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Question:

Can someone please help me? I have four cats, and I am about to buy my first bird, a cockatiel. Now, obviously I am not going to let the bird out of it’s cage right away without removing all cats from the room. I would like to know if anyone can foresee any problems I might have. I have been in households were small parrot type birds (conures?) walked around on the floor, and the cats would go far out their way to avoid them. On the other hand My cats have tried to dive through the screen on the window to kill pidgeons. I am wondering, is there any hope that I will ever be able to let the bird be in the same room with the cats (supervised,) or is this just completely stupid?

Response:

:> :>Can someone please help me? I have four cats, and I am about to buy my first bird, a >cockatiel. Now, obviously I am not going to let the bird out of it’s cage right away >without removing all cats from the room. I would like to know if anyone can foresee >any problems I might have. I have been in households were small parrot type birds >(conures?) walked around on the floor, and the cats would go far out their way to >avoid them. On the other hand My cats have tried to dive through the screen on the >window to  kill pidgeons. I am wondering, is there any hope that I will ever be able >to let the bird be in the same room with the cats (supervised,) or is this just >completely stupid? It will all depend on your cats.  Some are more obsessed by birds than others.  Cockatiels move fairly slowly, so, hopefully, it will attract less attention.  Because the baby bird (I hope you get a hand-fed, tame cockatiel; make sure the bird is already tame when you purchase it!) will grow up seeing the cats around, it probably won’t be afraid of them at all… which may make him a "sitting duck."  You may also want to have the bird cage be in a room the cats don’t have access to: if the cats decide they will sit on the cage, or stare at the bird all day long, this could be pretty stressful for the bird.  If the cage allows a kitty paw to go through the bars, you’ll likewise need to keep that cage out of the cats’ reach.  That last issue is a problem here, and that’s why we keep the cat out of the "bird room" if we aren’t around.   As to when the bird is out of its cage, keep your eyes wide open.  If you can’t keep your attention on the bird, put the bird in his cage.  The way I have things set up here, for example, the bird gym is next to my computer. The bird gym is within my peripheral view, if I see the cat get too close to the bird I intervene.  With the playgym downstairs, same thing.  You still need to be careful (if bird flops to the ground, then what??).  You have to be very very vigilant about what the cat seems to be thinking/doing (read their body language), same goes for the bird.  You may want to keep a few squirt bottles parked where you’ll need them.  That can be an useful tool in teaching the cat to keep its distance.   Another thing I do is make sure the cat sees me handling the birds so she knows they are MINE.  Any pouncing-like attempts are strongly discouraged (I yell at the cat, fling things at her –use common sense here!–).  All cat toys here are fabric or fur-based (for example, one of the cat toys I got had these huge turkey feathers as a "lure"… I removed that –the cat didn’t care about them anyhow– and added a piece of fur, cloth to another.  Cat loves those lures much more, and I feel better knowing I am NOT training her to chase feathered things).  Last, but not least, make sure the cats have other chances to play and have fun.  If the poor cats are just sitting around and bored out of their kitty minds, one can’t really blame them if they become enthralled by the bird. http://www.mindspring.com/~mintz/coverpg.html = bird care info Poicephalus rule!!

Response:

: >Can someone please help me? I have four cats, and I am about to buy my first bird, a cockatiel. Now, obviously I am not going to let the bird out of it’s cage right away without removing all cats from the room. I would like to know if anyone can forese e any problems I might have. I have been in households were small parrot type birds (conures?) walked around on the floor, and the cats would go far out their way to avoid them. On the other hand My cats have tried to dive through the screen on the window  to kill pidgeons. I am wondering, is there any hope that I will ever be able to let the bird be in the same room with the cats (supervised,) or is this just completely stupid? : PLEASE DO NOT BUY A BIRD!  PLEASE DO NOT FEED A BIRD TO YOUR PREDATORY : CATS!  I’M  SORRY…FOR YELLING…BUT LITTLE FLUFFY IS FORMOST A Larry–haven’t you ever heard you catch more flies with honey… Every post from you that I’ve seen in the last five days has been, well, rude.  I mean we’re all entitled once in a while but this is ridiculous. That said, I do agree with the general drift of what he said.  I know a few people who have cats and birds, and I know several people who have cats and *HAD* birds.  A small bird like a tiel isn’t going to be able to defend itself at all from a cat attack. The people I know whose feline friends cohabitate with their birds are the most watchful and diligent people I know.  You can’t have them out together–especially with four cats.  Could you balance time with the bird vs. time with the cats?  I kind of doubt it.   Would the bird be kept in a room that was off limits to the cats while you weren’t home?  I’ve yet to see a cage marketed for a cockatiel that was cat proof.  The stands that come with most cages (Prevue Hendryx 123 or 125) are a joke.  You could drop a plate in another room and these cages would fall over.  Other cages made with plastic bottoms that come off will fall apart in an instant if a cat climbs up on them. There’s lots of other things to consider–like why a bird? when you have four cats?  Please think long and hard about this before you decide. Alisa

