Birds and Cats

[vantica]

I know that cats can coexist in the same house as birds, and we thought we could do it.  We brought Butch the cockatiel into a two cat home sometimes in early September, and we weren't worried at all since both cats were 14 years old, big and lazy, and liked to spend their time either eating or sleeping.  The one cat, a once famed birder, looked at

Comments

[cacatuidae]

Load up your spray bottle with a mixture of vinegar and water. Trust me, it really works.

I'm dealing with the same situation you are right now, actually, except with a 9 month old kitten. We got him when he was 2 months old and he had free access to "visit" my cockatiels in their condo. By "visit" I mean go in there and look, but not allowed to get close enough to stick paws through or anything.

He became obsessed with getting them for quite some time but eventually he just lost interest, moreso after we had him neutered and declawed (Please, no flaming because I had my cat declawed, okay?).

All you can do is keep picking the kittens up and repeating NO, and giving them a quick spray with vinegar water as reinforcement. Cats can be trained, just in a different way from dogs. My cat has now learned that going near the bird cage gets him immediately booted from my room and sprayed thoroughly.

[troubleagain]

The only problem with this is that *some* cats/kittens only fear punishment like squirt-bottles when they know there's a human around to give it, unfortunately.

I wish I had a good suggestion, but there's not a lot you can do to be sure the bird is out of reach of the kittens except to keep the bird in a room where they can't go until they settle down a bit.

[labarracuda]

That can be avoided if the cat doesn't see you squirting it. In my house, we all went around with little squirt guns for weeks- the cat would jump up on a table, water from the sky would fall, and by the time he looked at us, we were all innocence again. Punishment wasn't connected with us.

However, I'll be the first to admit that my cat is a few crayons short of a box. Your kitten might be harder to fool.

Could you give the kittens something more fun to play with in that area? Maybe if they can reach something fun, AND bad wetness occurs when they go for the cockatiel, they'll get the hint a little faster.

[vantica]

"That can be avoided if the cat doesn't see you squirting it."

That makes a lot of sense. Something we will have to do, with anything really.

They have lots of toys and climby things. But really, it's like they thrive on new fun things. Like hey....a bird! That's new! Sorta. But good point about the association thing. We will have to work something out, and fast. It's when we're not home that really worries us. And it almost worries me more to keep Butch in another room....because then she will be "new" again everytime the kitten sees her, and she may make it a goal to get into the separate room.

[vantica]

Yeah, I also thought of that...having to keep the cage away from anything else. And some cats can just end up jumping really high when they're older, so that won't help. But maybe by then we would be able to deter the predatory behaviour. Thanks for all the tips!!

[vantica]

I wish I had such a room in order to keep them separate so easily. We live in a 3 bedroom main floor of a 50 year old (at least) house. None of the rooms are that big, and our bed is in the biggest, which nicely fits the bed, a dresser, and a bookshelf....and not much else. Tiny closet. The son's room is in the smallest, and the last room is the computer room. This house also lacks a lot of closet space. The closet in the computer room houses one kitty litter, and there's another in the living room. With four cats, you really can't close these off from them at any time, and there's nowhere else a litter can go. There's also territorial issues with litter boxes we have to keep in mind with the older cats, which is why they can't be right next to each other either. Personally I think closing her up in the son's room is the best option, but then we're a little stuck when he's there. Plus the bf thinks it's mean to put her in a room all alone

[klia]

A lot of people seem to have both cats and birds, but I couldn't do it, myself. I can't imagine making my birds live in a situation where they have to endure stuff like being slavered at by big furry things with fangs, or having their cages jumped on, or having paws with claws thrust into their cages, trying to grab them. To me, it seems like a very stressful life for the poor birds.

[bloolark]

This honestly isn't what happens in most cases. Most cats don't keep going and slavering over them past the first few weeks. My five cats completely 100% ignore the parrots, and when they're out, tend to leave the room if one comes near them.

[klia]

I'm glad, but some of the other comments made it seem like there are times it's always a problem, though.

[bloolark]

With kittens? yeah. They're always a problem, much like puppies. It comes with being young animals with no self control.

I've lived with no fewer than five cats the entire time I've had parrots and have never once had an issue. All of mine save one came into the house as adults though, which makes a big difference.

[bloolark]

http://www.rationalparrot.com/zoosafety.html... )

[vantica]

Hard.....yes. Especially kittens that seem to have no fear. Right now it's just the little girl cat, but I'm sure the little boy would start copying

[bloolark]

In the end, you need patience. :)

Oh, and make sure the kittens' nails are regularly trimmed. That's nice too for when they try to scale your legs. :)

I have a 17 month old puppy who has just now graduated to being allowed out of her crate when parrots are out. It's been a long, long, long journey.

But it all works out in the end. :)

[zoe_me]

My experience is that my female cats were fantastic at catching birds (outside) and put a bell on them for each bird she caught. She got up to 4 bells before it was enough to put an end to it.

One of my girls died, and the 4 bell cat is about 16 and stiff. Only now have we gotten an inside bird.

Our 14 year old male? Can't catch them outside, and is afraid of the conure.

The nearly 2 year old male who lives 2 doors down? Brought a wild bird inside our house (cat door) and has gone after the conure twice. He was yelled at, grabbed, splashed at the kitchen sink, and put outside.
HE LOVES our house and is hit at his. So now he comes over for his cat toys and food in our home, but is giving the bird cage some space....
GOOD LUCK

[vantica]

Yeah, the older cats don't jump high anymore. They sleep a lot. While we still keep an eye on them if Butch is out, them getting up to her cage really isn't a concern.

Thanks! I think we're going to need it.