Rat Hunters?

[Cha Cha]

Originally Posted by Nancy1999

Leaving San Antonio, late at night with my 1 month old baby, we headed for small Texas town, where we would be stationed. The road ahead was blackened with something and as we slowed down we were horrified to learn that there were hundreds/thousands( ?) of tarantulas, it must have been a tarantula road crossing, you could hear crunch crunch as we drove over them. I was terrified that when we got out of the car there would be hundreds of them on it (there weren't). It really was like something from a horror movie.

I would need major therapy to recover from this. I have a similar snake story that still haunts me, but spideys......I cannot deal with!

[Lovetodream88]

I would say they are as susceptible as any dog. I think if a dog has all its vaccines it would be ok if it killed it but I think most dogs would get sick if they ate the whole rat and more so the smaller the dog they are. But I think if a dog kills and eats anything that was once was alive then it has a chance of getting sick. When we first got Callie we put a chicken like wire around the bottom of anything she could get under like the shed and deck to make sure she wouldn't get under there and something might hurt her and we still make sure the chicken like wire stays up.

[KazzyK810]

Originally Posted by CesarTheGreat

I've read that Yorkies were bred to hunt and kill rats during the times of high rat infestations in England.

If this is true, I am wondering if these dogs are less susceptible to disease carried by rats.

I wouldn't think being a ratter would make them less susceptible to disease, but probably how a yorkie kills makes it less exposed to diseases. If you've seen a yorkie at work, they don't bite & tear open their kills, they grab it quickly, and its a fast, hard shake that snaps the rodent's neck.

[Lovetodream88]

Originally Posted by KazzyK810

I wouldn't think being a ratter would make them less susceptible to disease, but probably how a yorkie kills makes it less exposed to diseases. If you've seen a yorkie at work, they don't bite & tear open their kills, they grab it quickly, and its a fast, hard shake that snaps the rodent's neck.

I wonder if that's why Callie shakes her toys so violently. Did they have to be taught that or did they just know to kill them that way?

[OwnedByJezebel]

Originally Posted by Lovetodream88

I wonder if that's why Callie shakes her toys so violently. Did they have to be taught that or did they just know to kill them that way?

That's the "shake and kill." It's instinctual for a terrier/ratter.

You can see it here in this youtube video:

terrier rat kill - YouTube

[Kadance]

I think a lot of hunting animals instinctively know to shake the prey and break its neck...this is why I don't let dexter anywhere my hamster lol He could stare at the hamster all day if I let him.

Ps. Remind me never to live in Texas!

[nanahas3]

Well ok don't yell at me it was NOT my fault When Laddy was about 8 months old my DH took him out to do his nightly business. When they came back in my DH proudly exclaimed....Laddy just killed a mouse!!! I was not impressed (that mouth kisses me) lol but he didn't let him eat it thank goodness. So they do even though we pamper them still have the ratter instincts.

[Nancy1999]

Originally Posted by OwnedByJezebel

That's the "shake and kill." It's instinctual for a terrier/ratter.

You can see it here in this youtube video:

terrier rat kill - YouTube

That's exactly how Joey plays with his toys. I guess I was assuming they killed the rat to eat it, but it looks like they just kill the rat for sport. The only reason I'm mentioning this is because I've heard a million times "Man is the only animal who kills for sport, other animals kill for food."

[Lovetodream88]

Originally Posted by OwnedByJezebel

That's the "shake and kill." It's instinctual for a terrier/ratter.

You can see it here in this youtube video:

terrier rat kill - YouTube

That's what Callie does with her toys

[Lovetodream88]

Originally Posted by Nancy1999

That's exactly how Joey plays with his toys. I guess I was assuming they killed the rat to eat it, but it looks like they just kill the rat for sport. The only reason I'm mentioning this is because I've heard a million times "Man is the only animal who kills for sport, other animals kill for food."

I swear I saw some where that dolphins will kill for sport.

[Nancy1999]

Originally Posted by Lovetodream88

I swear I saw some where that dolphins will kill for sport.

Oh no, not dolphins!!!! I have them on a pedestal! I wear earrings in their shape, to pay homage to them!

