Cat tracks! Help for a first-time farmer?

[Turner_Family_Flock]

Yesterday when we were outside checking on the chickens, my sister noticed something unusual. Outside the coop in a patch of mud (Created thanks to our chickens pecking that area clean of grass) there were little cat paw prints.

A cat had been outside of our coop the night before.

No chickens were missing, no signs of digging to get into the coop, no injuries- and for that matter, we didn't hear anything (our pitbull is VERY protective of the yard, she would've heard it first if there was a cat attacking the chickens)

What we believe happened was that a cat tried to get to the coop while the chickens were sleeping- and our predator light went off and scared it away.
Is a predator light enough to scare off cats from further attacks? We live in a city with MANY stray and/or outdoor cats (If you walk along the street you'll see between 5 and 10 outside at any given time), and one of them has clearly figured out we had poultry in our yard.

We're already concerned enough thanks to a recent hawk that came a bit too close to the yard for comfort.

We're first-time chicken farmers and our first flock is about 7 weeks old. We've had no casualties or brushes with illness or death thus far, no injuries to speak of. But we've been noticing signs of predators keeping an eye on our feathery friends, and we're not sure the motion-sensor light will be enough to scare off a hawk or a small pack of wild cats that climb through the blackberry bushes on the side of the house.


Is there any simple precautions we can take when building our new run (we plan to build a run for them within the next few days) to prevent predators from coming in for an attack? The last thing we want for our girls is for them to end up becoming a five-piece McNugget meal

 

[RiverOtter]

I wouldn't worry about cats. It likely wasn't after your birds, it was just wandering through.

I have a whole farm - I've got everything, I do this full time. I have a scad of barn cats, and the occasional stray passes through. On a rare occasion, a cat will stalk a tiny chick. Like, a brooder size chick that still has fuzz. The broody hen ,or occasionally the rooster, nails it and they never look at one again. Chickens are just too big and fiesty for mouse specialists.
Exactly once in more years than I want to count has a cat gone after anything feathered out, it was a stray that grabbed a 10 week old bantam, and dropped it when it shrieked and flapped.

In an urban/suburban area, worry about dogs and rats - both are a much bigger danger to chickens than cats. Yes, really, rats. I have cats sleep in the barn with the chickens to discourage rats - rats will chew holes in sleeping birds.

 

[MrFluffyandGirls]

I have a cat that kills all sorts of things and I have chickens, even small silkies. I have mine in a pen that has welded dog wire with galvanized hex wire around it and so far a cat has not gotten into them and I've had them for years. I've also had stray wild cats come around and I have not had a loss. I also let my chickens out to free range and my cat has not attempted to attack them ever. But she catches full grown rabbits, snakes and rats all the time.
If your enclosure is strong enough to keep dogs and raccoons out then it should be cat safe also in my opinion.

 

[Folly's place]

Motion sensor lights will be ignored by any serious predator very soon, they really don't help, unless you like the flashing light out there.
Most, but not all cats, will be interested in mice attracted to the chicken feed, and not so interested in standard sized chickens. especially when they grow up!
you do need a safe coop, and as safe a run as you can afford, for your birds, because there are so very many predators out there!
Mary