I think Mouse is safe – there seems to be a history between her and the owl. But in general, yes, owls are very bad news for cats. We had to take ours to the vet for puncture wounds just a few months ago because an owl had tried to rip his head off.
Depends on the animal rescue. PAWS (Progressive Animal Welfare Society) in Lynnwood, WA, takes raptors; I brought them a Cooper’s Hawk which had crashed into our glass slider a few years back. Month or two later, they notified me that the hawk was recovered and back in the wild. I’m not sure of any other animal rescue in the Greater Seattle area which will take in raptors, but likely there is another one or two.
Hmmm…This kind of “Owl and Pussycat” romance might explain the origin of Ursula K. Le Guin’s “Catwings” book series. That mother cat’s only explanation for why her kittens were born with wings was that their father was “a fly-by-night”!
A rather nasty neighbor implied the kitten’s father was a “fly by night”. The mother cat responded that she didn’t know why her kittens had wings, but said that she had dreamed they would fly away from the dirty and dangerous city. Eventually, the four kittens did so and found two kind children in the country who hid them in a barn and looked after them. Four books in total, written for children, with charming drawings. I actually ordered them after seeing the reference here, and will donate them to a local library.
This is a great video of a cat and a barn owl who are friends. It might not look like it at first but later in the video you can see the cat rubbing up on the owl and clearly being playful. The owl has leather straps on it’s legs so it is domesticated and they probably send a lot of time together.
I have heard that owls are very much like cats with wings. I once saw a blog (which I can’t find now, unfortunately) about a couple who took in injured owls and nursed them back to health. The owls would occasionally come back and leave the couple gifts of dead animals.
There was a family of screech owls that used to next in the grove of trees next door. It was one of the most frightening sounds I ever heard. Eventually, a great horned owl moved into the territory, and the screech owls moved on.
We have brood 13 here in Northern Panhandle of WV, eastern Ohio, and some close parts of western PA. Then another 17 years of bliss. No ugly red eyed noisy monsters.
When I saw the headline I was thinking cicadas and was wondering why, as you’re not in an area currently being deafened by their love songs. Owl is quite amusing!
LOVE Mouse’s spittake and actually seeing her eyes! And, of course, the boys and Burt in their PJs trying to get to the bottom of what’s going on, and Burt’s annoyed expression. Poor guy must be a bit sleep deprived being so close to the racket, along with the farm ladies probably being rather annoyed.
And I’m sure Elvis’s STFU message is what everyone else is thinking. 😉
@Barbara K: OMG!! I grew up with the Catwings books, I love them! And I had forgotten who the author was and have been trying to find those books for ages! Thank you so much for mentioning Ursula K. Le Guin. 🙂 And you know what? Those books were the first thought in my mind when I thought of what the “children of the Owl and the Pussycat” might look like. <3
Can’t decide if Burt is p.o’d. that Wicket’s back to some old tricks with Baba Mouse or if he’d just like to get a good night’s sleep. His expression is priceless if the former – can’t wait for the next edition – what fun!
Love The Owl and The Pussycat (e.g. Wicket and BabaMouse). I read that poem so often to my sons when they were young that it’s forever etched in my memory. I can still recite it by heart.
So we finally see Babamouse’s eyes wide open! Very shocking incidence for her. 😻 I hope this once-was/never-was romance isn’t a one-off. I think we’d all love to learn more about her past history.
Thanks to Barbara K for the reminder of the Catwings stories! I’ll have to reread them.
I’ve never heard screech owls except on videos but we do have barred owls. They have strange hoo-ing calls but when they start caterwauling, it’s the loudest WEIRDEST noises ever!!! When my son first heard it, he didn’t believe it was two owls. He was convinced it was a couple of drunk neighbours (or their visitors) making stupid noises – yes, we have neighbours like that. I had to play some of the sounds from allaboutbirds.org to prove it was owls.
I remember as a small child hearing screech owls in the woods of our New Hampshire farm, usually just at dusk “Big as BEARS!” I was sure … but my dad would double up his fist to show how small they realy were. I have loved owls ever since! and hearing one either great horned or a tiny California screecher (which really makes a very small sweet cry) takes me back to those early summer nights.
