Barn cat? Thoughts, suggestion and ideas

[SummerTheAnimalGirl]

Hi all!

So, we live in the country in Maine and have tons of deer ticks, 50% of them carrying Lyme’s disease. My poor dog already ended up in the ER, and now she will permanently have Lyme’s, because she was bit by a deer tick. We have to be super careful, stay away from long grass and leaf piles, ETC.

Mice are the 1# carrier of Lyme’s, and they transmit it to deer ticks. We have a lot of field mice.

SO, some family members are hoping to get a barn cat, to hopefully help eliminate the mice….:but I’m not sure I am too keen on the idea. I was hoping to get some thoughts and suggestions from you all!

What has been you experience? What are your thoughts on the subject? Will they go after chickens? Anything particular we should know?

Post any ideas or thoughts on the subject.

Thanks I’m advance!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Here in the middle of Wisconsin we seem to be lyme and tick disease central. I treat my dogs multiple times each year. It's just a part of life now. As long as they are caught early and treated the only long term affects I've seen is some arthritis in some of them, but not all of them.

I find anaplasmosis worse than lymes. I too read about the relationship between ticks and mice. We added 5 cats that come from hunting lines. They have cut back the incidents of tick disease in my dogs. The 100 plus chickens running amok for the past 5 years did nothing. 5 cats in 2 years has definitely changed things.

My cats occasionally chase a chicken for fun, but they haven't harmed any. They do kill a lot of wild birds. Both good and bad ones. I definitely think they are worth all the irritating behaviors that come with cats like swatting at me because I can't get their canned food out fast enough for them.

We feed ours well, and provide heated houses in the winter. They are spayed and neutered and vaccinated. Healthy cats hunt better in my opinion. They have saved me money as the antibiotics can get expensive. I have one dog that just finished a second round as the first didn't clear it and she started limping about a week after finishing the month of antibiotics. Hopefully this time we are good.

 

[the_peanut_coop]

I don't have a barn, I live in the suburbs. However, before rescuing our cat we frequently saw and heard mice in our garage and even in our walls.
My cat is a Bombay and she is spayed and microchipped. Yearly vet visits.
We haven't seen a mouse since she came four years ago.
She also will hunt/kill/eat grasshoppers, but she doesn't hunt birds since we got her a bell. She doesn't touch the chickens, (Which are free ranged) in fact I think she's afraid of them and there are several occasions where I saw my chickens running after her.
I would say getting a cat or two is very worth it if you want to eliminate rats and mice.

 

[SummerTheAnimalGirl]

Here in the middle of Wisconsin we seem to be lyme and tick disease central. I treat my dogs multiple times each year. It's just a part of life now. As long as they are caught early and treated the only long term affects I've seen is some arthritis in some of them, but not all of them.

I find anaplasmosis worse than lymes. I too read about the relationship between ticks and mice. We added 5 cats that come from hunting lines. They have cut back the incidents of tick disease in my dogs. The 100 plus chickens running amok for the past 5 years did nothing. 5 cats in 2 years has definitely changed things.

My cats occasionally chase a chicken for fun, but they haven't harmed any. They do kill a lot of wild birds. Both good and bad ones. I definitely think they are worth all the irritating behaviors that come with cats like swatting at me because I can't get their canned food out fast enough for them.

We feed ours well, and provide heated houses in the winter. They are spayed and neutered and vaccinated. Healthy cats hunt better in my opinion. They have saved me money as the antibiotics can get expensive. I have one dog that just finished a second round as the first didn't clear it and she started limping about a week after finishing the month of antibiotics. Hopefully this time we are good.

Thank you very much for your reply! I al sorry to hear about your dogs. Tho, it is wonderful to hear that the long term affects aren’t so bad!

Ugh, I hate ticks! That is actually why we got chickens in the first place- to eat the ticks- but lost too many too quickly to predators. I am considering Guinea fowl, but I don’t know yet.

I am glad to hear the cats made a difference! That is super intriguing. I hear ya about the birds tho….that’s my 1# reason for not getting a cat.

How much do you feed them? And what breeds?