[CesarTheGreat]

Originally Posted by KazzyK810

I wouldn't think being a ratter would make them less susceptible to disease, but probably how a yorkie kills makes it less exposed to diseases. If you've seen a yorkie at work, they don't bite & tear open their kills, they grab it quickly, and its a fast, hard shake that snaps the rodent's neck.

lol yes I see it everyday when I walk in the door and he grabs his toy. He runs, grabs it, kills it, then brings it to me and drops it at my feet.

Well I was just wondering because sometimes we do get rodents. I've never seen a rat but I have seen a skunk in my backyard. He and Cesar were face to face and Cesar was just barking at him. The skunk just ran from him. I saw the skunk and I yelled for him to come in but he wouldn't. Luckily the skunk did not spray and just ran away. I'm guessing he must have sprayed and didn't have any left otherwise we'd be in trouble.

Cesar doesn't back down from anything though and that's what scares me. Hopefully if he did catch something outside he'd just kill it and drop it.

[navillusc]

Originally Posted by Kadance

I think a lot of hunting animals instinctively know to shake the prey and break its neck...this is why I don't let dexter anywhere my hamster lol He could stare at the hamster all day if I let him.

Ps. Remind me never to live in Texas!

My understanding is this is true...they are also taught hunting skills, and practice in play and for real. Dogs and cats also play practice hunting skills as puppies and kittens, and as adults. If you watch a cat eat, you may well see them pick up food and shake vigorously before eating. I have seen mine do this many, many times. Living in FL we refer to it as "shaking the fire ants off" but it really has little to do with one of FL's most common pests. lol

Dogs and cats today who are human fed regular meals still instinctively hunt and catch and/or kill prey. If they were not human fed and were hungry, they would likely still consume their kill, too.

My cats have brought home plenty of live...and not...catches. The last was a Titmouse, who we rescued unharmed from the cat and took to a friend with an aviary where he was welcomed into another Titmouse family. One cat brought his Daddy a freshly killed still warm field mouse, apparently because he 'knew' DH had not eaten all day, rebuilding a custom motorcycle which died two days before a show it was entered in...due to a design flaw.

My first Shep/Lab, Honey (Honey Houdini ...also Honey Bunches ), killed a ground burrowing rodent while in a spike choker collar on a steel cable run...and she was so proud of herself. She was 'a natural huntress'...she also brought home a domestic turkey foot from the turkey farm nearby after escaping yet another restraint system...and I was expecting a loaded shotgun carrying farmer hot on her heels.

I am so glad I never had to drive through a sea of tarantulas...I'd probably still be bouncing off the walls in a rubber room somewhere! We did drive through a sea of tiny frogs at night, though, and it was awful.

[gracielove]

I think the fact that these little one's ancestors were rodent killers says a lot about their personalities. They may be beautiful and look lovely in a show ring but they have some wild personalities. Gracie is sure she is boss of all cats, well boss of everything really. They may be small but they have huge personalities.

[Deadbug]

Originally Posted by Nancy1999

Leaving San Antonio, late at night with my 1 month old baby, we headed for small Texas town, where we would be stationed. The road ahead was blackened with something and as we slowed down we were horrified to learn that there were hundreds/thousands( ?) of tarantulas, it must have been a tarantula road crossing, you could hear crunch crunch as we drove over them. I was terrified that when we got out of the car there would be hundreds of them on it (there weren't). It really was like something from a horror movie.

Nancy,
I seriously hope you plan to entertain me while I'm up all night. After reading this, I won't sleep for a week. I don't do spiders in any format. Period. The spiders that live in my house know the rules. They must stay behind the walls at all times. If they come out, I have to kill them. Luckily most of them understand.

When I lived in the deep southern part of Alabama, I discovered the crawl space of my house was a haven for the brown recluse. I moved out of the house for a month while it was exterminated and never did settle back in there. Not long after that, I sold the house and moved to Utah.

On rats... I can't picture Gabby indulging the effort to move off my lap to chase one. We had a mouse get into the house back in December. The whole family was watching tv and Gabby was on the arm of the couch right next to me. Out of the blue, the mouse casually walked across the livingroom floor. I was stunned, looked at Gabby and she looked back at me as if to say "You gonna get that?"

Lazy dog.