# Cockatiel possibly attacked by cat?



## shiro101 (Dec 18, 2012)

At 6 am I heard a thrashing noise in my cage so I looked out the window and my cat was there and I told the cat to go away but one of my cockatiels were at the bottom of the cage but it wasn't closing his eyes or anything. Under his wing he has no feathers and there was a faint cut (I think, I am not sure) and his wing bone part was red with blood but not bleeding... He is not acting any different though he is still singing and moving about and he can still fly (well he has his wings cut but he can still attempt to fly) should I be worried? It is the weekends so the vets are out for now, is there any home remedy to treat it or should I just leave it alone? 

And could it have been the cat or did he just scratch himself on the way down?


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## Colorguarder08 (Sep 13, 2014)

Chances are he just had a night fright BUT it sounds like he injured himself. Wash the injury and try to avoid letting him fly since you can see one of his wing bones there is always a possibly of him having broken his wing. Keep a close eye on him and get him into the vet as soon as possible if you are able to find an emergancy vet thats even better.


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## Kiwi (May 12, 2013)

He could have gotten frightened by the cat and had a night fright like Colorguarder08 said.

Try and observe him and see if he really got a cut or if it was just the feathers that were taken off. Sometimes the feathers take the brunt of the injury and it barely scratches the skin. It could have been a red scratch line instead of blood.

Watch the site of the injury for any inflammation or infection. If you see any make sure to take him to a vet right away!


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## tielbob (Mar 25, 2013)

I hope the cat didn't actually get to the bird - if it did come in contact it's an emergency. See this thread in the archives:

http://talkcockatiels.com/archive/index.php?t-27104.html

The following was taken from the post by MeanneyFids in that thread:

"*Cat bites should be considered the most dangerous, as the Pasteurella bacteria commonly found in the feline mouth, are extremely hazardous to birds. Even a simple puncture by a tooth can result in a fatal infection. Scratches from claws are also extremely dangerous, as the risk of infection is very real.*"


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## Renae (Feb 9, 2008)

I am a bit confused… is the Cockatiel kept outside in the cage?







I would strongly reconsider this if he is kept outside, as it could turn out a lot worse next time/if it were to happen again. Hope he will be okay.


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## Nimra (Aug 4, 2014)

Yeah it probably had a night fright. Cookie never had a night fright because I always leave a light open for him. Did you not open a light on for your cockatiel at night?


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## shiro101 (Dec 18, 2012)

Thank you for all your replies! I leave an outside light on until about 11pm (before I sleep) and now I have put a cover on the cage so the cat cannot reach the inside of the cage  I have cleaned his wound and I don't think there's anything major going on thankfully  I'm sure he'll be alright 

edit: it can never reach the inside of the cage but you know what I mean (like the probability of my bird being at the edge of the cage and the cat digging her nails through the cage bars) ...


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## Kiwi (May 12, 2013)

So it is an open wound. Does it look like a claw wound? This concerns me as other have said that cats have a lot of bacteria in their claws deadly to 'tiels. What have you cleaned the wound with to prevent infection? I would definitely watch it for inflammation and infection then. Their bodies are set up in a way that any infection spreads throughout their whole systems very fast and it's almost the weekend so many vet places will be closed. :S

I'm glad that you now have a cover over the cage, but is there any way to keep your cat out of the room when you can't supervise it? If the cat has now gone after the bird it should not be allowed in your room if you're not watching it and be locked out of the room at night. The cat will definitely try this again as it sounds like he's tried this before, just this time he was successful.


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## tielbob (Mar 25, 2013)

I hope it turns out all right, but if I understand your setup, and I'm not sure I do, the birds remain in serious danger.
The cat still has free access to the caged birds who are now covered and still outdoors exposed to everything out there.


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## Lulu-Tiel (Jun 3, 2012)

I don't understand... if the birds are caged, why can the cat reach them?


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