# Cat vs Cockatiel



## paco2705 (May 20, 2010)

so, a friend's daughter suffers from Asthma and she haves to get rid of her cat right now. So she told my mom if she wants it. My mom said yes, so we should be getting him in june. The problem is i have 2 cockatiels and im scared of him eating them. What should i do?
i know you are all here Cockatiel lovers as much as i am, but please, dont just tell me NO to protect them of any danger. I need a neutral answer


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## xoxsarahxox (Dec 13, 2010)

I would say just either enclose the cat in a different room while your birds are out or enclose your birds in a different room. I have a jack russel and since my birds are in my room I just shut my door when the birds are out so theres no threat from the dog. If I bring them anywhere else in the house I put the dog outside for a bit or close her up in another room.


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## Virtue (May 18, 2011)

Threaten the cat you'll get a dog. That ought to keep the cat from biting the cockatiel. But then again remember just because you put two snakes in a cage doesn't mean they'll get along. One advice is DON'T trim the bird's wings as a means of escape. I'm not a cat lover (no offense to anyone).


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## klash (Mar 12, 2011)

goodnight sweet cockatiels ... ;[

cats going to have a big dinner if you not careful!


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## MeanneyFids (Aug 24, 2010)

i have 4 cats and we live just fine.

what i do is kick the cats out of the room and shut the door when they have out of cage time. if the cat doesnt hassle the birds in their cages then theyre fine.

but if your new kitty hassles them in the cage, simply put the cage in a room the cat cant go in. we have our birds in our bedroom but our cats dont bother the cages. so theyre fine but needless to say the cages are kept up.

very careful supervision is needed. very very careful as cats are very dangerous to have. but with careful supervision multispecies homes do quite well. but it takes very strong vigilence.... but do keep this in mind

dont ever take the tiels out with the cat around and always, ALWAYS check very carefully in every possible hiding spots.
we lost our budgie by taking him out and i didnt check thoroughly. i didnt see one of our cats under our couch... she was obviously inside of it. but toby flew out of my hands and out the cat came, and she clawed him. we had to humanely euthanize him as the vets couldnt save him.

its a warning to be ever so careful, not to scare you away from owning a cat. accidents happen, but you must take all precautions to prevent them. what happened to me and a few other members on here have been freak accidents. by keeping them separate, you reduce risks. extra vigilence is always important!

hope you enjoy your kitty, cats are very intelligent and loving ceatures and love to cheer you up when youre sad.


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## 4birdsNC (Dec 4, 2010)

My boys have a cat. While the cat has eyed the cages, he has never messed with the cage. he sits on the floor and watches the birds when they are out, but usualy doesn't mess with them even if they flutter to the floor. My problem is the dogs! two minipinchers, and one yorkshire terrier, every one of them have lunged at a bird before.


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## Marlie (Jan 27, 2011)

I have a tiel, cat and 2 dogs. I think it really depends on the cat. Mine never went after my bird but I NEVER leave the bird out of the cage unsupervised. 
I know this sounds weird but i feel more comfortable having his wings clipped around the cat. I had a budgie and a cat(not the same cat i have now) when i was a kid and i had the cat locked out of the room the bird was flying around in. One of my friends came in unexpectedly, let the cat in and he caught my bird in mid air. Sadly she didn't make it  The cat was stimulated by the movement of the bird flying and they were both moving so fast i wasn't able to catch either of them. If she had her wings clipped i could have picked her up off the floor and saved her.


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## MeanneyFids (Aug 24, 2010)

i wish i could say otherwise. my budgie's wings were clipped when it happened. and my cats had never shown interest at all before. it was a lesson hard learned and i dont wish to see anyone go through it again. we have a sign on the birds door. so if someone comes by, theyre quite aware to keep that door shut if the birds are out.

but yes, it does seem to be a motion thing. like poor jessie will walk by the cage and dally with be in her cage doing a bat bird or drop a toy and scares the bajeezus out of jessie and she runs for dear life. would i trust her? nope. even if shes scared of them, ive seen what could happen. it does really depend on the cat. some cats will do anything possible to get at the cages, while others will sit and watch while others have no interest. 

but im a paranoid person at heart, and everyone here has good points.

point is, supervision, vigilence and caution are the most important things to have with this. clipped and flighted makes no difference. bird flaps, cat chases. and you cant train a cat like most dogs and even dogs have a strong hunting urge that often cant be curbed. you cant train them to go against their instincts. a cat is a cat and always will be. they will not change their natures. just be careful and vigilent.

letting a bird out of cage with a cat around is a risk... just a warning. if you do it, its at yours and your birds risk. we cant force you to do anything. but we can give you our experiences and advice and try to give you some help with your decisions


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## KTyne (Apr 16, 2011)

I have a cat, and 3 dogs in the house. My budgie lives in my room with the door closed 100% of the time even when I'm in the room because I don't trust the cat or 2 of the dogs AT all.
Our 2 younger dogs have hunting instincts like they were wild. My Kelpie mix has caught and killed birds in our back yard in mid flight...
So my precaution is to not take any risks whatsoever and the dogs and cat are not allowed in my room ever (also because of allergies).
Definitely be super extra cautious, and know your animal!


