Poll: Ever had your pet give you it's kill?

[geldonyetich]

yea, my girlfriends cat does that all the time.

when I studied zoology and ethology last year, I read that cats do that with the intent of feeding you, if they think you are inept at doing so yourself. Basically, your cat looks down at you and thinks, "here, watch how a pro does it"

That's one theory. Another theory is that the cat's contributing it to the pack's larder. Probably killed the thing and realized it wasn't hungry and it's a pity to let it go to waste.

I keep my cats strictly indoors. Funny thing, the other day I noticed a toilet paper roll somehow ended up in my room.

Cats don't have pack mentality. They hunt alone and cohabit with others sometimes, usually offspring. Bringing a kill to you is more like the cat thinking that your its young and are incapable of hunting on your own yet- as it has never seen you hunt[footnote]this is probably the first time I've used that knowledge outside of class. My professor would be proud[/footnote] (and never will)

Well, if we were talking about lions, we see that the females of the pack hunt and bring back food all the time for the rest of the pack. (Actually, I guess they're called Prides for lions.) Furthermore, you can reason that even a domestic cat would have to bring back food for its kittens. So it's not completely without precedent to theorize that bringing back unfinished kills for anyone the cat might have a social bond with makes sense.

Really, there's no consensus [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cats#Hunting_and_feeding] on it being specifically any one thing, it could very well be all of the above.

 

[Rawker]

My dog stepped on my controller once and killed someone with a grenade. I think that counts.

 

[Aardvark]

My cat doesn't just bring in her kill, she also brings in things she's neglected to kill, as some sort of manly test. Badly eviscerated, but still somehow clinging to life, these things need to be put down.

"Here, bucko, take this rat/badger/possum and kill it. Prove your worth to the clan!"

One time, she brought a Brown Snake [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pseudonaja_textilis] into the house. Alive. Unharmed. Without the thing even touching her once. She deposits it on the dining room floor, stands back and looks proud, while this thing is rearing up, ready to murderfy everything for this insult to its reptilian honour.

Fortunately, it was winter, so the thing wasn't the most active angry brown snake alive. Unfortunately, being the least brownsnakeophobic, I was tasked with disposing of the thing. That was my little Steve Erwin moment, disposing of this angry reptile in a thoughtful manner. By which I mean I threw it in the criminal neighbour's yard. Alive.

 

[Cowabungaa]

Our cats eat their kills, and if they don't they just abandon it in the garden.

Unfortunately, being the least brownsnakeophobic, I was tasked with disposing of the thing. That was my little Steve Erwin moment, disposing of this angry reptile in a thoughtful manner. By which I mean I threw it in the criminal neighbour's yard. Alive.

Sweet heavens, I think I'd just throw knives at it until the kitchen drawers are empty. You have stones my man.

 

[IceStar100]

Our cats eat their kills, and if they don't they just abandon it in the garden.

Unfortunately, being the least brownsnakeophobic, I was tasked with disposing of the thing. That was my little Steve Erwin moment, disposing of this angry reptile in a thoughtful manner. By which I mean I threw it in the criminal neighbour's yard. Alive.

Sweet heavens, I think I'd just throw knives at it until the kitchen drawers are empty. You have stones my man.

Stones my arse. This guy walks and it sounds like church bells ringing.

 

[Kajt]

One of my cats used to bring me dead mice quite a lot. Sometimes it would even store dead rats and stuff in my shoes.

 

[The_Echo]

I'm certain my cat goes out and does a bit of killing. He'll often want to be let outside at late hours, and not come back for quite some time. Knowing my cat, he's not going out for a night on the town. We feed him well, and I never get his kills on my doorstep, so I'm thinking he just does it for fun. My cat's pretty sadistic. He bites me as hard as he can for no reason sometimes. It hurts. D:

 

[Caligulove]

yea, my girlfriends cat does that all the time.

when I studied zoology and ethology last year, I read that cats do that with the intent of feeding you, if they think you are inept at doing so yourself. Basically, your cat looks down at you and thinks, "here, watch how a pro does it"

That's one theory. Another theory is that the cat's contributing it to the pack's larder. Probably killed the thing and realized it wasn't hungry and it's a pity to let it go to waste.

I keep my cats strictly indoors. Funny thing, the other day I noticed a toilet paper roll somehow ended up in my room.

Cats don't have pack mentality. They hunt alone and cohabit with others sometimes, usually offspring. Bringing a kill to you is more like the cat thinking that your its young and are incapable of hunting on your own yet- as it has never seen you hunt[footnote]this is probably the first time I've used that knowledge outside of class. My professor would be proud[/footnote] (and never will)

Well, if we were talking about lions, we see that the females of the pack hunt and bring back food all the time for the rest of the pack. (Actually, I guess they're called Prides for lions.) Furthermore, you can reason that even a domestic cat would have to bring back food for its kittens. So it's not completely without precedent to theorize that bringing back unfinished kills for anyone the cat might have a social bond with makes sense.

Really, any researched article [http://www.articlealley.com/article_460709_54.html] on the matter won't insist it has to be only one thing.

Thats what I said... and I'm not disputing that there is one answer for a problem. There isnt really anything youre arguing with me on

 

[johnman]

I was going to train my dog to fetch rabbits that I shot, but she is not really capable of siting still for more than a few minutes at a time. Anything she does catch she either rips itapart or gets so suprised that she actually caught somthing she drops it.

 

[Aesir23]

My family's cat used to leave dead birds (and the occasional mouse) on our doorstep almost every time we let her out.

 

[DragunovHUN]

My mentor's cat does this a lot.

I have heard quite a few stories concerning how adept the cat is at hunting birds in the area, even once swiping a bird... from a tree... while the bird was flying through.

Humans = top of the food chain my ass.

We have none of this killer instinct.

But we have rifles.

 

[Julianking93]

Yeah.

My cat gave me the biggest rat I've ever seen.

 

[MurderousToaster]

My cat used to be the world's worst for doing this. Then we bought him a collar with a bell on it so they'd know he was coming.

 

[Jedoro]

Nah, my dog was too busy eating it to show me.

 

[Dr. Gorgenflex]

Apparently it is actually showing you how to hunt.
http://www.cracked.com/article/226_6-adorable-cat-behaviors-with-shockingly-evil-explanations_p2
The last thing on the list explains.

 

[Aerodynamic]

My dog has given me a bird he killed, i was so proud of him that day

 

[Uncreative]

Haha, yeah my cat pretty much decided the food my parents were giving me was insufficient when I was around three or four.
So, for the next couple years he slowly tried to teach me to eat RIGHT.
First brought me pieces of things and left them around my room.
Then he brought me whole things and, yep, left them around my room.
Then he decided it was time I learned how to hunt, and he started bringing me live animals. They usually started in my room, but were less than pleased to stay there.

And he would usually get pretty annoyed if my parents put them back outside (He would ignore them more than usual, usually by following them around and making sure they saw he was facing away from them...I have an awesome cat)

 

[IceStar100]

Everyone keeps saying. Hey the cats teaching you to hunt. Yet she meow at my door at dinner time to come feed her. I've given her food more then the other way.

 

[JMeganSnow]

yea, my girlfriends cat does that all the time.

when I studied zoology and ethology last year, I read that cats do that with the intent of feeding you, if they think you are inept at doing so yourself. Basically, your cat looks down at you and thinks, "here, watch how a pro does it"

From what I've read, this is actually the animal seeking approval/recognition from their surrogate mother, i.e. you. Cats in particular treat their "attached" human(s) in the same way that kittens treat their mother--housecats essentially retain the kitten mentality for their entire life.