Here’s Why Cats Drop Dead Animals at Your Doorstep

Here’s Why Cats Drop Dead Animals at Your DoorstepYou know that time when you get back home and you find your cat with a dead animal on your carpet or doorstep. It can be hard to know how to politely react to this so, calm down! there is no need to panic about it because the cat comes with its prey in peace. Try and not to make a horrified face and stay calm because cats can read your body language. Let’s learn more about why these amazing creatures do that right now.

It has been very many years ago since humans started domesticating cats and still, their hunting instincts remain very strong within them. Their strong instincts tell them what they need to do to survive and that they need to learn this very important skill to be able to live alone independently.

Hunters By Nature

Cats are born natural hunters because of their carnivorous and predatory instincts. They need mental stimulation and they get this by chasing, playing, and hunting. Domesticated cats too cannot resist the urge to hunt even though they do not require to hunt for their food for survival purposes.

Natural Physical Characteristics

Cats have very sharp teeth, retractable claws, and cushioned paws to help them silently creep on their prey. They generally just enjoy chasing and hunting for their prey. They gradually learn hunting from their mothers when they are kittens. Generally, even cats brought up without maternal interactions will still have hunting instincts. Cats are adapted to the carnivorous life that some studies show they kill billions of small animals and insects yearly. 

It’s A Proud Moment

Sometimes cats will go out to hunt and bring back a kind of dead animal to your doorstep just to show off to you as their owner their wonderful skills in a major way. The cat feels so proud of their catch that might be definitely for consumption later. 

Cats will bring their dead prey as a form of gift to the owner. They want to be praised for bringing you a gift and as the owner, you should react peacefully and praise your cat for bringing you such a wonderful gift in a sort of outrageous way.

Read Also:
Can Cats Overheat?

They Know The Leader

 A domesticated cat sees you as the alpha leader of its pack, so when it brings you dead or alive prey, it’s a sign of respect from the cat, contrary to a popular belief. They sometimes specifically feel the need to provide for their leader.

Natural Cravings

As their nature is carnivorous, their diet mainly consists of animal tissues. Your cat may just be craving to eat some raw meat and so it may also be telling you as the owner, `Hey, let’s enjoy some raw meat together today!’

It’s a Survival Skill

Cats for the most part are taught how to hunt and survive on their own by their mothers from a young age. Their mothers mostly bring to them dead or alive prey as a teaching aid. Cats see humans as inexperienced hunters since they never see us hunt. When they bring you dead prey, they are trying in their efforts to teach you how to also hunt for food.

It is a Form of Love Language

Cats are mostly loving and fluffy companions and to them bringing you their prey is just another way of them saying they love and appreciate you too so `I brought you a gift today!’ They do not care whether it is actually your birthday or any special occasion, they just want you to know they generally care for you too.

They are Just Having Fun

Naturally, cats are just playful and sometimes they bring you back their dead prey because they assume you enjoy them, just as they enjoy the toys you give them to play with at most times. They associate your presence and their toys as a go sign to play and they learn this relationship gradually. That is why they might instigate their playtime with you by bringing you what they caught while they were out on a hunting adventure.

Sharing is Caring

Sometimes the cat just merely sharing a snack with you since it already knows that you are friends. They do remember that you also share your snacks with them, so they are just returning the favor.

Read Also:
How Much Does a Cat Weigh?

They may also catch prey when they are not feeling hungry and want to eat it later in a subtle way. In such a scenario, they just bring the dead prey as their meal for later. They will not bring it directly to show it to you.

You are Family

Cats exist in the wild as packs. This is another instinct they have and are aware of. When you have a good connection with your cat they will likely view you as a family member of their pack. In such a case the cat wants to share its catch with its family in a big way. They do not want their family to just end up sleeping hungry that night.

It’s Bringing Dinner Tonight

If your cat is used to eating cooked meals it might bring a dead animal after its adventures outdoors to add to its meal. It sounds more like saying it has contributed to some ingredients for dinner. It knows your human behaviors and is aware that you do not chase and hunt.

Strong Motherly Instincts

Mostly female cats are the ones who hunt and also teach their kittens how to hunt and survive independently. If you own a female can expect to have a couple of dead carcasses brought into your home. Female cats’motherly instincts are so sharp and high that they cannot be suppressed. It is just their nature.

These amazing creatures have an inborn independent nature in them. Sometimes they may bring their dead prey just to show you that they are independent creatures and have survival skills that allow them to exist with us in nature.