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## Set (Mar 14, 2011)

Budgies move a lot faster than cockatiels. My cats show no interest in the tiels, but as soon as the budgies come out, they turn into little hunters and get booted out of my room. I do let my older cat in the room with the tiels, and the tiels like to hang out near her and Caddy has groomed her tail before. BUT this is with extremely close supervision. It also helps that my cat is old, has no teeth and grew up with birds. If this is a cat that has not grown up around birds, they will want to hunt them.

Cats can be trained just like any other animal, though. All my pets are trained to target, come and leave it. The cats are some of the easiest to train, because they are very food motivated and curious. Leave it is especially important and can save a birds life. I recommend clicker training.

But the only 100% way to keep the birds safe is to keep the cats away from them when they're out and keep the cage secure. If a cat wants something, it will find a way to get it. They're sneaky little monsters.


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## artistchan (May 22, 2011)

i have 2 cats. used to have 1 old cat (16 years), that was scared of the birds thanks to a blackbird i took in as a kid. (it chased him and pecked his noise bloody, what a visous blackbird) so i trusted him completly around the birds. they even nibbled around on the floor with him lying near to them.
so when that cat died and we got these 2 new young cats, but we were alot more carefull with the birds.over time we trusted them enough not to go after them. but not as much as first cat. 

they don't bother the birds when they are in the cage, neither when they are sitting ontop the cage. they get a bit excited when the birds start flying around though, and have sometimes lept up at them when they get the chance. 
although, i think i'll be reconsidering letting them fly around with the cats now, after hearing dally's story.
and also because yesterday they brought in their first baby bird kill. it was a few days old blackbird. usually they only kill worms, frogs and moths. but the wild birds actually dared to nest in my cat infested block this year. 

okay so basicaly, i'd say be extra cousious at first with the cat. learn and observe it's behaviour with the birds. best to be safe than sorry.


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## Kaoru (Sep 14, 2010)

Just put the cat in another room when the bird is out of the cage. A lot of cats dont have the instinct anymore, but dont take the risk!
(Not a cat lover either Virtue  but why would anybody be offended by that?)


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## jessnry (Mar 26, 2011)

Wow, great discussion  I have had birds since i was a very little girl, but never once owned a cat, so I am also guilty of not being a cat person, lol. Vigilence is definitely key. As everone here says, don't let cats and birds out together in the same room. And always keep in mind that cats (and dogs) are predators, and cockatiels are prey. you never know when those instincts may kick in...


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## TielTide (May 26, 2011)

It depends on the cat. I have one cat these days, and the cockatiels walk all over her and pluck out her whiskers. She just sort of lays there and for all the world seems to enjoy it.

I had a siamese at one point who, through fault directly all my own, killed my favorite cockatiel a couple years ago.

The best way to tell if it's going to be an issue, is to lock your birds in their cage, and set the cat down next to it. The cockatiels are in no danger while they're locked in their cage.

If the cat starts twitching and flicking it's tail, making "clicking" noises, pinning it's ears and hunkering down tensely as it watches the birds, trying to paw the birds, etc, then never ever ever let your birds out without the cat being outside or confined.

If the cat looks blasse, sniffs and then walks away, or otherwise does not seem impressed, there is STILL danger! But you can at least see about testing the waters. Keep a squirt bottle in your reach at all times (I have one always handing off my belt loop) set on "jet" and KNOW YOUR RANGE.

If the cat starts getting too interested, squirt it. If the cat even remotely looks like it might pounce, squirt it. If the cat so much as -touches- the cage, squirt it. I'm fortunate in that ALL my animals hate the squirt bottle. It's gotten to the point I can get any of them to stop doing anything just by making the squirt bottle noise with my mouth. "Pssht pssht pssht!" Or by grabbing the bottle and pointing it menacingly.

Most importantly, never ever ever trust the cat for even a split second. Cats are predators - and house cats have the widest prey range of ALL predators.

Maybe you'll get lucky and this cat will be fat, lazy, and have next to no prey drive.


