to do, helps give him something to do and sure beats getting him meat yourself!  In addition to being necessary to survival for predatory animals, hunting helps keep populations of animals in check.  If there were no predators, bird populations would soar, creating even more problems.

So even though swiping a bird out of the air for a quick snack is not something you would do yourself, it is in your cat’s nature, and putting bells on his collar will only make it more challenging for him.  Where there is a will, there is a way, and your cat will surely find a way to do what he was born to do.