Cats and birds
Hi. Any tips on how to stop a cat from getting birds? I know it’s their nature etc etc but I have a cat who is a prolific hunter and wondered if there’s anything out there that really works. At the moment she’s only allowed out at night but last night at 11.15pm she was fed and wanted to go out, within 5 minutes she was doing that meow they do when they’ve got something, I tried to see but we have no outside light at the back then I heard crunching so knew I was too late. I assumed it was a mouse but this morning there’s feathers on the patio. So she’s actually been and taken one from the nest. She’s not in my good books today.
I’ve tried bells on her collar, a collar that beeps when she jumps and I’ve even tried a cat bib. She loses collars within minutes of going out.
I can’t keep her in all of the time, she’s not an indoor cat at all. She cries profusely when she wants to go out and scratches at the door, it would be unfair to keep her in 24/7.
I’m at my wits end. Hoping someone can give me an idea I haven’t thought of or tell me there’s now some miracle cure on the market.
I’ve tried bells on her collar, a collar that beeps when she jumps and I’ve even tried a cat bib. She loses collars within minutes of going out.
I can’t keep her in all of the time, she’s not an indoor cat at all. She cries profusely when she wants to go out and scratches at the door, it would be unfair to keep her in 24/7.
I’m at my wits end. Hoping someone can give me an idea I haven’t thought of or tell me there’s now some miracle cure on the market.
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Unusual for it to catch a bird at night.
Often, cats will catch birds or rodents that are in some way incapacitated. If the cat didn’t catch them, a magpie would.
Yesterday, I saw a tiny great tit chick on the ground, just waiting to be a meal for some passing bird of prey or one of our cats.
I picked it up and carefully put it into an airy shrub.
Five minutes later, the sparrowhawk got it.
It was probably not quite physically right in some way. Destined to be a meal. Survival of the fittest and all that.
I hoped as she is aging a bit this might stop but it’s obviously not going to. I hate to think of the amount of birds she’s killed over the years.
When she was very young I got up one morning to dead baby birds all over the garden, patio and drive. It breaks my heart and without keeping her in 24/7 I just don’t know what I can do.
I’ve just ordered 2 cat bibs, bells and a collar. I know from experience this is pointless but I’ll give it another try.
https://healthypets.mercola.com/sites/healthypets/archive/2019/01/18/cat-toys-to-simulate-hunting-prey.aspx
Always well fed, tons of toys, we tried a colour bell. Nothing works. Unstoppable. And if we tried to keep him in - he probably would dig through the floor and find his way out. He loves outdoors.
Wouldnt be able to spray him with water when he catches the animals as he does it away from our garden. And we have never had bird feeder in our garden. 🙄
I’ve grown up with cats, we often had 3 or 4 cats at a time, and none have matched up to Olly. I think she must hold some kind of record for bird catches.
I’m actually going to try my best to keep her in at all times, at least until bird nesting season is over. Sadly though with 3 young children and a sometimes absent minded husband I think this will be difficult
at fledgling time? It gets light very early at the moment and most fledglings begin to leave the nest early morning.
My daughter @WonkyWomble has two cats ... they don’t go out in the garden unsupervised.