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## SoCalGal (Feb 1, 2011)

Please be aware that a cat's (and a dog's, I understand) saliva can be deadly to a bird.


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## TielTide (May 26, 2011)

Human saliva is harmful to birds too, supposedly, though I've never met anyone who would refuse a birdy kiss. I think it applies more to if the bird gets thoroughly slobbered, and then grooms the saliva out of their feathers en masse.

Dander, (dried saliva dust & skin particles) unless your bird is allergic to you/other animals, shouldn't be a problem provided you keep up with the cleanliness of home and cage.


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## KTyne (Apr 16, 2011)

The saliva of a cat or dog is dangerous to a bird if the bird is scratched and it gets into their blood stream, not if they ingest it.
Reason being is cats and dogs have bacteria in their saliva that is deadly to birds because it causes infection extremely easily.


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## Set (Mar 14, 2011)

KTyne said:


> The saliva of a cat or dog is dangerous to a bird if the bird is scratched and it gets into their blood stream, not if they ingest it.
> Reason being is cats and dogs have bacteria in their saliva that is deadly to birds because it causes infection extremely easily.


I don't for certain, but this is a very good possibility. Cat bites are notorious for horrible infections even in people. While dog bites aren't as bad, they are still very dangerous when it comes to infections.

On the topic of offending people for not being a cat person; I'm a huge cat person and have no problem with that  I know just how annoying kitties can be and they aren't for everyone.


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## SetaInRed (Jun 1, 2011)

I have two cats and a cockatiel. My bird was in the house first, and both my cats were raised from kittens with him. I swear sometimes he likes the cats more than me! I have also had numerous kittens from my local animal shelter where I volunteer come through my apartment, and when they have a clean bill of health, I introduce them to my boys. Kittens can definitely be trained to respect a bird! I have always kept a careful eye, but I have never had a serious problem.

I am going to assume this is an adult cat though, who might not be as easy to train as a full grown cat. It still may work though! Keep a careful eye on the cat when they are in the same room as the birds. If they seem to be eyeballing them, a squirt bottle of a water is a great deterrent to tell them to cut it out! This was the tool we used when we trained our cats from kittens. IMHO, however, the most important thing to do is to not let the cat be in reach of them without supervision, as others have suggested.

Best of luck to you, your birds, and your cat!


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## SetaInRed (Jun 1, 2011)

KTyne said:


> The saliva of a cat or dog is dangerous to a bird if the bird is scratched and it gets into their blood stream, not if they ingest it.
> Reason being is cats and dogs have bacteria in their saliva that is deadly to birds because it causes infection extremely easily.


I have heard that this is an old wives tale. Before I got my first cat, I was afraid of the same thing. I asked a friend of mine who had more experience with birds and cats, she told me it wasn't an issue. This was a long time ago so I can't remember EXACTLY what she said, but I think she may have had an experience where one was scratched lightly and was fine. All I know is I felt at ease after talking to her, enough to adopt the first cat I ever owned in my life.

Of course, I cannot speak from experience, my cats have never scratched my bird. They MIGHT have accidentally shared water from a glass unintentionally, but other than that, no incidents. This conversation was also years ago and I can't even remember all the details, just the outcome. So I could *definitely* be wrong, and I would still be careful! I just thought I would offer up another POV!


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## KTyne (Apr 16, 2011)

I'm not sure if it's an "old wives tale" but it's what I've heard. :')
Just recently on Talk Parrotlets there was a person whose parrotlet got scratched quite badly from her cat so she took the parrotlet to the vet and he gave the bird antibiotics to make sure the bird didn't get an infection.
Not sure if the bacteria is deadly, per say, but it sure can't help!


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## MeanneyFids (Aug 24, 2010)

there are antibiotics for cat bites, and without them, its garanteed fatal. even with antibiotics, they can still die. but good point, KTyne with the antibiotics. but time is most important with that too


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## MeanneyFids (Aug 24, 2010)

and the bacteria is not a wives tale. they carry pasteurella bacteria. it CAN kill a bird and other small animals. 

and the bird that got scratched by the cat is insanely lucky!


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## KTyne (Apr 16, 2011)

Yeah, this lady brought her Parrotlet to the vet immediately so he was lucky.


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## Zamion (May 23, 2011)

I have two cats and a 'tiel. The tiel cage has bars small enough that the cats couldn't get a paw in, but they don't seem very interested in him. Actually, anytime they do get remotely near the cage, the Admiral hisses, and scares THEM off. Out of cage time doesn't seem to be in an issue either, he has a playtop cage, and a playstand across the room, and he flies back and forth between the two. I still don't trust any of them enough to leave the room while he's out.


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