Cats are natural born hunters. It’s in their nature to hunt prey and as a result they catch around 275 million creatures each year in the UK. Spring is when cats are in their element, but it’s never too soon to begin taking steps at reducing the amount of prey your carnivore injures and kills.
A common misconception
Some cat owners believe that keeping their feline full will help to curb their killing instinct. Sadly, overfeeding does not work (and is not healthy for the cat). Cats simply enjoy stalking and pouncing too much!
Here are six steps you can take in order to help stop your cat from hunting:
1. Choose a collar with a bell. The RSPB believe the use of bells can reduce birds being caught by cats by over 40%.
2. Hide food in different areas around the house so your cat has to hunt it out.
3. Laser pens are great for exercise but can also frustrate your cat. Use toys that your cat can chase and catch to give them the hunting satisfaction.
4. Don’t allow cats outside at times when birds are most active. Keep your cat inside in the early hours of the morning, until about an hour after sunrise and an hour after sunset. Baby birds are most vulnerable between the months of March and July.
5. Keep your cat indoors for an hour or so after a spell of bad weather. Animals will want to go and find food once the bad weather has passed and therefore they may be at risk.
6. The only way to completely stop your cat from hunting is to keep them indoors, but a great compromise is a cat containment system from ProtectaPet so your cat can safely enjoy outside.
ProtectaPet Cat Enclosures offers cat owners the flexibility to fit a cat proof enclosure themselves or to book an external contractor to fit the system. An enclosure is suitable where a partition in your garden is preferred for your cat to have their own space.
Enclosures are totally customisable so you can have a mesh roof to further deter your cat from hunting.
We also have wildlife chew guards running along the bottom of the enclosure to protect against wildlife damage.
Suitable for patio or turf, ProtectaPet cat enclosures are modular so that you can create the size you desire with the optional add on of gates.
To find out more about how to construct a Cat Enclosure or to enquire about professional installation, click here.