Thank you Georgia for giving us all a true taste of natural things.
I used to work for a lady who had a license to keep wild animals. Her son had found a screech owlet that had fallen out of his nest. I had no idea she had the bird until I walked past an antique bird cage she had on display and heard this odd clacking noise coming from it. Looked in and just saw this ball of fluff with eyes. He was given the name Hooter. He enjoyed getting me into trouble when he got older. He was allowed to fly in a large room that was used mainly as a green house. He’d hoot at me from the trees at the end, but what he really enjoyed was up flying behind me and sneaking into the garage that adjoined. I’d have to hunt all over the garage to figure out where he was hiding. About the only give away was I’d hear his talons scrabbling on whatever he was hiding atop. Once I figured out where he was, he’d usually come to me. Usually. Sometimes I’d go get the ladder and he’d wait til I set it up, then fly past me back into the greenhouse and straight to his cage for a victory dance on top.
I thought The Owl and The Pussycat in the previous strip was just depicting the type of “steamy romance” that would interest cats. I didn’t realize it was foreshadowing! Georgia, you are getting sneaky!
I love Wicket’s -name-! 🙂 I have a couple of scifi short-stories with an invented species called “Wicket” by Earth folks. (It’s actually “Whikkkhkkt” but that’s not quite pronounceable.) The first Whikkkhkkt we meet is actually named “Wicket” by the human who finds him. 🙂
Is it me, or is Elvis’s sense of direction in panel four a bit out – He’s sure that the sound is (north by) north west – but appears to be looking in the opposite direction 🙂
Hate to quibble (but I will) . . . if Baba Mouse’s eyes are orange, that makes her a British Blue, not a Russian Blue! Is there something she’s not telling us?
I love Burt’s expression in panel six. Of course the first place we see Elvis is in the baby’s room being ever protective. I so can’t wait for Thursday to come 🙂
Ha ha Loving this one. I can’t wait to learn more of the history between these two. Elvis is amazing in the last panel.
Ah, young…ish…love.
It’s an owl I’ll bet. Very cool. Can’t wait for the next breaking cat news. Thank you !!!
uh oh, domestic dispute!
OMG I love this so much!!!I can’t wait to see where this goes, Georgia!
Oh the romance 💍
The Owl and the Pussycat went to couple’s therapy in a beautiful pea-green Prius.
LOL
Wittier than what I was thinking. 😄 Kudos to you.
Win.
ROTFL
The Owl and the Pussy Cat, ha, ha!
Oh my gosh, they’re all in their PJs!!!!
Can’t wait to see where this is going. Horray for an appearance by Baba Mouse!
A “second hand feather duster” named Wicket. Can it get any better?
This one should be fun!
Do animal rescues take owls?
Mouse, he will eat you if you go out there.
I suppose ‘The Man’ will have to trap n owl.
;-D
I think Mouse is safe – there seems to be a history between her and the owl. But in general, yes, owls are very bad news for cats. We had to take ours to the vet for puncture wounds just a few months ago because an owl had tried to rip his head off.
Depends on the animal rescue. PAWS (Progressive Animal Welfare Society) in Lynnwood, WA, takes raptors; I brought them a Cooper’s Hawk which had crashed into our glass slider a few years back. Month or two later, they notified me that the hawk was recovered and back in the wild. I’m not sure of any other animal rescue in the Greater Seattle area which will take in raptors, but likely there is another one or two.
Hmmm…This kind of “Owl and Pussycat” romance might explain the origin of Ursula K. Le Guin’s “Catwings” book series. That mother cat’s only explanation for why her kittens were born with wings was that their father was “a fly-by-night”!
A rather nasty neighbor implied the kitten’s father was a “fly by night”. The mother cat responded that she didn’t know why her kittens had wings, but said that she had dreamed they would fly away from the dirty and dangerous city. Eventually, the four kittens did so and found two kind children in the country who hid them in a barn and looked after them. Four books in total, written for children, with charming drawings. I actually ordered them after seeing the reference here, and will donate them to a local library.
HAHAHAHA… I love it! Screech Owls are VERY loud. Is love in the air?
The first time you hear a screech owl, it does sound like someone is getting killed. Welcome to Wicket. This is going to be funny.