They Try to Get Your Attention

In other cases where you are a very busy owner and hardly have time to connect with the cat, it may be bringing home a dead catch to grab your attention and try to engage you into being playful with them or to go out there hunting with them. Since humans no longer survive through hunting nowadays, the best you can do is just interact with your cat. They love that.

Read Also:
How Big is a Cat'S Neck?

Ensuring Everyone is Well Fed

In different situations where the cat has kittens, it is usually just making sure the kittens are well fed and full. That act of the female cat bringing back dead prey for its kittens teaches the kittens that they can go outdoors and fend for themselves. They are capable of doing that.

Your Home is Their Home Too

When you domesticate a cat in your home and have a good interaction with it. It considers that as also his or her home, so for the cat, it is just going back home with its prey after a long day of being outdoors playing, running, and chasing after prey. Sounds more like, `phew! After a long chase, I am finally home with my meal or reward’

Home is Safer

When cats are out there hunting they may meet other cats or dogs that might threaten them. In this case, they might get into a fight with other cats as they are out hunting. As soon as it catches its prey their first instinct will be to rush back home with it where it is safe. The other cats might start a fight and grab their hard-earned prey in the process. In such cases, they were just running back home for safety but could not leave behind their dead catch to be enjoyed later.

By leaving their dead prey on your doorstep, your cat is just in tune with nature and acting out as both a teacher and a mother. Your cat sees you as its loving and caring surrogate family that would never be able to catch that delicious bird or rat. That’s why it knows the value of sharing. Sharing is indeed caring. 

At other times the cat is simply just showing you some love and affection by bringing their prey to you as they walk around with their tail waggling in the air. The best reaction is to be thankful for the gift it has brought for you.

Read Also:
How to Calm Cats Down?

In such instances, the cat does not necessarily want to eat the prey. Sometimes they just end up playing with it. If you feel the need to get rid of the dead prey that is on your doorstep, first distract the cat with something else then silently and discreetly dispose of the dead carcass.

Cats are naturally playful creatures and sometimes them bringing a dead prey home does not necessarily mean much. They are just having fun and playing with the dead prey. They have no brain capacity to overthink such a scenario in their minds.

If you live in farmland or have a yard where the main house is not too far from the yard where the cats go out to play and hunt then it is very obvious that the cat will be dropping dead preys at your doorstep too. This mostly happens if the yard or farm has birds perching there, rodents, and various types of insects.

On days where the cat has been craving raw meat, it will spend a lot of time outdoors running, chasing, and hunting birds or rodents. It will eat the prey then after feeling full, tired, and successfully catching another prey, its other instincts may be to hide the dead prey. They hide the dead prey in your home for a rainy season. They also try to stock up on meals for rainy days just like humans.

How to Handle Such Situation

In situations where it bothers you or you cannot stand our cat dropping dead prey on your carpet or doorstep, you can always help them redirect their hunting drive, but you can never suppress it. It’s just nature working at its best.

You can redirect the cat’s focus from the dead prey by giving them a toy or something that they can play with then dispose of the dead prey, Keeping your cat engaged in playful activities distract them from going outdoors too often.

Read Also:
Do Cats Shed More When Stressed?

Although cats may seem satisfied with the shoelace or stuffed animal you gave it to play with, they still crave that mental stimulation from hunting and pouncing on prey. This can be observed when your cat acts up and wants to destroy any object they come across.

In addition to giving them toys to play with, try and make time to essentially play with them regularly in a subtle way. This increases their bond to you and also accelerates their energy levels. This way you will reduce the chances of the cat going out since it has already exerted a lot of energy and already feels very tired to run outside. You can never stop a cat’s particular natural desire to hunt.

Cats are mostly impressive energetic hunters with an insanely strong desire to catch their prey and essentially feel fairly independent to know that it has these impeccable survival skills to exist and live in nature.

Although sometimes it can be a nuisance when your cat brings in dead prey, try to be a bit excited and more welcoming when your gift from your cat arrives. It comes in peace and genuinely shows you how much it trusts you to bring that sort of dead prey to you in a major way.

Another thing to generally consider for the most part is to also start bringing your cat more gifts so that it can stop bringing you the gifts that startle you and make you feel uncomfortable. Arrange the cat’s mealtime and activities intentionally.

Conclusion

Cats are generally excellent at watching, stalking, preying, and stealthily pouncing on their prey. Isn’t that just amazing! They will hunt mostly birds, small frogs, butterflies, roaches and rodents then offer them to you as gifts in such a different manner. That is so compassionate of them to show trust, love, and care that deeply for their owners. Can you believe we exist with these amazing creatures in the same nature setting? Nature is just interesting and wonderful.

Leave a Comment