It’s not what I love to see first thing in the morning – a giant rat, intercepted by Zip and frozen in the ice (too cold to shovel it out yet).
It’s probably not the first thing you want to see in the morning, but that’s life on a farm and life with a Barn Cat.
It’s a bit shocking, but it’s good news.
Zip takes his belly scratching seriously, but even more serious is his vigilance and keeps rats – big ones – away from the cracks in the foundation where they slip inside.
Rats are tough to get rid of once they get in. We battled one for months until we discovered he was living in the refrigerator base, storing my protein bars. (I couldn’t imagine where they were going.) He was also eating the base of the refrigerator and was close to destroying its engine.
That’s a wicked problem for a farmhouse in the winter. Zip has earned his keep. So far, we found at least five rat bodies out near the parn or the pasture fence since it got cold. A family was trying to break in, and we think Zip got them all. No sign of them anywhere in the house (known on wood.) They will be back.
Zip will be waiting for them. He has figured out how they get in and out.
When it gets bitterly cold, as it has been, the rats appear from everywhere and try to get into the house. Zip loves snowstorms; they give him great hiding places, and he doesn’t seem to mind hiding in the snow. I have often tried to explain to city people that farm cats like Zip keep rats out of houses and off of the farm, where they usually spread deadly infections to the sheep and other animals.
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I’ve rarely been as close to any animal as I am to Zip, and I’m astonished at the schizophrenic nature of cats, who can be so sweet in one minute and murderous the next. Zip is a precious animal on his own; he has dramatically increased his need and value.
I love to sit outside with him in warm weather and scratch his belly. I don’t want to think about what he is doing the rest of the time.
I get messages all over the world from people telling me how sweet Zip is. Maybe there is a better way to describe him. Just ask a rat.
We’ll have to wait for a thaw to get the dead rat out and into a spot in the pasture.
OR, “Zip, 5, Rats, zip”
I just got a male ( if you picture a ” tuxedo” cat but picture the back being ginger. He is about 6 months old and an inside only cat ( i live in TG he city in an apt). He is a deadly wire destroyer! He attacks, phone, cable and any small round wires ( he hasn’t gotten electrical wires — yet). But BI POLAR yep! Loves love (and drools when he gets FULL FRONTAL cuddles)!!!! And loves stalking ANY cords or crumpled up papers! I often wish he had a barn to live in and rats to destroy. Yay Zip!
You wrote, “schizophrenic nature of cats, who can be so sweet in one minute and murderous the next”. I suggest Zip is not in the least schizophrenic. Think about it: he has two jobs, and he is very good at both of them.
IF you judge him by cat standards, I think you’ll be calling him an outstanding success. He deals with the pests who are trying to do things that will ruin the farm, AND, he nurtures the people he lives with. WOW!
I do judge him a success, buy any standards I’m sometime rattled by the casualties, but he is a wonderful addition to my life and the farm and Maria as well..
Hurray for the Zipster, well done!
I’d rather see the dead rat than a live one! (That live one makes for a rather unsettled day😠)
Praying you are doing well and safe in the storm-hi to Maria 👋🏻