Why do cats present freshly caught prey to their human owners?

They do this because they consider their owners such hopeless hunters.

Although usually they look upon humans as pseudo-parents, on these occasions they view them as their family – in other words, their kittens. If kittens do not know how to catch and eat mice and small birds, then the cat must demonstrate to them. This is why the cats that most commonly bring home prey and offer such gifts to their owners are neutered females. They are unable to perform this action for their own litters, so they redirect it towards human companions.

The humans honoured in this way frequently recoil in horror or anger, especially if the small rodent or bird is still half-alive and struggling. The cat is totally nonplussed by this extraordinary response. If it is scolded for its generous act, it once again finds its human friends incomprehensible. The correct reaction would be to praise the cat for its maternal generosity, take the prey from it with many compliments and strokings and then quietly dispose of it.

Under natural conditions a cat which has a litter of kittens introduces them to prey animals little by little. When they are about seven weeks old, instead of killing and eating her prey where she catches it, she kills it and then brings it back to where the kittens are kept. There she proceeds to eat it while they watch. The next phase involves bringing the dead prey back and playing with it before consuming it, so that the kittens can see her beating it with her claws and grabbing it.

The third phase involves leaving the prey to be eaten by the kittens themselves. But she is still not prepared to risk bringing a live or even a half-dead prey to the kittens, because it could easily bite them or attack them if they are unwary. Only when they are a little older will she do this, and then she herself will make the kill in front of the kittens. They watch and learn. Eventually they will accompany her on the hunt and try killing for themselves.