Response:

  I know a >few people who have cats and birds, and I know several people who have >cats and *HAD* birds.  A smal bird like a tiel isn’t going to be able

to >defend itself at all from a cat attack. Hopefully the breeder or petstore will ask a few questions before selling a bird. Not likely, but we can hope can’t we? A few years ago, someone came to me wanting to buy a cockatiel. Some of my interview questions include "any kids under four?" No. "Are you a smoker?" No. "Any other pets?" Yeh, we have seven cats. "Sorry, but I won’t sell you a bird." Potential customer walks away angrier than H*ll and complains about me to the show manager. Comes back to me a few minutes later and says the cats are all outdoor cats. Sorry, no way will I sell you a bird. I made an enemy that day, but I can live with enemies like that. Ellen

Response:

>Can someone please help m ><rest snipped>

I have an 8 year old himilyan who could really care less about our new addition, a 1 1/2 year old Senegal. We puchased this Senegal from what is soon to be a "broken home". The owners are divorcing and didn’t want to fight who was going to get the bird (Which I will never understand!). So they decided to sell it. We where originally looking to get a baby Senegal because of the quitness of the bird. My wife and I wound up lost looking for a perticular store and came accross this bird only store. Here was this Senegal, who was just dropped of by one of the former owners (poor bird ) sitting on top of his/her cage. It allowed no less then 4-5 workers, my wife, and myself to handle him/her. After 2 hours of pondering and asking the owner of the shop about this bird and my cat co-existing we took the bird. The shop owner has 2 cats as well as many birds. After explaining my cat Chelsea is a strickly indoor cat and always was and will be and is afraid of her own shadow that there should be no problems. As a metter of fact the cat seems dis-interested in the bird and the bird could seem to care less about the cat!  I think supervision is the key here. This Senegal loves to sit on the top of his cage/perch. I have no plans of allowing this unless myself or my wife is in the room. I think another important factor is the cat. Remember, catching and/or killing a bird is NOT INSTINCTIVE! This is taught by the cats mother! Now this not mean that a cat (strickly indoor) would not try and play with the bird which may in turn hurt the bird. I also have talked to many people who have cat(s) and bird(s) and explained that it would sort of be like mixing ANY two different types of animal. It just seem a cat and a bird are a strange mix. But how different is it really than a cat/dog, dog/bird, ferrett/dog ect.. I see no reason if properly trained and supervised why ANY two species cannot co-exist. Please let me know how things work out! Mark R. Laytos mlaytos[at]ix[dot]netcom[dot]com When replying via e-mail, remove the ‘!’ from my address. This is to foil the SpamBots! Unsolicited Commercial E-Mail (UCE) is subject to a download fee of $25(us) per message. Sending such E-Mail denotes acceptance of these terms. Invoice will be sent upon receipt.

Response:

– >Chelsea is a strickly indoor cat and always was and will be and is >afraid of her own shadow that there should be no problems. As a metter >of fact the cat seems dis-interested in the bird and the bird could >seem to care less about the cat!  I think supervision is the key here.