Oh my god… they’re the owl and the pussycat.
Ooh, more Baba Mouse! Yay!
Can’t wait to see what this new character has in store.
This is a great video of a cat and a barn owl who are friends. It might not look like it at first but later in the video you can see the cat rubbing up on the owl and clearly being playful. The owl has leather straps on it’s legs so it is domesticated and they probably send a lot of time together.
I have heard that owls are very much like cats with wings. I once saw a blog (which I can’t find now, unfortunately) about a couple who took in injured owls and nursed them back to health. The owls would occasionally come back and leave the couple gifts of dead animals.
I thought the gray cat and fabric design looked familiar on the cover of last week’s The Owl and the Pussycat book. I love the tie-in!!!
The spit-take is AWESOME.
Yes, it is awesome, glad i wasn’t drinking anything when i read it. Love how Georgia gives us little hints of things to come!
There was a family of screech owls that used to next in the grove of trees next door. It was one of the most frightening sounds I ever heard. Eventually, a great horned owl moved into the territory, and the screech owls moved on.
The Owl and the Pussycat…… 🙂 Love it <3
SCREEEEEEEECH *deep breath* SCREEEEEEECH… I nearly did my own spit-take at that *deep breath*.
This comment made me snort!
Aw, it’s cat/owl love, star-crossed maybe? Didn’t we see a reference to The Owl and the Pussycat in book form just recently?
And Baby Gwen sleeps through it all
Oh, gosh, and I thought it was going to be cicadas. (I forget which brood is coming up this summer; we don’t have ’em in California.)
Topic for future strip?
There was a mention of cicadas in this strip:
http://www.breakingcatnews.com/comic/theres-a-cricket-somewhere-in-the-apartment/
We have brood 13 here in Northern Panhandle of WV, eastern Ohio, and some close parts of western PA. Then another 17 years of bliss. No ugly red eyed noisy monsters.
I Love Wicket! Could this be the original story of the Owl and the Pussycat?
The owl and the pussy cat sailed away for a year and a day.
We never did hear what happened when they came home to stay.
great take on the owl and the pussy cat!!!!
The Owl and the Pussycat was one of my favorite poems as a child. Can’t wait for the rest of the story to unfold!
Plus the boys in their pajamas always gives me a giggle.
I have the feeling this is going to be more interesting then an episode of our nine lives
The Owl and the Pussycat! My favorite children’s poem!
When I saw the headline I was thinking cicadas and was wondering why, as you’re not in an area currently being deafened by their love songs. Owl is quite amusing!
LOVE Mouse’s spittake and actually seeing her eyes! And, of course, the boys and Burt in their PJs trying to get to the bottom of what’s going on, and Burt’s annoyed expression. Poor guy must be a bit sleep deprived being so close to the racket, along with the farm ladies probably being rather annoyed.
And I’m sure Elvis’s STFU message is what everyone else is thinking. 😉
I wonder if Baba still has that awesome runcible spoon? 😉
@Barbara K: OMG!! I grew up with the Catwings books, I love them! And I had forgotten who the author was and have been trying to find those books for ages! Thank you so much for mentioning Ursula K. Le Guin. 🙂 And you know what? Those books were the first thought in my mind when I thought of what the “children of the Owl and the Pussycat” might look like. <3
Can’t decide if Burt is p.o’d. that Wicket’s back to some old tricks with Baba Mouse or if he’d just like to get a good night’s sleep. His expression is priceless if the former – can’t wait for the next edition – what fun!
Ah, the return of camera one. Will we ever know the identity of its operator?
I’ve wanted to see you do something along the lines of “The Owl and the Pussycat” and here it is.
Love The Owl and The Pussycat (e.g. Wicket and BabaMouse). I read that poem so often to my sons when they were young that it’s forever etched in my memory. I can still recite it by heart.
So we finally see Babamouse’s eyes wide open! Very shocking incidence for her. 😻 I hope this once-was/never-was romance isn’t a one-off. I think we’d all love to learn more about her past history.
Thanks to Barbara K for the reminder of the Catwings stories! I’ll have to reread them.
