About two weeks ago, I pulled into my apartment complex and noticed a cat playing with something on the side of the road. As I got closer I noticed that cat was playing with a small chipmunk. The chipmunk was desperately trying to flee for its life, while the cat seemed nothing but amused by the small creature. The behavior between the two animals was very interesting because the cat seemed to have no intention of killing or eating the chipmunk but merely wanted to play. The cat was casually catch the chipmunk, then let it go and watch it run, then catch it again. It did this several times while the chipmunk tried to evade capture by finding objects such as car wheels to hide under. Eventually, after about 10 minutes, the cat had the chipmunk cornered along a brick wall. the chipmunk began to carefully scale the vertical wall (a talent I was unaware chipmunks were capable of) yet the cat swiped it down. However, it got up and once again began climbing. This time the cat waited too long and the rodent was out of reach.
I found this entire behavior and interaction between the two creatures very interesting and it left me wondering whether the cat had any intention of eating the chipmunk or if the cat just does this for entertainment? I have never owned a cat and would love to hear feedback on this story. Another very interesting and very smart behavior I noticed is that once the cat realized it could not reach the chipmunk, it quickly darted into nearby bushes, out of the sight of the chipmunk. Every so often the cat would dart out, seemingly hoping the chipmunk had come down thinking the cat was gone. I knew cats were smart, but this was pretty amazing.
Posted by Patrick Holmes
This sounds a lot like another post from the first week (I think?) about the game of cat & mouse.. Here it certainly sounds like the cat was just playing with the chipmunk, since the chipmunk was able to get away. It also sounds like the cat was working on it's hunting skills, hiding in the bushes to wait for the chipmunk when it couldn't reach it anymore. Playing is important for the development of motor & hunting skills in cats; and with domestic cats usually fed well, I think this allows them to play with prey animals without the lethal consequences seen more often with play behavior in wild cats.
ReplyDeletePosted by Brianna Eddy
I wonder if cats(in the general sense) use hunting techniques that were used on them. If the cat thought of the bushes technique because another animal that was hunting it tried that and did startle and sneak up on the cat. This is a different type of learning that kinda reminds of mimicry.
ReplyDeleteJobin Oommen
I don't know for a fact, but, think that cats will often hunt or kill something solely for the entertainment factor. Domestic cats, which are often very well fed still kill small animals. I personally have never owned a cat either, but I've heard of them killing small animals like mice, birds or chipmunks and bringing them home as a gift, leaving them some place for their owner to find them. Maybe it is for entertainment or hunting practice, like Jobin said.
ReplyDeletePosted by Emily Nobrega
Sometimes cats use this method as a means to tire out their prey. Since cats have a short muzzle their eyes and face are right by their prey and so they can be easily injured. By tiring their prey out they risk less injury when they actually kill their prey. Also, I am sure that cats that are domesticated are used to playing with toys and have not fully developed hunting skills that a wild cat would have. Not sure if the cat you saw was a domesticated cat with a home or a stray.
ReplyDeletePosted by Caitlin Descovich O'Hare
I have never owned a cat but I would assume that as others said, the cat was probably a domestic cat who was just toying with the chipmunk for fun. I think that domestic cats often kill small rodents for fun, and it is variable whether they eat them or not. Often times they don't. Even though they are very domesticated, they still have their hunting instincts somewhat intact; and they have probably practiced "hunting" things all their lives through the medium of cat toys.
ReplyDelete-Posted by Johanna Brophy
As was mentioned, this was similar to a post earlier about a game of "cat and mouse". Domestic cats and wild cats behave differently, so this is probably not a good indication of what a feral or wild cat would do when faced with a situation where its prey was so close. However, with human reinforcement to cat's play, there's plenty of incentive to play that game of cat and mouse. It sure is a lot more interesting than a ball of yarn.
