Re: RE: mousers was: holiday decorating

Can you actually train a dog to use a litter box?
I've never heard of such a thing!  How interesting.

---------- Original Message ----------------------------------
From: "Kitty" <kmrsy@comcast.net>
Reply-To: gardenchat@hort.net
Date:  Thu, 16 Oct 2003 22:14:06 -0500

>> every size litter box
>
>In recent years they've been trying to push litterboxes for dogs.  Didn't
>seem like anyone was very interested and the litterboxes sat on the shelf
>for nearly a year.  I bought one of the large ones labeled as being for a
>standard-sized dog - whatever that is.  It works pretty well.  It's very
>deep and very big.  I put in 2-14# boxes of litter for starters.  And
>because of the height, it mostly stays in the box.
>
>Kitty
>
>----- Original Message ----- 
>From: "Pamela J. Evans" <gardenqueen@gbronline.com>
>To: <gardenchat@hort.net>
>Sent: Thursday, October 16, 2003 8:48 PM
>Subject: Re: RE: [CHAT]mousers was: holiday decorating
>
>
>> Fabulous story. I've always been amazed that Sugar is so brilliant
>> considering her rough beginnings. I had to teach her what a water dish
>> was, she had no clue. She still prefers to drink out of buckets and seed
>> flats on the porch. She was barely 7 pounds when I had her fixed at 6
>> months, and the vet told me she'd probably never get much bigger
>> considering her deprived 'childhood'. Wish she was better in the car,
>> I'd love for him to see her now - all 16 pounds of her. She was small
>> until she was three or so, then she started to grow. We went through
>> every size litter box, to a restaurant bus pan, and now we use a large
>> sweater box, like you put under the bed w/out a lid for a litter box
>> because she is so long. So it just goes to show what some TLC will do.
>>
>>
>> ---------- Original Message ----------------------------------
>> From: "Jesse Bell" <jesserenebell@hotmail.com>
>> Reply-To: gardenchat@hort.net
>> Date:  Thu, 16 Oct 2003 14:31:39 -0500
>>
>> >Wow, what a sweet story.  I think animals know more than most people give
>> >them credit for.  I love to hear stories like that.
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> >>From: kmrsy@comcast.net
>> >>Reply-To: gardenchat@hort.net
>> >>To: gardenchat@hort.net
>> >>Subject: Re: RE: [CHAT]mousers was:  holiday decorating
>> >>Date: Thu, 16 Oct 2003 18:14:00 +0000
>> >>
>> >>Re hunters in training....
>> >>Years ago I had Spot the Cat (male) who was a good mouser. He didn't
>> >>like other cats much but took an liking to a skinny little stray, so we
>> >>took him in. Orangecat was nearly a year old, but no more than 4 pounds.
>> >>He'd had a rough time of it. He gained weight, but never seemed to
>> >>believe the food would always be there, so he got bigger than he should
>> >>have and eventually outweighed Spot by 5 pounds.
>> >>
>> >>
>> >>Orangecat was pretty slow at catching on to things and did not hunt. I
>> >>belive it had to do with his background, including some of the things
>> >>Marge mentioned. But also, I beleive the lack of vital nutrients during
>> >>a young kitten's development can have retarding effects. Some things he
>> >>just didn't quite get.
>> >>
>> >>
>> >>But just like having a slow learning child, you love them just as much,
>> >>and maybe more. And other animals seem to understand these things, too.
>> >>The most tender moment I recall was watching Spot trying to teach
>> >>Orangecat how to catch a mouse. OC was about 4 yrs old by then. Spot
>> >>brought him a mouse and dropped it in front of OC, who would blink and
>> >>seem to say "What?" Mouse would scurry, Spot would bring it back and
>> >>keep trying. A few tries later OC would lunge at it, of course missing.
>> >>This went on and on. OC got a little better, but never caught the mouse.
>> >>
>> >>
>> >>This dear sweet cat didn't need to be a mouser, he was worth his
>> >>(substantial) weight in gold as a friend.
>> >>
>> >>Kitty
>> >> > I've developed the theory that good mousers have to be either wild
>> >> > born, barn cats or have had a mother who was as their mothers teach
>> >> > them to hunt.  Most human raised cats are not really good hunters.
>> >> > They will chase and often kill something, but that's just instinct
>> >> > and not "hunting".  My current mighty hunter was (I am sure) either
>> >> > born wild or a barn cat baby.  She is fixated on hunting; so is
>> >> > campused as she cannot distinguish between a bird and a rodento.
>> >> > Being in the woods, we always had an influx of mice in autumn...can't
>> >> > blame them; I'd rather live in heated quarters in winter, too.  I
>> >> > think field mice are cute, but do not like them in my kitchen and
>> >> > they can make such a mess.  Anyway, any mouse who is dumb enough to
>> >> > show a whisker around here now has a very shortened life span.    My
>> >> > mighty hunter eats what she kills  - unfortunately, she also often
>> >> > barfs it right back up...gag.
>> >> >
>> >> > Marge Talt, zone 7 Maryland
>> >> > mtalt@hort.net
>> >> > Editor:  Gardening in Shade
>> >> > -----------------------------------------------
>> >> > Current Article: Variegation on the Green Theme - Part One
>> >> > http://www.suite101.com/welcome.cfm/shade_gardening
>> >> > ------------------------------------------------
>> >> > Complete Index of Articles by Category and Date
>> >> > http://mtalt.hort.net/article-index.html
>> >> > ------------------------------------------------
>> >> > All Suite101.com garden topics :
>> >> > http://www.suite101.com/topics.cfm/635
>> >> >
>> >> > ----------
>> >> > > From: Daryl <pulis@mindspring.com>
>> >> > >
>> >> > > Pam,
>> >> > >
>> >> > > One of my friends does cat rescue. She says that a lot of shelter
>> >> > cats are
>> >> > > just owner give-ups and are poor mousers.
>> >> > >
>> >> > >  I'll have her keep an eye open for me, though. It would also need
>> >> > to be a
>> >> > > cat that could get along with our elderly dog, who tore his
>> >> > cruciate
>> >> > > ligament a few weeks ago. The poor old guy tries to hunt, but is
>> >> > severely
>> >> > > hampered. I was going to find him a rescue pup/dog, since he hadn't
>> >> > ever
>> >> > > been an only dog until December, but I think the new activity would
>> >> > probably
>> >> > > make his leg worse.
>> >> > >
>> >> > > Daryl
>> >> >
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>>
>> --
>> Pam Evans
>> Kemp TX/zone 8A
>>
>>
>>
>> --
>>
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--
Pam Evans
Kemp TX/zone 8A



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