I’ve never heard screech owls except on videos but we do have barred owls. They have strange hoo-ing calls but when they start caterwauling, it’s the loudest WEIRDEST noises ever!!! When my son first heard it, he didn’t believe it was two owls. He was convinced it was a couple of drunk neighbours (or their visitors) making stupid noises – yes, we have neighbours like that. I had to play some of the sounds from allaboutbirds.org to prove it was owls.
Does Wicket remind anyone else of Han Solo?
I thought the Pussycat on Burt’s book looked familiar!
Was Baba Mouse watching an episode of “Our Nine Lives”? love the boys in pajamas.
I like to..
SCREEECH
…Listen to birds…
HISSS YOWWLL
Outside the window as i fall…
SCREEEEEECH
Asleep.
Elvis looked very much like he’s trying to protect Baby Gwen from the noise outside. “CN News–maybe this can wait until morning?!”
Dawww. Is Elvis guarding the baby in her sleep?
Elvis takes his job as self-appointed protector very seriously!
I just adore Burt’s droopy eyelids! 😌
Ooh!! I always love these serials!
Burt’s face! Can’t wait to hear how the Owl and the Pussycat know each other!
I remember as a small child hearing screech owls in the woods of our New Hampshire farm, usually just at dusk “Big as BEARS!” I was sure … but my dad would double up his fist to show how small they realy were. I have loved owls ever since! and hearing one either great horned or a tiny California screecher (which really makes a very small sweet cry) takes me back to those early summer nights.
Thank you Georgia for giving us all a true taste of natural things.
I used to work for a lady who had a license to keep wild animals. Her son had found a screech owlet that had fallen out of his nest. I had no idea she had the bird until I walked past an antique bird cage she had on display and heard this odd clacking noise coming from it. Looked in and just saw this ball of fluff with eyes. He was given the name Hooter. He enjoyed getting me into trouble when he got older. He was allowed to fly in a large room that was used mainly as a green house. He’d hoot at me from the trees at the end, but what he really enjoyed was up flying behind me and sneaking into the garage that adjoined. I’d have to hunt all over the garage to figure out where he was hiding. About the only give away was I’d hear his talons scrabbling on whatever he was hiding atop. Once I figured out where he was, he’d usually come to me. Usually. Sometimes I’d go get the ladder and he’d wait til I set it up, then fly past me back into the greenhouse and straight to his cage for a victory dance on top.
I thought The Owl and The Pussycat in the previous strip was just depicting the type of “steamy romance” that would interest cats. I didn’t realize it was foreshadowing! Georgia, you are getting sneaky!
I love Wicket’s -name-! 🙂 I have a couple of scifi short-stories with an invented species called “Wicket” by Earth folks. (It’s actually “Whikkkhkkt” but that’s not quite pronounceable.) The first Whikkkhkkt we meet is actually named “Wicket” by the human who finds him. 🙂
Aaaand there’s a full moon, just as on this very summer solstice night…Planned ahead, did you Georgia?
This is gonna be good, real good. Love Baba Mouse !! 😺
Hi Andrew, I would also like to know who the phantom camera cat is too!
Haven’t seen much of Tabitha lately, or is it Sir Figaro ?…….
Is it me, or is Elvis’s sense of direction in panel four a bit out – He’s sure that the sound is (north by) north west – but appears to be looking in the opposite direction 🙂
Panel 9 – check out the moon! He has a face, and he’s asleep too! ! ! ! Love the jammies . . . . !
cats in pajamas
baby all snug in her crib with Elvis on watch. so sweet.
Hate to quibble (but I will) . . . if Baba Mouse’s eyes are orange, that makes her a British Blue, not a Russian Blue! Is there something she’s not telling us?
Thank you for catching that Jessie! That was a mistake on my part, ha! I went in and made them a wee bit greener. 🙂 Baba Mouse thanks you for sure!
I love Burt’s expression in panel six. Of course the first place we see Elvis is in the baby’s room being ever protective. I so can’t wait for Thursday to come 🙂
Hmmmmm. A mystery! And Puck and Beatrix love mysteries! I can’t wait to see Puck with his Deerstalker one!
Screech owls aren’t very large so the cats should all be safe. The Robber Mice should keep a low profile though.