NESTING-HOUSES 61 



Outwitting the Cat. — The cat does its dam- 

 age while the young are in the nest, by sneaking 

 around and pawing out the nestlings, and often- 

 times catching the parent birds as they are 

 coming in or going out, or as they are defending 

 the young. It also does much harm by catching 

 young birds just out of the nest before they are 

 able to fly readily. By observing a few simple 

 precautions in the construction and location of 

 the houses and their subsequent protection, it is 

 possible almost entirely to eliminate the cat as 

 an obstructing factor. In the construction of the 

 house, if it is made deep, the hole located near 

 the top, and the roof made to project well out as 

 described on pages 18, 19, a nearly cat-proof 

 house will be the result. When the young do 

 leave such a house, they will be strong enough to 

 learn to fly quickly. If the house is mounted on a 

 pole which is slim and slippery, the cats will find 

 it difficult to climb. But the surest protection, 

 where the only approach to the house is up the 

 support to which it is attached, may be secured 

 by placing something on the support below the 

 house, over which the cats cannot climb. This 

 should be placed so high that the cats cannot 

 jump above it from the ground. The simplest 

 method is to wrap around the support a piece of 

 tin or zinc, of such width that the cats cannot 



