Neighborhood cat stalking my ladies...should I be worried?

[brigitte_the_leghorn]

An unknown, neighborhood cat showed up in my yard today. He was clearly examining the situation. He looks well fed but I am still suspicious since I lost my dear RIR Duchess to an unknown predator [which clearly had claws, could be a racoon or opossum...] but I'm still worried. They are free run and while I am usually home and always put them away at sundown, this is the first time I've seen a cat stalking in the mid-afternoon. Should I be concerned, and what can I do to prevent besides letting my Catahoula [dog] chase him away?

 

[kesali]

Be very concerned!! If the dog doesn't convince it to stay away, you will have to use harsher methods. the cat has to go!!!!

 

[brigitte_the_leghorn]

Do you have any suggestions for methods? I don't know if the cat belongs to anyone so I don't want to cause trouble...but I'll do anything to keep my hens safe. Should I try to
bring it to the pound?
Thanks

 

[jjthink]

Usually cats do not harm full grown chickens (I said usually because there have been accounts of occasional exceptions). If you befriend the cat it's usually easy to teach them not to bother that which you want unharmed. Reward good desirable behavior and scold undesirable behavior. Every feral or other cat that has ever met my birds has fallen in love with them and would not harm them. Unlike every dog that has ever met them - grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr..........
If you bring the cat to the pound it's essentially a death sentence and it could be a cat that's very loved so I personally would not do that. Since you're usually home maybe you can keep a close eye on the situation for a time, letting your birds out when you are able to be there..
JJ

 

[brigitte_the_leghorn]

I was watering my tomatoes when it happened so I sprayed the cat with a high pressure hose. At that point he actually ran away but he wasn't afraid of my dog at all! I wouldn't want to take him to the pound but I am worried about what he will do/has done. I guess I will just put my birds away earlier if I step out at dusk or something....I'm hoping he is nothing more than a curious kitty but he looked like he had chicken dinner on his mind when he was stalking.

 

[Tenmore]

Wanna borrow my Rooster he will take care of that cat funniest thing I ever saw......cat never saw him comming and I couldnt figure out what he was doing...Bet the cat wont be back.....LOl. If it continues to be a pest try to spray it with a hose if you can get close enough..... Air soft gun shoots plastic BBs or a low powered BB gun and shoot in the butt neither of which will hurt but will scare cat away. If that dont work you might have to take it to pound good luck

 

[Hummingbird Hollow]

If the cat has a collar, attach a note (use colorful ribbon to attract attention) that says something like "By the way, your cat was stalking my chickens today. If it happens again I'll be bringing it to the Humane Society". At least that way the owners will be warned and know where to look if their cat goes missing.

 

[brigitte_the_leghorn]

Thanks for your suggestions...I really appreciate it. I will try to keep the cat away however I can and attach a note to its collar if necessary...

 

[allieloveschickens]

we have quite a few stray cats, plus my own cat- they all love to watch the chickens- but they have never attempted to attack them- the girls in fact will chase them off when the cats get too close. Usually large size fowl are just too much for a cat to attempt to take down. I think spraying it with the hose will probably be a good deterrent though!

 

[jette]

i have three stalking my girls. i want a bb gun, but what if my aim is bad. do they have something to scare a cat, that will not hurt it - even if I hit an eyeball? If so, I will buy one today! Also, will they be trained over a short time to stay away?

What about my own cat - who is just starting to stalk them?