Cats are very effective for mice control. They will not only catch mice in your sheds, barns, and garage, they will also venture out into the woods and fields around your home.
How many cats do I need for effective mouse control?
That totally depends on how many mice you have, the amount of property the cats will be prowling, and whether you will be feeding the cats or allowing them to feed themselves.
At the moment we have one female cat on 40 acres and it’s becoming very clear that there are more mice than she can catch, let alone eat. If you are not feeding your cats or feeding them very little, and they are killing multiple mice and not eating them, or they are so overrun with mice that they see one run by and barely even care to look at it, it’s time to add another cat.
What cats make the best mice killers?
Females that are young (kittens aren’t very good micers but they’re easy to find and grow up fast) and not too big or too small make the best micers.
Do I need to train a cat to catch mice?
No, cats will instinctively catch mice, but you may need to house your new cat in the area where the mice are the worst, so they know to start looking for them.
Can a cat eat nothing but mice?
Apricot's diet is almost 100% mice, voles, and rats.
Yes, cats can eat only mice, but if your cat starts to look thin due to a decrease in mice or an inability to catch significant amounts you will want to start feeding them.
Where do I find cats or kittens for sale?
BEWARE if you are buying a kitten or cat be absolutely certain it doesn’t have fleas, don’t just ask, see for yourself and never buy an infested animal. We had a stray kitten show up that we had planned to keep (but who got run over a few months later) she was absolutely covered in fleas, and she gave our dogs and our other cat tons of them.
Craigslist has plenty of cats and kittens but be very cautious, if anything seems abnormal (six-digit codes, blurry pictures, weird wording, requests for mail in checks etc.) go somewhere else. You don’t need to pay $80 for a barn cat, there are several honest people who have a litter of mix breed kittens for $15-$20, or for free.
You can also find kittens or cats at shelters or by looking on farm or pet store bulletin boards.
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