How to keep cats away

[laylerschicks]

Catapult or Live Trap
Either would workView attachment 3379410

catapult fs...

 

[laylerschicks]

I have several different size live traps. Tsc had a 2-pack on sale for $49. I have caught
14 raccoons in 17 days (dispatched)
Possum (released)
Chickens (released)
My cat (released)
A frog (not sure HOW-he has released)

a frog

 

[laylerschicks]

An electric wire around your yard you can plug into an outside outlet would probably work. You can pick up a used fence generator off facebook cheap and get a little high tensile wire and plastic step in posts at the farm store or hardware store.

As for trapping and taking to animal control... The way it works is, you trap the cat. Then you call animal control, explaining a stray is in your yard and they will send an officer to come pick it up. Just make sure it's legal for your chickens to be free ranging where you live before they come.

My neighbors have done this to my dumb dog Baxter before (although he only kills our chickens so far). I had to leave work early, take half a day to fill out paperwork and pay a $40 fine to bail him out of doggy jail. I have the escape artist microchipped so they called me within an hour of him being collected. -.- I did NOT like them doing that as my dog would have come home on his own if they left him alone. The $40 fine and embarrassment of the police being called has HIGHLY MOTIVATED us to keep him home. My 4 year old keeps letting him out by accident tho.

With a cat, odds are that it will be put down after a few weeks at animal control if no owner shows up to claim it. Because all the shelters are flooded with feral cats and surrendered cats. They breed in the wild like crazy and it's a huge problem. So you may want to check if it's someone's beloved pet before you drop it off, as some people never bother to go to animal control or can't afford the fee to get their pet back. But animal control is also the first place many people will look if they have lost a pet. So it's really up to you.

so the problem i have is that i live in a neighborhood, and i have a small dog, along with other animals so i dont really want to put an electric fence up even though it is a good idea. and the other issue is that i know who the cat belongs too, but i know they couldnt care less about it as they dont feed it or take care of it (it has matts, and deep cuts all over it). i dont feel like i should call animal control cuz idk if we can have our chickens free range or we cant have a rooster even tho we do ... relocating might be the best way to go because i dont really want to kill it, but with relocating you have to catch it which may be a problem because there are 2 other cats, including mine, that come into our yard that i dont want to catch, along with my dog.

 

[laylerschicks]

Animal control---I'd call first, in my entire area (two whole counties that I've called, at least), they DON"T take owner turn-ins, much less strays or ferals. I think shooting it is more humane than trying to relocate it, it depends on its environment, which unfortunately includes the OP's baby chicks. It may be a tame cat, but probably won't act that way once trapped. One of the "ferals' I trapped turned out to be imprinted on humans and very tame, you'd never have known it when she was trapped.

i would but ive seen a lot about animal control taking away chickens and roosters even if you can have them and they just dont want you too, and i dont want to risk loosing my flock

 

[laylerschicks]

Can you find its owner?
I'm thing you may just have to make the run safer, so the cat can't get in.
How old are your pullets? As they get older and bigger the problem might solve itself if you can keep them safe till then.
A broody hen is very good at teaching cats a lesson...

they were running around in my backyard bc someone in my family accidentally let them out

 

[Sussex19]

they were running around in my backyard bc someone in my family accidentally let them out

If it was just an accident, maybe put an extra latch or lock on the run door?

 

[ihatedarkroast]

so the problem i have is that i live in a neighborhood, and i have a small dog, along with other animals so i dont really want to put an electric fence up even though it is a good idea. and the other issue is that i know who the cat belongs too, but i know they couldnt care less about it as they dont feed it or take care of it (it has matts, and deep cuts all over it). i dont feel like i should call animal control cuz idk if we can have our chickens free range or we cant have a rooster even tho we do ... relocating might be the best way to go because i dont really want to kill it, but with relocating you have to catch it which may be a problem because there are 2 other cats, including mine, that come into our yard that i dont want to catch, along with my dog.

In that case free ranging may not work out unless someone is home to supervise. :/ Tough situation. Have you considered a chicken tractor?

 

[laylerschicks]

If it was just an accident, maybe put an extra latch or lock on the run door?

well she meant to let the big chickens out and forgot about the younger ones, but still i dont want the cats coming in near the chickens just as a precautionary

 

[laylerschicks]

In that case free ranging may not work out unless someone is home to supervise. :/ Tough situation. Have you considered a chicken tractor?

yeah but our yard isnt very big and we already have a lot going on so we dont really want a big chicken tractor even tho its a good idea tho... we are usually at home and the chickens have never had a problem until yesterday bc the younger chicks didnt know how to get into the coop so when i got home even tho the rest of my family was home, i was the only one to go out there...ig i should tell them to pay closer attention :/

 

[laylerschicks]

Can you find its owner?
I'm thing you may just have to make the run safer, so the cat can't get in.
How old are your pullets? As they get older and bigger the problem might solve itself if you can keep them safe till then.
A broody hen is very good at teaching cats a lesson...

none of my hens have gone broody yet :I