Merlin the Mighty

Cats are well known for leaving "gifts" of prey at their owners' doorstep. My cats are no exception, which is why it is wise to look down before leaving the house barefoot unless you really enjoy having chipmunk intestine between your toes. Count me out.

Today, Merlin brought us a gift of his own, but I'm not sure he really gets the concept. He was quite proud of his catch. And as usual in our cat household, the prey he was in the process of eating wasn't quite dead yet. Merlin ate the wings first. A bird, you ask? Sadly, no. The noble creature that Merlin bagged was... a butterfly. Which he carried to our doorstep, meowed until we opened the door, and then ate in front of us. He probably didn't understand why we were laughing at him.

I have created a monster.

I've noticed a sharp upturn in the amount of hunting that Zima is doing lately. After not bringing home any catches all winter, she's leaving an awful lot of small critters at the doorstep for us. A week ago it was a small rabbit, yesterday it was a chipmunk, and today she left a half-chewed chipmunk with a leg missing. But something about today's offering gave me a hint as to what may be responsible for her recent killing spree. Remember that catnip I planted for her amusement? Well, right next to the dead chipmunk was a sprig of that catnip plant. It appears that the cat is getting all hopped up on the 'nip and then chasing down some wildlife. I'm not sure if I should feel guilty about this or not. Maybe she is just killing more right now because this is the time when there are more young animals that aren't as savvy about predators as their parents. Or maybe it is an unintended consequence of the 'feline opium den' I planted. Looking at the bright side... she's an old cat, and at least she is getting some exercise (and supplementing her diet).

Here's a picture of the evidence (with dead chipmunk removed).

Zima slays the Legendary Black Beast of Aaaaaarrrrrgggghhhh

Yesterday morning, Zima bravely slew the Rabbit of Caerbannog, otherwise known as the Killer Rabbit.

What? You're not buying it? OK. What really happened is that she mortally wounded a cute little baby rabbit, and brought it into the house. Sometimes the Circle of Life is not such a wonderful thing.