May cat goes indoors and outdoors (and yes, I know the dangers of letting your kitty outdoors, but we don't live in an urban area). She has a bell collar because I feel I need to do something to protect the critters, but sometimes it's annoying as hell and, to be totally honest, I don't want to go through the process of putting it on her every time she prances outside. So does it really make a difference?
old cat lady
Favorite Answer
I doubt if it does any good at all. When a cat stalks a bird they hardly move a muscle in their body except the leg muscles.
There have been several studies of cats and the killing of birds in England and have not been able to substantiate the fact that cats are responsible for that many bird deaths.
Actually birds are quite difficult to catch. Some cats may master it and it's mostly the ground dwelling rodents, snakes, etc that they are able to get.
Anonymous
Collars with bells really dont stop cats from getting birds. Cats dont move many mucles when the are after pray, and the sound of a bell will drive a cat nuts. Thats why they put bells in cat toys. Most of the time cats don't get a hold of that many birds because they fly at the first sense of movment which is often about the same time with or without a bell on a collar. Collars can also be dangerous to cats because they are naturally curious, they can get them selves caught and hung. You would be better off not putting a collar on your cat because there aren't many plus sides to using one for a cat. If your worried about the cat getting lost have the cat chipped. It is a harmless implant that may cost a little more at the begining but if the cat ever dose get lost it is more reliable than a collar. Anything can happen to the collar if they get lost and cats are hudinis at getting out of collars.
Anonymous
Not really, because the birds would not associate the sound with an approaching cat. The only way to keep him from killing wildlife is to keep it inside or build an outdoor enclosure You can try getting a doggy door that uses special collars, and only opens for the animal that is wearing the collar. This could also help keep the cat away from the outdoors.. If you do get a collar, buy a safety release collar. It's got a special snap that will release if the cat gets stuck. They come in various styles and colors, even reflective so your cat can be seen at night. They vary in price from $5-$9. But a collar will not stop a cat from preying on birds nor will it scare the birds off in time. But personally, I would not keep a cat outdoors because of all the risks such as snakes, cars, disease, dogs, other cats, poisoning, etc.
loyer
Collar Bell
Anonymous
No, it has been scientifically proven that cats learn to stalk birds without sounding the bell. They can still kill hundreds of birds even with a bell on. Cats are responsible for the death of millions of songbirds each year contributing to the decline of many bird species. They do make a "collar" scientifically proven to keep cats from catching birds...it does look a little silly though. Take a look at the website below:
http://www.catgoods.com/index.html
http://www.abcbirds.org/abcprograms/policy/cats/index.html
Also, it really does not matter if you live in an urban area or not..your cat is still exposed to all sorts of dangers being outdoors period.