Chaos & Carnage!

Err.. What birds?

 

Over the past summer, the bird body count in our house saw a sharp increase as our cats reached maturity at two years old. To try and even up the score, I added some rather loud bells to their collars. So while wily adult birds are off the menu, baby birds (post and pre-hatching) are sadly fair game.

Over one week in July, my two little rascals wreaked a trail of carnage through my house. This is a snapshot of these 5 days of mayhem....

Monday

On the living room carpet I spot an open egg, with some blood around the shell and spots on the carpet. No cats anywhere in sight.

Tuesday

 Late in the evening Jason appears through the cat flap, stands in the kitchen making a low yowling noise and coughs out an egg on the floor. Thankfully the egg just has liquid in it. He appears largely uninterested in its fate.

 Wednesday

 The living room floor is a mess of tiny feathers and a small wing  lies sadly on the floor.

 

Thursday

When chatting to my elderly neighbours (in their 80’s) they tell me that their  even more elderly neighbour (in his 90’s) has found two dead baby birds in his garden and is really cross with ‘that ginger one’ who has been spotted lurking nearby. Oh dear.  

Friday

My husband comes home to find a bedraggled baby bird on the kitchen floor. When he picks it up, it raises itself feebly and flaps its wings. After encountering a recorded message on the RSPCA website advising not to rescue baby birds, he rings our vets to ask for advice. Thankfully they work with a bird rehabilitation centre so my husband pops it in a tupperware box, takes it down to the vets and they take it off our hands. Job done.

You appear to have hidden my prey under this duvet!

All in all, this was a traumatic week but now its got colder the prey has changed - mainly mice but with one interesting variation. Read the next instalment for all the gory details!