 

[SummerTheAnimalGirl]

I don't have a barn, I live in the suburbs. However, before rescuing our cat we frequently saw and heard mice in our garage and even in our walls.
My cat is a Bombay and she is spayed and microchipped. Yearly vet visits.
We haven't seen a mouse since she came four years ago.
She also will hunt/kill/eat grasshoppers, but she doesn't hunt birds since we got her a bell. She doesn't touch the chickens, (Which are free ranged) in fact I think she's afraid of them and there are several occasions where I saw my chickens running after her.
I would say getting a cat or two is very worth it if you want to eliminate rats and mice.

Ooh, a bell is a really good idea! Thank you!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Thank you very much for your reply! I al sorry to hear about your dogs. Tho, it is wonderful to hear that the long term affects aren’t so bad!

Ugh, I hate ticks! That is actually why we got chickens in the first place- to eat the ticks- but lost too many too quickly to predators. I am considering Guinea fowl, but I don’t know yet.

I am glad to hear the cats made a difference! That is super intriguing. I hear ya about the birds tho….that’s my 1# reason for not getting a cat.

How much do you feed them? And what breeds?

They are just a shorthaired domestic mix breed from a relative. 4 black and whites and a gray. The mom cat is a good mouser, and these definitely have the killer instinct and hunt daily. I'm debating adding 2 more this year.

I free feed dry, and the 5 split 2 cans of food, but now they are all mature and I've been cutting back on the canned. I like canned because it brings them around daily so I can get a good look at them. Will probably go down to 1 can during summer.

I worm them a few times a year as those mice can give cats worms. I also use a flea and tick product during the warmer months if I think they need it.

Never used to be lymes around here, but all the dairy farms have gone out of business and all the cats they used to keep are gone, so I think we got a big surge in the mouse population. Fox, and hawks are getting more frequent which helps with mice, but they can't hunt right around the farm itself so the cats handle that.

 

[MountainWoman73]

I always have at least one indoor/outdoor cat around. Mine is not to be trusted around baby chicks. He hasn't gotten one before, but he's been caught looking at them with intent. He has also been known to chase the big chickens for fun just to watch them squawk. But they also chase him back.

 

[Dlcna30]

My cats stay clear of the chickens as they have been pecked before and they leave the chicks alone because a momma hen is vicious to a predator she deems a threat to her chicks

 

[lomine]

I can't speak to the ticks/lyme problem, but I do have barn cats. They were both from a semi-feral colony nearby. One was discovered with a litter in my storm drain and the other had a litter in my neighbors horse shed. I took them in and got their kittens adopted out and had them spayed through a local TNR program. They've stuck around the last couple years and keep my mouse population down. They have gotten a duckling that was left alone by a not-so-great broody but so far they haven't bothered the chickens, even the bantams. Right now I have a broody bantam with two chicks and the cats haven't bothered them at all.

When looking for barn cats, check your local rescues and humane society. My humane society offers barn cats for free. Thet are fully vaxed and fixed. Some of the rescues in my area also offer free or very, very cheap barn cats. If you buy kittens from someone local, please PLEASE get them fixed. One female cat can have 100 kittens in her life.

 

[SummerTheAnimalGirl]

I can't speak to the ticks/lyme problem, but I do have barn cats. They were both from a semi-feral colony nearby. One was discovered with a litter in my storm drain and the other had a litter in my neighbors horse shed. I took them in and got their kittens adopted out and had them spayed through a local TNR program. They've stuck around the last couple years and keep my mouse population down. They have gotten a duckling that was left alone by a not-so-great broody but so far they haven't bothered the chickens, even the bantams. Right now I have a broody bantam with two chicks and the cats haven't bothered them at all.

When looking for barn cats, check your local rescues and humane society. My humane society offers barn cats for free. Thet are fully vaxed and fixed. Some of the rescues in my area also offer free or very, very cheap barn cats. If you buy kittens from someone local, please PLEASE get them fixed. One female cat can have 100 kittens in her life.

Thank you so much for the info! It was very helpful.

And yes, I will for sure get them fixed.