Cat catching baby birds

Concert

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I know it's instinct for all cats to go after birds but our young cat is catching at least one, if not two tiny birds a day. As out garden is a haven for birds there is little I can do to deter them but I'm wondering if anyone has any ideas on how we could stop this. I hate coming home finding these little birds, dazed and half dead on the patio.
 
Get rid of the cat? cats and birds do not mix.

Alternatively, put a bell around its neck. It won't help nestlings, but older birds will hear it coming.
 
Had a little fledgling breath his last in my hands on Monday after our cat brought him home! Sad, but nature is cruel. Survival of the fittest and all that!

Keep the cat in for a few days (or maybe weeks!). Once the fledglings get the hang of flying they should be OK (well as safe as any other bird...).
 
I'd second the bell on the collar suggestion...

My dog is a holy terror for catching birds... I don't think he intends to harm them... He wants to play, but the poor birds die of fright when they find themselves in his mouth...

I have a small bell on his collar, and it has sorted out the problem....
 
I know it's instinct for all cats to go after birds but our young cat is catching at least one, if not two tiny birds a day. As out garden is a haven for birds there is little I can do to deter them but I'm wondering if anyone has any ideas on how we could stop this. I hate coming home finding these little birds, dazed and half dead on the patio.

Try being a responsible cat owner and keep the cat indoors for the next few weeks. Yes the cat will whine and moan but it'll get over it. Unfortunately, most (not all) cats are excellent instinctive hunters - it's up to you to be responsible and not afford your cat the opportunity to damage local wildlife. Part of being a responsible pet owner is not letting it harm other wildlife - you wouldn't let your dog go around attacking lambs.

Edit - note I'm not criticising but you do have to take responsibility for your animal (and yes I own cats and practice what I preach!).
 
Strange as it may seem, your cat is actually trying to please you with its hunting skills, literally when it leaves its prey on you patio or at you front or back door,what it is saying to you in its own way is "look what I got for you, I brought this bird to you!" You may notice that your cat never eats the bird but just plays with it and even tortures it,so its not like the cat needs it for food. Unfortunately this is a very deep inctinct and short of keeping your cat inside,there is really not a lot you can do. The bell around the neck is a very good suggestion,but try as you might you will not stop it entirely. My personal view is if you do try to stop your cat from being a cat,you will make it into a very unhappy cat! Its a natural act for yout cat.
 
Sad, but nature is cruel. Survival of the fittest and all that!

Only to a point. The domestic cat is not a native species. We are disturbing the balance of nature by bringing in these hunters into an environment where they don't belong. So we should take extra measures to protect our wildlife - such as putting a bell on the cat, keeping it indoors, or chaining the cat to a post if you really want to have it in your back garden.
 
Try being a responsible cat owner and keep the cat indoors for the next few weeks. Yes the cat will whine and moan but it'll get over it. Unfortunately, most (not all) cats are excellent instinctive hunters - it's up to you to be responsible and not afford your cat the opportunity to damage local wildlife. Part of being a responsible pet owner is not letting it harm other wildlife - you wouldn't let your dog go around attacking lambs.

Edit - note I'm not criticising but you do have to take responsibility for your animal (and yes I own cats and practice what I preach!).

Sherman, I'm rather puzzled about the cat being a threat to the local wildlife. Imho, domestic cats roaming free are actually a part of the ecosystem, because there would be normally a rather stable number of them in an area. As such, they will serve to control the wildlife population /and as all of us know, Ireland's wildlife is rather understaffed in the category of predators/ and birds will adjust accordingly /i.e. having more youngsters etc/.
I have a cat and before that I used to have hamsters - while these do not mix, I love both of these species and understand their needs. A cat's need is to roam free and hunt. I would definitely not keep my cat indoors if not absolutely necessary because he is so much used to being outside, keeping him in would be unnecessary torture. He is bringing birds and mice and leaving them in our garden but I'd never punish him because he'll never understand why. He used to have a bell on his collar but I removed it because it not only warned off birds it also put his "friends" who were fighting for his territory in advantage as they knew where he was and he could neither attack them properly if necessary nor run away when needed.
 
Only to a point. The domestic cat is not a native species. We are disturbing the balance of nature by bringing in these hunters into an environment where they don't belong. So we should take extra measures to protect our wildlife - such as putting a bell on the cat, keeping it indoors, or chaining the cat to a post if you really want to have it in your back garden.


Brendan I know you are the moderator here,but really I have to say OH MY GOD! That would be a case for the DSPCA,make no mistake!!
 
Many of our native irish birds are under threat because of the introduction of cats. Be responsible, do what you can to prevent your cat from giving you little gifts of dead birds.
 
Cats have only be domesticated for 200 years. It's still their instinct to hunt. My cats often catch birds and sometimes leave them on the floor beside where I usually sit, which is their gift to me. Much as I don't like birds being killed (and I've managed to rescue the odd one from the cat's mouth) I know my cat is just doing what comes naturally, and there is no point in punishing it in any way or locking it indoors (also another punishment). I have tried collars with bells, but they always manage to lose them within a few days.

I doubt they kill enough birds to threaten our native wildlife.
 
Cats have only be domesticated for 200 years...
Cats have been domesticated for at least 5,000 years, but, as pointed out above, not in Ireland. As a non-native species they do need to be controlled when parent birds are rearing as killing the young birds will devastate some species which are already under intense pressure.

I'm lucky in that the bells my cats wear at this time of year seem to work and I've had no mis-fortunate "presents" left for me.
 
I spoke to the vet about putting a collar & bell on the cat however he said that you should never put a collar on a cat as they climb a lot and can end up hanging themselves on a tree/hedge.
 
I spoke to the vet about putting a collar & bell on the cat however he said that you should never put a collar on a cat as they climb a lot and can end up hanging themselves on a tree/hedge.


You could use a harness (like these) instead of a collar and attach bells to that for when you let the cat go out.

Although I had a cat that even with 4 very loud bells still managed to catch everything that moved!
 
I spoke to the vet about putting a collar & bell on the cat however he said that you should never put a collar on a cat as they climb a lot and can end up hanging themselves on a tree/hedge.

You can get collars now that have a release mechanism so that if the cat gets stuck the collar automatically releases.
 
Its the female sparrow hawk that causes this problem in our garden - that's vicious women for ya :(
 
I awoke at the unearthly hour of 4.30 this morning to hear my dog howling in the shed, I had to haul myself out of bed to investigate and I found him chasing the tails off two terrified swallows around the shed. I think it is a time of the year thing. I am going to put a muzzle on him tonight becuase I can't put up with this racket for the next number of months and besides these little birds deserve a chance in life. :)
 
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