Sun conure scratched by cat

[Mauwh]

Hi, I'm new to the forums so I'm not sure if there was a better place to ask for advice about this. I have a female sun conure, about 10 years old, and quite a few cats (6). One in particular has an issue with jumping and settling on top our conure's cage. It seems that recently he even took a swipe at her and hooked a claw near the top of her head. Fortunately it wasn't as bad as it could've been, but is naturally still a very concerning incident.
What can be do to help my bird heal and prevent infection? How can we prevent our cat from jumping on top of our bird's cage and/or swiping in the future?

 

[LaManuka]

Hi, I'm new to the forums so I'm not sure if there was a better place to ask for advice about this. I have a female sun conure, about 10 years old, and quite a few cats (6). One in particular has an issue with jumping and settling on top our conure's cage. It seems that recently he even took a swipe at her and hooked a claw near the top of her head. Fortunately it wasn't as bad as it could've been, but is naturally still a very concerning incident.
What can be do to help my bird heal and prevent infection? How can we prevent our cat from jumping on top of our bird's cage and/or swiping in the future?

When you say this happened recently, how recent? Cat claws and teeth harbour some very nasty bacteria, even the most superficial of scratches can have very serious consequences indeed in incidents ilke this - I do not say this to frighten you but we see it quite a bit here. Personally I would recommend a visit to an avian vet to have your Sun assessed and a course of antibiotics may very well be required. Just on the off chance that you don't already have an avian specialist that you visit regularly, the list below should hopefully help you find one ...

Avian Vet Resources

After a suggestion by a member, @Abu Colo, the Mod Team decided to create a list of veterinarians around the world who see birds. This was something we had discussed a few years ago, but the task seemed so large that we didn't get very far. However, the need is there and we decided that the time...

www.parrotforums.com

I wish you and Sunny all the very best

 

[HeatherG]

You need to take your bird in tonight or tomorrow morning to begin antibiotics for the scratch. Cat teeth and claws contain Pasteurella bacteria which is almost always quickly fatal to birds and other small animals.

If you have an emergency vet available I would take the bird tonight.

 

[Mauwh]

Thank you for the responses. Unfortunately, I have no income to make a vet visit a possibility myself. I'd have to hope that my mom is willing to take her, but she seems to try to avoid vet visits as much as she believes is possible. I'll share what I've heard here and hope that she'll be understanding enough to bring Sunny in ASAP.

 

[HeatherG]

I would clean the scratch with betadine or something. There’s some chance that the bird would survive without antibiotics, but cat bites and scratches almost always kill birds.

I have studied bird disease and I know what I’m talking about. It is a very sad thing to watch. And I see that your Sunny has a real cut on her forehead, not just a possible wound. Please bring her in. Maybe you could get a payment plan.

 

[Mauwh]

Thank you for your kind words and advice. As a bit of an update, we'll be bringing her in to a vet tomorrow.

 

[HeatherG]

Thank you for taking care of your parrot.

Is there any way you can keep the cats away from your birds? They are so very dangerous to birds.

 

[Mauwh]

Thank you for taking care of your parrot.

Is there any way you can keep the cats away from your birds? They are so very dangerous to birds.

We've had Sunny for about 10 years, as well as many cats over the years, and this is the first time we've had an issue with a cat and our bird. Of course, that simply goes to show that even if it seems unlikely, it's never impossible, sadly. It also seems to have happened because nobody was in the living room to witness the cat get on her cage while it was uncovered for the day.
We only have one cage for our Sunny, which (as mentioned before) sits in the family room, so there's no solution that immediately comes to mind, besides perhaps getting a second cage kept in a more private area for overnight use or when nobody's home/watching Sunny.

 

[Cottonoid]

I'm very glad you're taking Sunny to the vet! And thank you for coming here to ask questions! Getting seen before infection takes hold is important and we're here to help you along the way.

Is there a way to shut the cats in another room while Sunny is out? The cat that took a swipe through cage bars is probably likely to go after Sunny again while flying around.

One thing to think about is that our understanding of parrots around predator animals in our homes has changed over the years. Sunny knows she's surrounded by predators, and even if nothing bad has happened until now, she's still probably going to be on low key alert all the time. I read a description once to imagine you were in a cage surrounded by sharks all the time. It's stressful even when we're calm, especially after a shark tries to bite us.

For me it's been important to let my birds have as much freedom as I can give them, just like my other pets, so I've kept cats separated in the past (now I just have a dog).

Good luck at the vet - Sunny sure has pretty coloring Please keep us updated - I'm so glad you noticed the wound so quickly and hope everything turns out just fine

 

[Mauwh]

Is there a way to shut the cats in another room while Sunny is out? The cat that took a swipe through cage bars is probably likely to go after Sunny again while flying around.

We can definitely put at least the younger 3 of our cats in rooms while Sunny is out of the cage at least; the older 3 cats are in their senior years and generally keep their distance from Sunny to begin with, so I don't think they pose so much of a risk, although we could likely keep them away as well Doing that and letting her out more often both sound like good ideas though.
Will definitely post again when we've gotten to the vet and have some news <3

 

[Mauwh]

It was a bit of a struggle to make time for a possible vet visit today, but it was rather late by then and we ultimately didn't get to. We don't have a proper carrier for our Sunny, since vet visits haven't been a regular thing. She wasn't at all willing to get in a typical cat carrier either, unsurprisingly, even with attempts to warm her up to it.
I checked our nearest pet store for something of the sort, but they didn't seem to have what I was looking for.. so a vet visit will seemingly have to wait until tomorrow, when we'll have more time to look for a better carrier, adjust her to it, and get her to the vet.

