# Cats and birds **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 30, 2007, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-and-birds/406015 "2007-05-30T02:49:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 17\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![gatorman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/96bed5/32.png) [@gatorman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gatorman)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2007, 2:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-and-birds/406015/1 "2007-05-30T02:49:04Z")
Is it possible to have a pet bird and a pet cat living in harmony in the same household?? If yes, how do you keep the cat from eating/attacking the bird??! ---
**Author:** ![Toaster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7bcc69/32.png) [@Toaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toaster)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2007, 7:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-and-birds/406015/2 "2007-05-30T07:32:27Z")
Is the cat a ‘hunter?’ Does it regularly stalk socks, feathers, paper bags, or even more so get to go outside and kill things? Not all cats are ‘hunters.’ Some cats are lazy beasts and as long as they’re fed, they don’t care. If a cat is an outdoor cat, it probably would have problems if the bird was ever released out of its cage. Seeing as how many birds cannot get enough exercise and entertainment being stuck in a cage, this could be cruel to the bird either way. If the cat has lots of toys, and enjoys ones with feathers attached, you probably would have problems. It knows feathers are for biting and mauling, and hey, most birds have that kind of feather. Get a kiwi or penguin. A large parrot would probably have no problems avoiding a cat that wasn’t a hunter, assuming the bird was taught to be friendly to cats: birds have very sharp beaks and claws and can damage a pet cat. A relatively easy solution is to have the bird and its cage confined in a room the cat is not allowed to go in, having the door shut at all times. (If a cat wishes to kill a vulnerable bird, even with a human in the same room, the cat will move too fast to be stopped most likely.) The bird could have free-fly space in that room, and not worry about predation so long as you close the windows. A small finchy bird in a quite-large cage may be able to get enough free-fly space to be entertained, and not need to be in an open area, although I’m not positive on how big such a cage might need to be. Possibly too large. ---
**Author:** ![mks57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9bd4f/32.png) [@mks57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mks57)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2007, 7:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-and-birds/406015/3 "2007-05-30T07:43:02Z")
Make sure the bird is bigger than the cat. ---
**Author:** ![si\_blakely](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@si\_blakely](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/si_blakely)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2007, 7:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-and-birds/406015/4 "2007-05-30T07:47:25Z")
[QUOTE=Toaster] If the cat has lots of toys, and enjoys ones with feathers attached, you probably would have problems. It knows feathers are for biting and mauling, and hey, most birds have that kind of feather. Get a kiwi or penguin. [/QUOTE] :eek: Kiwis have feathers - very soft filament style feathers (kiwi feather cloaks are some of the most prized Maori artifacts) - just the sort of thing any cat would love to chew. Plus there is the whole **endangered species** illegal-to-take-out-of-NZ thing … feral Cats, wild dogs and rats pose the biggest threats to kiwi in the wild (aside from habitat erosion) Si ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Barchetta](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/da6949/32.png) [@Red\_Barchetta](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Barchetta)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2007, 8:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-and-birds/406015/5 "2007-05-30T08:06:36Z")
Oddly, our cats which love watching the birds through the window, as well as chasing after feathered toys, pays absolutely no attention to our very own pet bird. They’ve sat right next to each other with the cat showing nary an interest. Same goes for our hamsters, and guinea pigs (which actually scares the cats sometimes 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Toaster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7bcc69/32.png) [@Toaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toaster)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2007, 8:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-and-birds/406015/6 "2007-05-30T08:08:19Z")
Ah, I thought they were more ‘hairy’ feathers-type. My apologies. Penguin it is, then. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2007, 8:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-and-birds/406015/7 "2007-05-30T08:25:27Z")
I’m sure it’s _possible_, especially if the bird is a largish one capable of looking after itself - such as a large parrot or cockatiel. But I don’t think it’s _advisable_ - in a few cases (the ones people will mention to rebut the general advice that _it’s not a good idea_), the bird and the cat will become buddies, but in most cases, it will play out one of two ways: -The cat wants to eat the bird and is just waiting for the right opportunity -The bird bullies the cat into deference For smaller birds, even if they’re kept caged in a separate room, the cat will know it’s there and will be trying all kinds of Sylvester-style tricks to sneak in and attack Tweety Pie and even in cases where the cat appears to pay little attention to the bird, things can turn for the worse if, say, the bird gets out of the cage and starts flying about - regardless of any prior conditioning and restraint, the cat’s instincts will probably kick in and it will try to catch the bird. So. It’s one of those things that’s technically possible, but just isn’t usually a good idea to try. ---
