this post was submitted on 15 Feb 2026
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They are extremely useful and adorable. I think it's the violence that makes them so magical, like they are extremely cute cold blooded killing machines.
The usefulness is dubious for most house cats. Most households don't have mouse infestations, and cats who go outside actively endanger wildlife (and yes, that is an issue for humans as well).
I do agree that they're extremely cute, probably very useful on a psychological level, and honestly I don't know any other cute pet animals that are as cleanly with their feces (dogs can relatively easily be trained to not shit on the carpet, but not to shit in a dog toilet).
Most households where? Even in rich modern nations mice and rodents were a problem very recently. Like in the lifespan of some users on this network.
Most households in rich nations I guess. I haven't ever heard of anyone I personally know that they have a rodent infestation in their home.
Oh, we had. Rats are common in all cities, and mice in the countryside. Sure, nowadays you'd just get an exterminator, but having a cat would prevent that as well. Our dog caught a rat in our basement once, and I'm pretty sure we avoided mice due to her presence as well.
I'd say our cats are useful. These are their stats:
Number of birds killed by cats in my household over the last 5 years: 1
Number of birds killed by going full speed, beak first, into a closed window, then tried being passed off as a successful prey: 2 Number of mice killed: +500
Other wildlife known to have been affected: 1 mole
Can other wildlife have been affected? Possibly, but we're confident with regards to birds. And the only other weve seen cats go for are mice. Not even rats, I guess they're too big.