[_See Note Q, Addenda._]
NURSING VAGARIES.
The cat, unlike most animals, seems singularly exempt from the pains of
parturition. "In sorrow shalt thou bring forth," was never meant to apply
to pussy. In fact about this time she always appears jollier than at any
other, apparently looking upon the whole business as a capital lark--a
rather enjoyable practical joke. My own cat, Muffie, invariably gives due
notice of the coming event, by some of the most wonderful specimens of
cantation I ever listened to. In fact she becomes a small opera in
herself, chorus and all. Her song, moreover, is interlarded with little
hysterical squeaks, as if she were brim-full of some strange joy, and
running over. At the same time she lavishes more caresses than usual upon
Nero, who, not knowing what to make of it, looks very foolish indeed.
CATS EATING THEIR KITTENS.--Numerous instances might be cited of cats
eating their kittens as soon as born. These are curious examples of
mistaken affection, and may be put down to a species of feline mania,
somewhat analogous to that which is sometimes, though rarely, seen in
human beings. Women _enceinte_ have often curious tastes, as witness the
lady whom nothing would please, but a bite of a baker's shoulder. She had
the bite and was satisfied. We trust the baker was. Or the princess who
had her husband killed; she ate part of him, and had the remainder salted
for future consumption. A lady of my acquaintance,--she was a savage, and
lived in Lamoo on the East Coast of Africa,--had twins, a very little baby
boy and a big fat baby girl. I saw her some days after, squatting in front
of her bamboo hut, and singing low to her little son.
"But, in the name of goodness," said I, "what have you got in the pot?
French missionary?"
"No," she said; exhibiting no sort of surprise at my question, for a dish
of French missionary was by no means unknown in those parts. And she
intimated to me, that it was _only_ the baby girl, with whom she intended
to feed the little baby boy, as he had not got fair play; and so the
majesty of justice was maintained.
Cats are greatly sensible of the honour of maternity, and when deprived of
their kittens feel very wretched indeed. Under these circumstances, they
will nurse and suckle almost any creature.
CATS REARING DOGS.--A cat of mine, a few years ago, suckled and reared a
beautiful Pomeranian dog. I thought at the time this was rather
surprising; but I should not be surprised now at anything a cat did.
A gentleman, the other day, had a very nice fox-terrier bitch. The poor
thing died giving birth to a litter of four puppies. His cat, however,
whose kittens had been all drowned a day or too before, immediately
installed herself in the vacant bed and adopted the puppies. She proved a
good mother to them, and successfully reared every one of them.
I know of another similar instance, where a cat was house-mate with a
rather valuable bitch; this bitch brought forth a litter of seven pups.
The cat had five kittens at the same time. Thinking that seven whelps were
rather many for the bitch to rear, four of pussy's kittens were drowned
and two pups put to her instead. But pussy peremptorily refused to have
anything to say to them, and persisted in that refusal until the expedient
was tried of drowning the remaining kitten. That brought the cat to her
senses; and she took to her foster children kindly enough and reared them.
This same cat afterwards suckled a puppy and kitten at the same time.
One day she gave birth to her kittens in an out-house, and at once leaving
them to shift for themselves, she entered the dwelling house and insisted
on giving suck to the dog of her first adoption. As he was now a
full-grown dog, and had a great regard for his own respectability, he
didn't see the fun of it. Pussy went after him nevertheless, lying down in
front of him, and mewing piteously up in his face. When, to get rid of
her importunities, the dog went out, she even followed him to the street,
and only ceased pestering him, when her kittens were discovered and
brought to her.
CAT ADOPTING HER GRAND-CHILDREN.--A lady had two cats, mother and
daughter, living in the same house with her. The mother was of a quiet,
domesticated turn of mind, and preferred fire-side enjoyments to
out-of-door sports; but the daughter was quite the reverse. She was a
mighty huntress, and it was no uncommon thing, to see her coming waddling
across the fields with a rabbit as big as herself in her mouth. Both these
cats had kittens at the same time, but the daughter seemed determined,
that nursing should not interfere with her hunting expeditions. She was a
strong-minded woman's-rights sort of a cat, and was often scouring the
country in pursuit of game, when her poor little family were starving at
home. One day she went off as usual, and was never afterwards seen alive:
her mangled remains were found a little way down the line, where she had
been run over by a railway train.
"We were just about," says the lady, "to drown the little orphan kits,
when, to our surprise, we found that old grandmamma puss had adopted her
ill-fated daughter's children, and was nursing and tending them, with the
same amount of care and attention she bestowed on her own."
I know an instance where two cats, resident in the same house, had had
kittens on the same day. There being no chance of finding homes for so
many, they were all drowned with the exception of three. Now these two
mother-cats were wise in their day and generation. No one cat, they
thought, could nurse and suckle ten kits, and it was equally evident that
three kittens did not require the services of two cats. So they concluded
that the best plan would be to put the shattered remains of the two
families,--"Your one kitty, Mrs. Tom, and my two,"--together in one bed,
and take turn about in nursing them. This was accordingly done, and turned
out to be a very satisfactory arrangement for all parties concerned; for
either cat could now go abroad when she pleased, happy in the thought that
nothing could go wrong at home.