 

[ravvlet]

I have parrots and cats! We keep the parrots room locked & we have security cams/webcams in their rooms and door alerts. My cats are both young and I don’t trust them, plus the birds make it very clear that they aren’t comfortable with any of the other animals - cats OR dogs - around. It’s definitely difficult! It helps that we work from home so we spend a lot of time in our offices where the birds are.

I really sincerely hope you can get them to the vet ASAP. Parrots hide when they are unwell. The bacteria in a cats saliva (that is usually also on their claws) is very, very deadly to small animals. It’s part of what makes them such effective hunters.

Is your sun’s cage too large to move it to a different room when you aren’t home? I’d also suggest modifying or putting something on the top so that cats can’t sit on it. That’s never a good idea; even if they don’t try to get to the bird it’s uncomfortable for the bird and their shed hair etc is getting into the cage. You could DIY something - maybe a plastic tray with a cat repellent mat attached to the top. They sell repellent mats at most hardware stores; it’s just a spiked mat you can put down in a lawn or garden to discourage cats from using it as their personal litter box.

As for the tray, most big box pet stores sell replacement kennel trays and you may be able to find one that will fit the top of your bird’s cage. I suppose you could attach the repellent mat directly to the cage top but your bird might chew it and I’m not sure what kind of plastic it’s made of, or if it’s safe for them to chew.

 

[Mauwh]

Is your sun’s cage too large to move it to a different room when you aren’t home?

It's a rather large rolling cage that could house multiple medium-sized birds, but it could probably fit in my own bedroom if I make some room for it.

I’d also suggest modifying or putting something on the top so that cats can’t sit on it. That’s never a good idea; even if they don’t try to get to the bird it’s uncomfortable for the bird and their shed hair etc is getting into the cage.

Yes, this behavior has always been slightly concerning to us. I'll look into trying something like what you've suggested

 

[Birds lover from Hawaii]

Hi, I'm new to the forums so I'm not sure if there was a better place to ask for advice about this. I have a female sun conure, about 10 years old, and quite a few cats (6). One in particular has an issue with jumping and settling on top our conure's cage. It seems that recently he even took a swipe at her and hooked a claw near the top of her head. Fortunately it wasn't as bad as it could've been, but is naturally still a very concerning incident.
What can be do to help my bird heal and prevent infection? How can we prevent our cat from jumping on top of our bird's cage and/or swiping in the future?

At least for now, can you put something on top of the cage that can deter the cats to jump and sit on it?

 

[Mauwh]

At least for now, can you put something on top of the cage that can deter the cats to jump and sit on it?

Yes, we already have a box on top of her cage temporarily which our cats should be less inclined to sit/lay on top of. So far, I haven't noticed it happening yet since.

 

[HeatherG]

Yes, we already have a box on top of her cage temporarily which our cats should be less inclined to sit/lay on top of. So far, I haven't noticed it happening yet since.

Is the bird ok? I hope he is lucky.

 

[Mauwh]

Is the bird ok? I hope he is lucky.

She seems to be okay as of posting this. I spending some time with her out of the cage earlier and she was pretty happy and chatty about it. She's not eating or drinking any less, but I'm not sure what can be expected in this situation, given it's a first.
My mom is still willing to buy a carrier for her for "in the future," but seems less inclined to take her to the vet now that we're going on to day 3 with seemingly little to no symptoms (she does seem to be doing some odd tail twitching/bobbing)..

 

[Birds lover from Hawaii]

She seems to be okay as of posting this. I spending some time with her out of the cage earlier and she was pretty happy and chatty about it. She's not eating or drinking any less, but I'm not sure what can be expected in this situation, given it's a first.
My mom is still willing to buy a carrier for her for "in the future," but seems less inclined to take her to the vet now that we're going on to day 3 with seemingly little to no symptoms (she does seem to be doing some odd tail twitching/bobbing)..

Have you disinfected the area and inspected daily if it shows any sign of infection?

 

[Mauwh]

Have you disinfected the area and inspected daily if it shows any sign of infection?

We don't have anything on-hand to disinfect, and it honestly didn't come to mind while looking for a bird carrier at another pet store (unsuccessfully). It seems to have scabbed normally so far and doesn't appear infected though.
I'm not sure to what degree it might help, but our cats are all indoor cats as well. My mom was trying to do some research on her own and said that might help, but I'm not sure how applicable that is to birds and small prey animals.

 

[HeatherG]

We don't have anything on-hand to disinfect, and it honestly didn't come to mind while looking for a bird carrier at another pet store (unsuccessfully). It seems to have scabbed normally so far and doesn't appear infected though.
I'm not sure to what degree it might help, but our cats are all indoor cats as well. My mom was trying to do some research on her own and said that might help, but I'm not sure how applicable that is to birds and small prey animals.

No, that would not help. But maybe you and Sunny lucked out and somehow that bacteria did not get into the scratch. I hope that is the case, though it seems very very unlikely.