ReplyDeletePosted by Michael Shi
This is a great post. I am not a big cat person because I didn't think they did anything more than walk around the house and sleep, but the more I'm around them I realize they are a lot more playful than I had ever imagined. I wonder if the cat hid in the bush in hopes for the chipmunk to come out, or if it just seemed that way, because that is so genius! I never thought cats were that smart! I am also surprised the cat's intentions weren't to kill the chipmunk, because I thought they would only hunt for food. I wonder if there was an alternative motive to playing with the chipmunk, and if the chipmunk didn't get away, maybe he would have killed him in the end.
ReplyDeletePosted by Abbie Saranteas
This post reminds me of another post from last week, I believe, about the orcas brutally playing with their prey of sea lions before eating them. In that post, this was thought to be used as practice for when the orcas had bigger prey to catch. Somehow, I doubt that this game of cat and chipmunk applies to that theory, however. Domesticated cats seem to slowly be losing their sense of survival, but not the physical features that have helped their ancestors survive. Some cats do kill their prey of small rodents, while other just play with them. This could just be the latter cat practicing or it could be a primary example of the evolutionary difference between the two cats, the latter being more domesticated than the other.
ReplyDeletePosted by Chelsea Van Thof
I'm sure that everyone has already said that this post is similar to one a few weeks back about the game of cat and mouse. It's interesting to have seen articles about this same, toying with prey, behavior where in one case the cat killed its prey and in this case the prey was able to escape. I wonder if the first cats prey had gotten away would it have hid in a bush as well, or is this unique to this particular cat?
ReplyDeletePosted by Michael Thomas
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ReplyDeleteI will tell you Pat that this behavior sounds very familiar because my cat in fact has done this many times with several kinds of small mammals. I will tell you of a situation that happened to me.
ReplyDeleteOne day I was sitting in the living room when I looked outside at my cat and noticed she had captured something. She was meowing to get my attention and when I went outside to see what it was she excitedly rubbed against my leg. She had captured a mouse and like the chipmunk, was desperately trying to escape. I intervened by bringing my cat into the house and shooed the mouse away. My cat was proud of her catch and wanted me to see it before she either let it go or ate its head. She only eats the heads of the small animals she kills; rabbits, birds such as crows (yes, crows), moles, weasels, etc.
So to answer your question, it really depends on the situation, but cats do things for entertainment like we humans do. There have been studies, though I cannot quote them.
I am glad that the chipmunk got away. I hope you are as well.
Posted by: Em Arsenault
Thanks for all the responses on this post, there's some really interesting explanations for the behavior that you all thought of. It makes sense that the cat was possibly trying to tire out the chipmunk before eating it because I've never seen a slower more exhausted chipmunk in my life.
ReplyDeleteI apologize if this post was too similar to the cat and mouse post; I must've somehow missed it or just don't remember it. It would have been interesting to see if the cat would have killed it had the chipmunk not been able to escape, or just let it go once it got bored.
Posted by Patrick Holmes
This was a good post and I could easily relate to it. I had a cat when I was younger growing up and noticed that sometimes it would hunt animals such as birds, mice and chipmunks. Other times, my cat would seem to play with them and sort of torture them but not eat them. The cat I have now has not resembled any of these characteristics. Its personality is mellow and will let anyone touch it. Perhaps this behavior depends on the type of cat or maybe it was the environment it was raised in.
ReplyDeletePosted by Ryan Dulmaine
I recently trapped a feral kitten/cat about 1 yr old. I had him neutered/vaccinated and returned him to the wild (TNR). He loves my backyard and has warmed up to me greatly - probably because I feed him. Long story short, he displays this exact behavior. He plays with the chipmunk sometimes to the point of injuring it, but he does not ever kill it or eat it. Maybe because I feed him? Maybe he is young and curious? No presents left at my doorstep yet... :)
ReplyDeleteI've had a DSH calico for over a decade, and she has always been a champion chipmunk hunter. I have watched her stalk, pursue, capture, release, re-capture, and kill her prey -- many times.
ReplyDeleteIn recent years, in an effort to control her weight, we have reduced her food portions. So... She has now resorted to supplementing her diet with chipmunks from the area. Our neighbors, all avid gardeners like us, have fortunately been grateful!