Can cats kill chickens?
Can cats kill chickens?
Now let me guess why you found yourself browsing this particular page! Are you bringing new animal friends into your home, especially chickens? Or maybe your neighborhood has a lot of these? Are you worried that one day your cat will leave a headless chicken in the yard? Well, cats kill chickens every chance they get, let’s find out!
Are you an animal lover with a home full of animals of all kinds? Do they coexist perfectly? I hope you manage well!
Can cats and chickens live together?
Yeah! Cats and chickens can live together. It is very rare for a cat to take advantage of and kill an adult chicken. Cats view chickens as difficult prey due to their beaks and claws. No cat wants a dinner that hurts.
cat nature
We all know that cats are carnivores. What is a carnivore? Explain that cats love meat! It is definitely part of their diet. One question may be on your mind right now: Can cats eat raw chicken? To answer the question, yes they can! Their gastric juices can easily process and break down raw foods.
Now what does this mean for chickens? Well, that doesn’t mean that chicken, despite being in the savory meat category and a classic cat favorite, isn’t automatically a cat’s food choice! Especially large live chickens of adult size.
cats know best
Remember that cats are hunters and predators, but they are smart and cunning. They are able to do a good job of evaluating which prey is best to eat. That is, they know that adult chickens are difficult to eat, so they are not very attracted to it. They usually choose prey smaller than themselves, such as smaller birds, rodents, etc.
Good manners and proper behavior – For cats!
They may be able to live in harmony, especially if your cat is one of the friendlier cat breeds! Or if you can train your cat to behave well around other animals. Here’s hoping the friendliest breed of cat doesn’t kill chickens. The point is that you also have to teach your cat how to behave well with other creatures.
tame and wild
Now that we know that cats and chickens can live together, we need to further assess what kind of fur we’re talking about. Remember, the cats we have been talking about in the previous paragraphs are cats that live in our own homes. They are domestic cats with which we are very familiar.
What about cats we don’t know? Those stray cats we can’t control? Well, they are the ones that could be the problem. That being said, of course not all feral cats will attack and kill chickens. It is best to be aware and treat these cats with caution.
Unlike domestic cats, feral cats live outdoors and may not have a constant source of food. So chickens are sometimes very attractive to them.
How to keep cats away from chickens
Chickens don’t hatch like adult chickens and cats want nothing to do with it. You may be interested in chicks, sometimes even roosters, they are definitely smaller than adults. These can attract cats, especially chicks. These smaller chickens are very vulnerable because they have not yet fully developed the same characteristics that adult chickens have.
Cooperate!
To get around this well, perhaps what you can do is create space for your chick to prevent your cat from being hard on the kitten. Keep them in a secure area that your cat has little access to. If a separate area isn’t entirely feasible, keep chickens in cages so they can’t be clawed open by the cat.
Your cat usually just wants to play with these chicks, but this could mean the chicks get hurt. So it’s better to be safe than sorry!
Remember that all the data presented here is just a compilation of information from the internet, be careful when using it. Always consult an expert before making a decision about the health of your pets.