NURSING A HARE.--A certain carpenter whom I knew had a cat which in due
season,--as all cats will,--produced a litter of kittens which--very cruel
and thoughtless was the action--were all drowned. Poor pussy mourned her
offspring for many days, but she was a female philosopher--that may seem a
paradox, but she was; so she communed with herself on her bed at night,
thus,--
"My inhuman master has most unfeelingly slain all my pretty little babes,
and has not left me one; but he cannot dry up the fountains of a mother's
love, with which my heart runs o'er; besides, I'm taking the milk-fever.
But behold, day is gently breaking. I'll seek the mountain, and be it what
it may, I'll have something to love, something to suckle me."
That day she found, or more probably stole, a fine young hare, which she
nursed and reared as tenderly as if it had been one of her own kittens.
NURSING SQUIRRELS.--This is by no means uncommon in cats. They will rear
them either along with their own kittens or by themselves; and a very
pretty sight it is to see. Squirrels thus reared make most delightful
little pets.
NURSING CHICKENS.--I know several instances of cats supplying the place of
their lost kittens with a chicken. One cat, for example, had had all her
offspring,--it was her first litter,--drowned; she went at once out into
the court-yard, where a hen was gathering crumbs to a large brood of
chickens. One of these pussy, watching her chance, sprang upon and seized
by the neck, and although hotly pursued by the enraged mother, managed to
reach the house in safety, and went straight to her own bed. Here she
deposited the chicken, and, lying down beside it, commenced to sing,
clearly intimating that she wished her little adopted one to have a drink.
But unfortunately, chickie's mouth wasn't adapted for sucking, but it
cowered beside her for warmth; and as there were plenty of crumbs on the
kitchen floor, it did not want. So it became a sort of household pet, and
when not eating, it was always cuddling down beside its funny
foster-mother. I may mention here, that next time this same cat had
kittens they were all drowned again; but this time she did a wiser thing.
She found out that a cat, belonging to one of the neighbours, was the
happy mother of three kittens which she had been allowed to keep. Off goes
puss to this neighbour's house, and having thrashed the mother to begin
with, she kidnapped and carried home one of her family. Several times was
the kitten taken back, and each time pussy went and stole it again; and as
she never failed to give the other cat a preliminary hiding, it was at
last deemed most prudent to let her retain it.
Miss G---- is an old maid, and a great lover of cats and poultry. Once she
had a cat nursing a litter of kittens, and one of the chickens in the yard
being rather deformed and not thriving, Miss G. brought it and flung it to
the cat, thinking it would be a great treat to her. It was a treat to
her, though hardly in the way she expected, for pussy commenced licking
it all over, and forthwith adopted it, and nursed it along with her
kittens. She continued to do so until it grew into a large, leggy, and
withal rather ungainly hen; and the most ridiculous part of the business
was, that if at any time Tuckie longed for the society of her feathered
fellow-creatures, pussy went after her like a shot, and seizing her by the
neck lugged her back into the house, and jumped with her into Miss G.'s
bed where her kittens were.
A gentleman in New Deer, also possessed a cat who reared a chicken to
hen-hood. In this case the adopted chicken was nursed alone, pussy's
kittens having been drowned. This fowl's neck, was actually crooked with
the cat's carrying her about so much in her mouth, so she always held her
head very much to one side, and was upon the whole a very ugly hen. We
see, then, that chicken-rearing by cats does not give that amount of
satisfaction which is desired. It might pay, though, if they could do the
hatching; but cats at present cannot be taught to sit upon eggs. There is
no saying what the future may bring forth, though, for a much more gifted
animal will be _the coming cat_.
I think the reader will now be prepared to hear of cats--
NURSING HEDGEHOGS.--Yes, three of those thorny little things were actually
nursed, suckled, and reared lately by a cat belonging to a gentleman, who
is very fond of trying experiments of this sort. When they grew up, and
were in good feather, they were very tricky and funny; but pussy soon
found out that they didn't stand correction well. If she lifted a paw to
them, pooh! they were transformed into three round prickly balls, before
the blow fell, and pussy's paw had the worst of it. Then the poor cat
would look sulkily from one little ball to another, and turning about,
walk off in disgust. But three pairs of bright beady eyes were keeking at
her from among the thorns; and before she had reached the fender, the
little pigs were all unfolded and after her at the galop. Round would
wheel the cat, and up would roll the hogs again, then pussy would seat
herself in front, and keep them thus for an hour at a time, by gently
tapping each ball as it attempted to unroll itself.
SUCKLING RATS.--Some years ago there was a cat in Scotland who, when three
of her kittens were drowned, supplied their place by bringing in three
young rats to make up the number. She must have known something of
arithmetic too, for, when one of the little rats died, she went out and
carried in another, still to have the number five. But still another died,
and probably she could not find any more, for she contented herself with
nursing, and tending the two remaining ones, along with her own two
kittens. I never heard what eventually became of the rats. I don't think
she would have eaten them. More probably they lived and grew, and went
back as missionaries to their own people.