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From: larry@kitty.UUCP (Larry Lippman)
Newsgroups: net.pets
Subject: Re: Cats killing birds
Message-ID: <554@kitty.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 3-Nov-85 23:29:21 EST
Article-I.D.: kitty.554
Posted: Sun Nov  3 23:29:21 1985
Date-Received: Fri, 8-Nov-85 04:04:53 EST
References: <301@drutx.UUCP>
Organization: Recognition Research Corp., Clarence, NY
Lines: 26

> I have reason to believe that one of my cats has become a BIRD
> KILLER.
> ...
> Is there any way to disuade him from this practice?  I have 
> seen people put bells on cats for this--but that would probably
> drive me up the wall.  We feed the birds in the winter--I hate
> to attract them to their deaths.
> 
> By the way, these are the declawed cats that people have flamed
> me about, and claimed were maimed for life.

	For all practical purposes, I can't see any way to dissuade cats
from attacking birds (unless you had access to a large number of birds in
a controlled environment and could `condition' the cat).
	I also question the efficacy of `equipping' a cat with a bell.  If
you have ever watched a cat sit in or near a tree and wait for birds, and
then CATCH one, you would see how fast the cat was.  I don't believe that most
birds would react to the bell fast enough to preclude being caught by the cat.
	The only reasonable solution would be to keep your cat indoors.

===  Larry Lippman @ Recognition Research Corp., Clarence, New York        ===
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