The cat and the turtle dove

My father sent me this picture a few months ago, when I started feeding Odin and blogging about him. (And by the way, I know I haven't blogged about Odin since very early October, I promise to make amend soon). This was taken in my parents' back garden, this is the apple tree that for some reason is considered "my" tree (each brother has his tree in the garden) and you see this tabby cat working very hard to hunt a turtle dove, oblivious to the danger. Dad never told me if the tabby cat got it or not in the end. My father loves birds, different ones, he loves to feed them, he loves to have them in the family garden. So he does not like cats. Not one little bit. I know this picture might upset some people, as it shows a side of the felines that are less pleasant to some: their hunting instinct. I should say their killer instinct. 

That said, I love the picture. I find it quite artsy, with the cat blending very well with the background. I find his perseverance commendable. However cruel it may seem, I find the image actually suspenseful. And I don't find it so cruel, to be honest. I don't mind that cats are hunters and follow their instinct. I cannot blame the cat for wanting to hunt a bird. I would rather have him hunt mice, but it is because I don't like mice. And I find it always fascinating, how such a beautiful creature can be so ruthless. Like my brother PJ once said on Facebook, about one of the cats that had turned his own garden into a hunting ground: "Cats are killers, but they are so darn cute." It explains them in a nutshell, I think. I don't know if I blogged this line before, but it deserves to be a great unknown line. And I guess that's why I wanted to upload this picture and blog about it. The moral of the story of the cat and the turtle dove, which the end is unknown to me, is that cats are killers, but they are really cute nevertheless.