As a faithful feline, Mittens would do anything to show her owner, Ee Lin just how much she loves her. Unfortunately for Ee Lin, Mittens’ chosen language of love appears to be the actual act of trapping and killing unsuspecting animals.
Ee Lin relates a story to FMT that still makes her skin crawl to this day. It happened two years ago when she was home alone. She remembers that as the clock approached midnight, her cat Mittens entered the house through the kitchen window, and made herself known by meowing loudly.
Then the nightmare began…
Walking nimbly, Mittens made her way into the living room clutching something big and black in her jaws. It was definitely not an insect or a lizard. She proceeded to gently place the lifeless object, about the size of a human hand, on the mat by Ee Lin’s feet.
Ee Lin recalls the sight saying, “I had no idea what it was as Mittens just dropped it at my feet, meowed and stared at me all wide-eyed as I took a closer look.
“The black object was strangely wrapped like a burrito. I had never seen anything like it but assumed that whatever it was, it was probably dead.”
Whilst leaning in for a closer look, the black burrito suddenly came to life and in a flash a pair of black wings unravelled itself, fluttering wildly.
A tiny body emerged. It then dawned on Ee Lin that the “burrito” that Mittens had brought in was actually a fruit bat, frantically taking flight, as it swooped past Ee Lin and flew back and forth between the kitchen and the living room, trying to escape.
“My heart was beating so fast, I screamed and immediately ran outside, shutting the door behind me,” Ee Lin says.
From outside looking in, Ee Lin saw Mittens in the living room eyeing her prey like a predator as her furry head followed the fruit bat every movement.
Mustering up the courage, Ee Lin opened the door so the fruit bat could escape back into the night.
Thankfully, no fruit bats were harmed this night as the terrified creature managed to fly past Mittens and dart to freedom through the open door.
Looking back on this episode now, Ee Lin says that this isn’t the first time Mittens brought little creatures to her and since then even a dead mouse has appeared in front of her bedroom door.
Researching Mittens’ strange hunter behaviour, Ee Lin learned that her cat was merely telling her how much she loved her.
Due to their natural hunting instincts, cats bring back offerings of dead animals to their owners as a token of love and gratitude at being accepted into their human’s home.
By offering their latest catch to their beloved owners, cats hope to teach them the life-saving skill of hunting, an important lesson that cats feel their owners should know and learn more about.
As much as Ee Lin loves her furry friend, she’s in no hurry to meet another black burrito.
But even if she does, Ee Lin’s love for Mittens will stay forever strong – even if the little feline does get her white mittens dirty sometimes.
TELL US ABOUT YOUR PET: FMT Lifestyle readers are invited to send in pictures (landscape format) and a short video (if any) of their furry, scaly or feathery friends to [email protected]. Don’t forget to include details like your pet’s name, age, breed and a short story about them.