New Cats and Galah and Grey

[PortaPerch]

One of wifey's old cats just died, and his brother is not in good shape. She's making noises about "always had a cat" and "they can be trained not to touch the birds." That's true, almost. We lost a budgie or two to the surviving cat, and he broke a 'tiel's wing.

I say it's foolish to bring any other than an old, decrepit cat into the house with our two parrots who have the run of the upstairs. The battle begins...

 

[horsesculpter]

I'm going to vote against you, Portaperch. I've had cats and birds together for a long time with no problems. Any old cat worth his salt who hunted in the past might come to life over your birds. I would get a very young kitten, 6 to 8 weeks, no older and just include it in the family. It won't be hunting anything at that age and will just grow up thinking the birds are part of the house hold. The caveat to this is don't buy cat toys with feathers on them and never let your cat outside to hunt. Now I realize you will be stuck with that kitten a lot longer than a decrepit old cat. Was that your plan? Good Luck,, Mrs. Portaperch on this battle.

 

[JerseyWendy]

Firstly, so sorry about the loss of your Mrs.'s cat. No matter how old they are, they were part of the family, and it's always very very sad when we have to say good-bye.

Secondly, I whole-heartedly agree with horsesculpter 100%.

Good luck.

 

[PetoftheDay]

Another thing to consider is adopting a rescue kitty, and asking if they have one in the shelter system who is already declawed. These cats can be harder to place, as they need to be indoor only has they have no claws to defend themselves against predators, and I would never ever recommend declawing a cat, but there are people who do, then give the cat up anyway ... (grrrrrrrrr stupid people).

Or an adult kitty who is not necessarily old and decrepit, but has little to no prey instinct, and in fact, you may be able to ask if any of the adorable cats are bird-safe - some foster home check this!

 

[tab_xo]

i have to say i am against cats but only because my brothers cat is a Bengal, so i think he has that attack mode in him even though we had him since he was a kitten...
but as the others were saying you may be able to get a kitten, or old cat that may learn to think of your birds as family members..
good luck

 

[DebsFlock]

I have 3 cats and 3 parrots. We've never had any issues, but we are very careful. One of the cats was raised with birds and is fairly trustworthy, the other two I would not leave unattended with the birds. One mostly doesn't care, the other doesn't care a lot of the time, but occasionally gets very fascinated. I think minimizing the risk entails compromises and that includes not having the cats and birds left out unattended in the same place at the same time. Our birds are trimmed so they can't get all around the house on their own. I'll leave the cage doors open if I'm in the same room with them, but if I leave for any length of time, the door is closed. While I think the folks that argue cats are killing machines that should never be kept in the same home with birds are way over the top, I also think that a fluttering bird can trigger a play response very easily and that one should never trust an unattended cat with a bird no matter how reliable the cat has been. At least cats tend to go into stalking mode, so if you are present you can usually see what is going on and intervene if everybody is more or less in reach.

So I vote for deciding if the cat-bird interactions can be supervised at all times. If not, I would find a way to either separate the cats from the birds physically or I'd phase out of cat ownership.

If one partner loves one kind of animal and the other partner has a different view, I think it can be quite a strain. Fortunately my husband and I have very similar views in that respect.

 

[aliray]

Just putting my two cents worth in. We have always had cats and dogs. My hubby grew up with both ,I had a cat starting at 9 years old and dogs since we have been married, 47 years and still have two elderly minpins but at our age 66 and 67 I will now settle for my three birds. I don,t have to take them out on a leash,and where I live I wouldn't let an animal out with out one. Fluffy the gator would make short work of one then there are poisonous snakes, fire ants etc. I live in Fla. also I figure they will outlive us in any case, plus the cost of shots vet care ,dental cleanings every year,heart worm pills for both cats and dogs is getting rather expensive but at least I don,t have to be home in three hours to take a critter out to pee. The birds if necesary can be in the cage if we go to visit freinds or family. Also no cleaning litter boxes. Plus I have a freind with a couple of Kitties so if I need a kitty fix I go pat theirs. At our age the birds are easier and we adore them Plus we have the three perfect parrots

 

[wenz2712]

Sorry for the loss of your Cat.

I have to agree with Horsesculptor and Jerseywendy on this one!

 

[PortaPerch]

Thanks for all the thoughts.

A pre-declawed cat is a good idea, but not so good for self defense from the local cats. Wifey thinks she can teach a new cat to respect family, but I see it not worth the risk. We have cat doors front and back, so our cats have always been free to come and go, and yes, one of them used to get a bird once in awhile.

I saw one of the local coyotes on my hike this morning, just 100 yards from our house, so that is a factor with young cats that explore. Coyotes gotta' eat, too.

Maybe once she settles down with just the one old cat, her gotta' get a cat fever will fade...

Cancer came on suddenly in Pirate, and he was gone in 3 weeks. We had just taken him in because of weight loss, and all looked normal, except for hyperthyroid, which they say is common in old cats. A week later, another vet felt his abdomen and found big tumor/s. I wonder if this could be another case of poison food?