**Author:** ![Alive\_At\_Both\_Ends](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Alive\_At\_Both\_Ends](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alive_At_Both_Ends)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2007, 9:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-and-birds/406015/8 "2007-05-30T09:56:08Z")
I’d back an ostrich against a pussycat any day. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2007, 10:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-and-birds/406015/9 "2007-05-30T10:17:04Z")
Unless of course the pussycat is a… LION! But even if not, I don’t think the downsides of living with an ostrich in the house would be adequately compensated by the upside of not worrying about the cat trying to eat it. ---
**Author:** ![Turek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/turek/32/18782_2.png) [@Turek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turek)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2007, 12:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-and-birds/406015/10 "2007-05-30T12:21:11Z")
[QUOTE=Mangetout] I’m sure it’s _possible_, especially if the bird is a largish one capable of looking after itself - such as a large parrot or **cockatiel**. [/QUOTE] Nitpick: Cockatoo. Cockatiels are small-to-medium sized birds, 6-9 inches long, and would have problems defending themselves from a cat. Cockatoos are large and could take off a finger if they were of a mind to. Oh, and louder than holy hell. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2007, 12:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-and-birds/406015/11 "2007-05-30T12:54:44Z")
Right you are, although I think a cockatiel would still have a fighting chance at fending off a cat, just because parrots are so ballsy. But you’re right - I did mean cockatoo. ---
**Author:** ![vetbridge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5e925/32.png) [@vetbridge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vetbridge)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2007, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-and-birds/406015/12 "2007-05-30T14:30:13Z")
Years ago I had a yellow naped amazon parrot and two cats. The cats were terrified of the bird after he bit their tales through the cage bars. His screams also scared them. They also left smaller Senegal Parrots alone. When I brought some zebra finches into the household for my daughter, the cats were relentless, eventually eating one finch that got loose. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2007, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-and-birds/406015/13 "2007-05-30T14:44:14Z")
[QUOTE=Mangetout] Unless of course the pussycat is a… LION! But even if not, I don’t think the downsides of living with an ostrich in the house would be adequately compensated by the upside of not worrying about the cat trying to eat it. [/QUOTE] Some guy on Dirty Jobs told Mike that in the desert sometimes lions and ostriches fight, and they find dead lions killed by ostriches. Don’t know if he was having Mike on or not, or if it’s true. He said the lions have broken jaws from the kicks. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2007, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-and-birds/406015/14 "2007-05-30T14:55:11Z")
Yeah, but BatLion could beat one, if he was prepared… Or something. A friend of mine farms ostriches and although they’re somewhat tame from the daily interaction with humans, he says the birds still routinely scare the shit out of him - one time he said they were all at the feeding trough at the opposite end of the field, several hundred yards away, so he went into the pen to collect the eggs (keeping his eye on them as he crept in) - he bent down to pick up an egg and when he stood up again, the ostriches were suddenly all standing next to him, towering over him. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2007, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-and-birds/406015/15 "2007-05-30T15:10:47Z")
I’d say that’s probably the episode of the show where Mike was the most scared. The guy takes him out and tells him all about how incredibly evil and deadly the birds are, and then he’s all, “Go to it!” ---
**Author:** ![vetbridge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/b5e925/32.png) [@vetbridge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vetbridge)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2007, 3:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-and-birds/406015/16 "2007-05-30T15:14:58Z")
I had a few close calls with ostrich, and happily all my ostrich clients have since given up/gone bankrupt. The chain link fencing needs to be high, but it typically ends about three feet above ground level. That way, if things get dicey you can run/drop/roll out. I did just that a few times. Once the birds are hooded, they are docile. Up to that point, a kick can disembowel a man. Cite: [http://www.torontozoo.com/animals/details.asp?AnimalId=619](http://www.torontozoo.com/animals/details.asp?AnimalId=619) > [@](#): > > Powerful legs enable them to escape from their predators with 2.2 -2.8 m. strides at speed of 80 kph . Their feet are powerful and are often used as weapons, particularly by the male who guards the nest. The kick, which has been known to disembowel a lion, is more potent than a kick from a horse. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2007, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cats-and-birds/406015/17 "2007-05-30T16:13:02Z")
Yeah, that’s pretty much what they told Mike.