While I would agree that you always have to be REALLY alert with both a bird and cat in the house, it can be done. But I would never, ever put complete trust in the combination. For five years I had a cockatiel – my first and only bird – which I found all but dead outside and a cat (19 years old when I found the bird). The cat was intimidated by the cockatiel, who used to sway and hiss whenever she saw the cat. I was ever so careful but cats can move so quietly that once or twice while I was sitting with the bird on my shoulder it was she who alerted me to the fact that the cat had crept to my side, looking for some attention. A lot depends on the cat, too. This cat was the last of my four outdoor cats. Because I also fed wild birds I sternly scolded any cat who even thought of chasing them. The cats would sit in the garden and watch but only one ever attempted (as far as I know, anyway) to catch birds. This cat would catch small goldfinches and sparrows and bring them to the door. Miraculously, there was never a mark on them and he would patiently wait for us to take the bird from his mouth and release it. The cat died of old age at 24 years and the cockatiel died of illness, age unknown. I now have two kittens and, much as I love birds, I would not consider getting a bird until the kittens were older and I could better judge their behaviour around a bird. Right now they are wild beasties. They are indoor cats and are therefore always underfoot. Like every pet I’ve ever had, they were strays that needed a home. But I really hope that some day I can get another bird. I love the cats but there isn’t a day I don’t think about the cockatiel I had and miss her. I’ve had a horse, cats, dogs, and assorted small critters but the human-bird bond is really special. Grace -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=-   Mississauga, ON, Canada            http://www.io.org/~teddy -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=- -=-

Response:

> While I would agree that you always have to be REALLY alert with both a > bird and cat in the house, it can be done. But I would never, ever put > complete trust in the combination.

> A lot depends on the cat, too. This cat was the last of my four outdoor > cats. Because I also fed wild birds I sternly scolded any cat who even > thought of chasing them. The cats would sit in the garden and watch but > only one ever attempted (as far as I know, anyway) to catch birds.

The only thing I have ever seen anyone actually teach a cat is not to get caught doing something.  I tried for years to teach a cat to stay off of the kitchen counters.  I NEVER saw the cat on the counters after the first week of training had begun, only the cat feet prints meandering carelessly across the counter tops as though to say "She’ll never be able to pin this on me".  I find that though cats are loving intelligent creatures and they do make wonderful pets that there is just something about their "wild nature" that keeps them too independent to be completely trusted.  I have found myself in a worse situation now though and that is that I have assorted other pets besides all of the birds.  One of which is a 6 plus foot Boa Constrictor.  I keep him securely caged yet I know from many years of having a snake that it is totally foolish for me to think that he will never get out of his cage.  It doesn’t happen often and after many years of experience I have designed a ALMOST fool proof cage.  Snakes are escape artists though and though only twice in the last four years has he escaped it could have been detrimental to the birds had they not been well caged and in another room shut away from each other.  I would never recommend this combo and hope to get the outside aviary done soon to help make all more secure.

Response:

>>Chelsea is a strickly indoor cat and always was and will be and is >afraid of her own shadow that there should be no problems. As a metter >of fact the cat seems dis-interested in the bird and the bird could >seem to care less about the cat!  I think supervision is the key here. >While I would agree that you always have to be REALLY alert with both a >bird and cat in the house, it can be done. But I would never, ever put >complete trust in the combination.

probably the best move! >A lot depends on the cat, too. This cat was the last of my four outdoor >cats.

Chelsea is a STRICTLY indoor cat and has NEVER been exposed to "A BIRD"! As one person who responed to me and said "It doesn’t mastter indoor or outdoor their instinct blah, blah, blah". This also came form a person who loathes cats.  Well a cat DOES NOT instinctivly kill. This is something that must be learned by the cat from its mother. Now playing is a different story. Many people who have probably lost a bird or other small animal through a cat, especially an indoor cat, might have never relized that the cat was just "playing" and never intended to hurt tthe animal. >The cat died of old age at 24 years

I can only pray my cat lives that long! Mark R. Laytos mlaytos[at]ix[dot]netcom[dot]com When replying via e-mail, remove the ‘!’ from my address. This is to foil the SpamBots! Unsolicited Commercial E-Mail (UCE) is subject to a download fee of $25(us) per message. Sending such E-Mail denotes acceptance of these terms. Invoice will be sent upon receipt.

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