What if the cat has worn a bell since it was a kitten?
We lived in Gawler in the 90s and had a house built on totally
cleared land in a cul-de-sac in a cluster of five houses all
built around the same time as ours. We planted a well mulched
native garden and within a couple of years we had lots of native
birds (mainly New Holland Honeyeaters) actively feeding
throughout the year.
The other four houses put in lawns and the odd (exotic) tree
and they all had cats. The cats, naturally enough, found our
yard far more interesting than their own and spent most of their
time there. Only one of them had a bell, which it had from the
day it was brought home as a kitten. That cat became by far the
most successful hunter. It had more patience and stealth than
the others and the bell was never heard until a split second
before it captured a bird.
Maybe it was born a better hunter anyway, but I have always
wondered whether having the bell from an early age had, in the
long term, helped rather than hindered its development as a
recreational hunter.
Regards,
Leo.