This Kitty Hunts Down Big Leaves Every Morning to Give to Her Owner as a Gift
Cats have a talent for turning ordinary mornings into tiny surprises, and Baloo has taken that job very seriously. For Ben, that used to mean waking up to live little “gifts” dropped right on his chest, usually mice, sometimes a bird, and always a frantic cleanup mission before breakfast.
Baloo clearly wanted to please her human, but her idea of a thoughtful present was not exactly working out. So when Ben kept rejecting the live catches, she did what any determined cat might do, she changed her hunting strategy and started bringing him something a lot less stressful.
That new gift turned out to be a leaf, and Baloo has been sticking with it ever since.
Baloo would surprise her owner Ben, whom she loves very much, in bed with her latest catch. It is usually little mice that she brings to him, and now and then, a bird.
The great thing is that Baloo never hurts her prey. She carries them gently so they don't get hurt.
“I’d wake up to her on my chest with something in her mouth, which she would then drop on my face or chest, and then meow.”
“I don't know if she expected me to think it was breakfast or if it was simply a gift,” Ben told The Dodo.
Ben had this routine each morning, where Baloo would drop her latest catch on his chest. The critter would start running for its life, and Ben would have to catch it and release it outside.
This became a bit much for Ben, but what could he do? Baloo just loves him too much.
Baloo started to realize that Ben didn't like the gifts she specifically hunted for him. “She always looked so confused and sad, which made me feel pretty bad,” Ben said.
She thought about what her human would like and concluded that maybe the live critters were the problem, and she needed to find something that was not so 'alive.' This put her in full hunting mode for the perfect gift for Ben.
You know what she came up with?
A leaf.
That was a much easier morning for everyone involved.
"It took a couple of months of me rejecting her gifts for her to start bringing me leaves. They were always big, nice-looking leaves."
"It was such a relief from the live mice every morning that I would show my gratitude by taking the leaf and playing with it while she sat on my chest." Ben made the effort to play with the leaf so that Baloo knows she did a good job!
"She knew she was doing something right now."
This is similar to the cat who got revenge on her owner for failing to shower her with attention
She likes mixing it up sometimes and brings him a twig instead of a leaf.
"It warms my heart thinking about her on a little mission each morning to find a gift for her human," Ben said.
I am sure Ben is not the only one grateful that his life is not in jeopardy anymore. Baloo has certainly made Ben's love for her grow with all her cuteness.
They moved houses recently, and Baloo just decided that she would not be hunting anymore. Her days of being a huntress are over and done with. You will now find her on any comfortable surface, lazing away.
She appreciates Ben now with loads of snuggles and hugs, and he is so glad that her hunting days are over.
"She will comfort me when I’m feeling down," Ben said. "She’s not a lap cat by any means, but when I’m upset or nervous, she will hop up onto me, push me back so I lay down, and then she’ll just sit on my chest, purring like mad and nuzzling my face with her nose. She's a very loving cat."
Baloo really did trade chaos for cuddles.
Want more “cat vs. owner” chaos? See how he tried revenge after “Tonight, he brought me a spider.”
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