cats & birds

do any of you guys know how to teach a cat that our cockateils are off limits?? Monster used to jump on the cage back when we first got our one, b ut eventually stopped and that bird is afraid of us and wont come out of the cage. we just got a new bird, and this bird is very friendly and loves people... we shut the door when we let him out, so Monster cant come in the room.. however, when he is in his cage, Monster is always in that room(computer room). now that we got this new bird, Monster has started jumping on the cages again, and my bfs mom is complaining and saying that he needs to go. and i refuse to get rid of him i will not do it... nobody seems to understand that i took responisbility when i took him in, im not going to give him up just like that, i love him. so i need help please!! i dont have anywhere else to live or else i would just move out, but that isnt an option, so i need to be able to teach him that he cannot go near the cages...

The instinct is so hard-wired for them to go after birds that I don't think you're going to change it. What you have to do is figure out how to either protect the cage enough so that his jumping at it won't terrify them each time (he'll be too far away, or there'll be enough "barrier" of some kind to keep him at arm's length), or else keep them in a room with a door, etc. I have a very large acrylic (wood frame) cage for my birds and had problems too, but I've since recovered the sides (where the wood frame pieces are outboard of the plastic) with new plastic sheets so the cats have nothing to hang onto when they jump at the cage, and just slide off, thereby losing a lot of interest. For a regular cage, you may have either rig some kind of larger outside box of clear plastic with 1/2 sides hinged (for access to food and crumb tray when the cat's out of the room) or just keep him out of there. I'd suggest cranking the whole cage up higher than 8' (above where he could get any claws hooked) on a pulley system if your ceilings are high, but then you couldn't see the birds routinely and it seems pretty radical!

A closed door between cat and bird is the only way to absolutely ensure safety. My bird room is locked and off limits to the cats. Even a scratch from a cat can kill a bird, as cat saliva contains bacteria that birds have no natural defense to, if one of your birds gets even the tiniest scratch or gets near the cats mouth, it needs to see a vet within 24 hours. To be quite honest, I think you're playing with fire by allowing the cat to jump on the cages, you can't train a cat out of wanting to hunt its natural prey, some cats have a stronger prey drive than others. If you can't keep them separate, then you shouldn't keep both - it's just asking for trouble. Sorry, that is my opinion.

well the cages are stand up rolling things... so by him jumpin on the cages he cant actually GET the birds or knock the cages over bc he is too light. it scares the birds more than anything. i am aware that a scratch from the cat can kill, and we absolutely DO NOT take them out of the cage when the cat is in the room, we put him in a seperate room and shut the door while the birds are out. i was just asking because my boss has exotic birds, very expensive and beautiful. she also had a cat, that the birds would perch themselves on the cat and the cat would walk around the house with it like that. and another, who would just ignore them. we had one bird longer than the other, and at first, monster would jump up but eventually got bored with it and just stayed away. now that we have this new bird i guess his curiosity is back. i was just wondering if any of u had any tips for me... guess not

use a squirt gun trust me in the end it will work out

a squirt bottle wont work on him, he loves water... except of course when its time for a bath!!! other than that, he gets up on the counter when we have water running in the sink and stands there and watches it, you flick water at him and he just stares at you like "yeah?". it doesnt phase him, plus im scared that water will get into his ears.

what breed of cat is he ? some breeds will never mix with brirds. Like if hes a bengal then i dont think u have much hope for peaceful existence


make sure u yell NO when he goes near the bird. Maybe throw a tantrum stomp your feed or somthing cats are smarter then dogs they will know when you really dont like something they are doing

he is not purebred, some sort of mix breed or something. anyway, it wont matter, as my bf and i got into a fight over sumthing stupid, he broke up with me and i think it is for good, so i will probably be temporarily moving into my friends house, until i find somewhere else to go. do u think that it would be too much on him to move twice? leaving him here is not an option bc my bf and i and his cousin are the only ones in this house who like him. plus i cant sleep unless he is right there with me.

No it is not to much, take him with you and he will adapt

believe me hes going with me no matter what, i wont even move into my moms bc she wont let me bring him bc she didnt like the way her cat acted when i took monster to her house. even though i told her they will eventually get used to each other. thats why i have to go to my friends until i find somewhere that will let me have him. i cant afford my own place, so my friend said i can bring him with me while im at his apartment.