For the last few days I have been surprised by the cleverness, cunning and speed of the ginger cat that can be regularly found on my property. It was the first to visit the cat trap only minutes after setting it up, but it escaped with the food. I thought it was due to mistakes on my part; how wrong I was.
I've been trapping like mad since the rain has ceased – I couldn't trap in the rain as there is no area on my property that would provide shelter between the time a cat was trapped and when I might discover it. The past few days have certainly been an interesting chain of events. Saturday night I baited the trap as usual and it was gone come morning. Sunday night I increased the sensitivity of the trap and re-baited it with the same result. Monday morning I was up very early and I put more bait in and the sensitivity of the trigger was so high a stiff breeze could set it off, but come a little later in the day the bait was gone and an empty trap remained yet again.
Last night I knew I had to do something extra as this cat was able to dodge the trigger without issue. I tied a bid of string to the part of the trigger mechanism holding the door open and fed it into the cage. The bait was tied to it so it would be up the back top corner and the cat would really have to get in there to reach it and would surely step on the trigger plate, otherwise any attempt to retrieve the bait would set it off. Either way, I thought I was onto a winner.
I had a late night and was just reading a few more pages in bed before switching off the light and nodding off, it was about 2am. I heard the distinct sound of the cat trap door slamming shut and went outside to investigate. The trap was empty. The bait that had dangled from the string sat in the middle of the cage. I understand their reflexes are incredibly quick, but this was just amazing. I knocked the bait out and scattered it in the yard to prevent ants swarming the trap in the morning.
Today I went out to give the trap a bit of a clean and the ginger cat was sitting next to the trap. It increased the challenge I was already feeling, like it was taunting me into re-baiting the trap which had become more like its food dish than anything else. I shooed the little smart-arse away, cleaned up and did a little research before doing some chores and errands. According to the results of my googling ability, this seems to be an uncommon occurrence and either choosing the right bait or getting a cat to even enter the trap appear to be what most people encounter. I did see one suggestion that wouldn't work, but with a little alteration could be the very solution I needed.
Some cats step right over the trigger plate and access the bait with no consequence. Reducing the size of the gap between the trigger plate and the end of the cage where the bait lies should combat this. I chopped up a cardboard box to obtain a sheet that is larger than the trigger plate and taped it to the actual trigger plate. The length was now extended so the gap between the end of the now rather long trigger plate and the bait was very small, I doubt a cat could attempt to access it with mouth or claws and succeed without triggering it. Again I tied some bait to a string attached the same part of the trigger mechanism, as well as putting some in the usual spot in case the cat was wary of the tied bait after its recent narrow escape.
Not too long after setting it this afternoon, I went to inspect the trap and see the ginger cat staring back at me from inside the cage. Goddamn I was pleased. While not entirely appropriate, the saying 'the harder the battle, the sweeter the victory' just about sums it up.
I feel a little guilty as I kinda respect this clever, smart-arse cat. Most times it's just lazing about in the sun at various locations around the house. If that were the extent of it, I wouldn't mind at all, but the frequent fighting is far too disruptive to ignore.
I will share one incident that happened last week with this cat as I thought it was pretty funny. I went outside and stood on the back steps in the sun to have my breakfast, as I often do, and saw this cat lounging on the outdoor setting. It just looked up at me, making no attempt to move. I shooed it away and, as it often does, runs down the backyard and behind our garage, but not all the way – it hides behind a pot plant thinking I can't see it and waits however long until I'm gone, or it thinks I am, before returning. I shooed it even further, sending it onto the neighbours property.
I continued eating my cereal where I was originally standing and, not soon after, I see it come trotting around the corner of the garage heading towards the outdoor setting. It gets rather close before looking around and stops dead, looking at me. Waiting to see what I do, it just sits down on the spot, still looking at me. I'm just laughing at this point and as I do so, it wanders over near the garage wall, in full sight of me and just lays down there. Being the funniest thing I had seen all week, I just left it alone and went inside.
Anyway, it's in the garage now so it cannot be harassed by any other cats. Hopefully the impound officer arrives tomorrow morning to collect it. This was quite the long and detailed story, but I wanted to share one of the few interesting things going on.
About that last Kickstarter...
although limited edition zeldas...
