[Selkie]

we've three cats and two hens and i've just noticed yesterday that the youngest cat (pearl, my sweetheart) keeps going into the hens' run and weeing! :shock:

she finds the hens fascinating to watch and doesn't bother them but it can't be a good thing for her to use their run as a toilet, can it?

it's funny that the hens aren't bothered by her (she's only a kitten so i guess they know she isn't really a threat) - they have pecked one of the other cats when he got too close (and it worked, he doesn't seem so interested since that happened)

i know it's an unusual question but does anyone have any advice?

[agapanthus]

I've got 6 six cats and in my opinion the choox always win!! Not sure about the pee thought, but if you compost their shavings/straw..whatever you use, I'm sure it would be ok.

[Selkie]

their run is just on grass in the garden, along with bare earth - which is where i've caught pearl in the act.

[muntjac]

so long as the cat hasnt got worms or craps then dont panic  

[Selkie]

she's been wormed and so far i've only seen her wee in there; i don't know why she's [/B]that keen on the hens that she has to go in and join them.

[littlefeat]

we've three cats and two hens and i've just noticed yesterday that the youngest cat (pearl, my sweetheart) keeps going into the hens' run and weeing! :shock:

she finds the hens fascinating to watch and doesn't bother them but it can't be a good thing for her to use their run as a toilet, can it?

it's funny that the hens aren't bothered by her (she's only a kitten so i guess they know she isn't really a threat) - they have pecked one of the other cats when he got too close (and it worked, he doesn't seem so interested since that happened)

i know it's an unusual question but does anyone have any advice?

i have four cats, and mine have done this a couple of times, i kept a small cup of water to hand and when they went into the coupe or run, i splashed them, they have not done it since
hope this helps

littlfeat

[Selkie]

i will give that a go, thanks!

toby (the one who got pecked on the nose) has learnt to look through the fence rather than go in with them so hopefully pearl will learn this too...

we've seen all three of our cats go into the henhouse and fall asleep --it doesn't help that the hens are moulting and there are feathers all over the place -- it must be very comfortable!

[Foxy]

How about some cat deterent? You can buy sterilised lion poo, also a  good fox deterent?

[Zoidberg]

I wouldn't be that worried about a bit of wee, as long as it's not poo then I don't think much would be able to be transmitted (assuming there IS anything that can be transmitted from cats to chooks, and nothing springs to mind that can - I'm no expert though).
I would guess your cat is being a bit territorial and is trying to reclaim that part of the yard from the chooks  
Most cats peg out little bits of territory in the house/garden without giving us any hints as to whose is what!
If that is the youngest cat, she (?) may have the smallest portion of territory of all your cats (and/or maybe lost some recently to one of the others), and so she is going to the next down in the pecking order (in her eyes) - the chooks! - to try and get some of THEIR territory.
If you spend a lot of time with the chooks maybe she is also a little bit jealous of them ?

[Selkie]

If that is the youngest cat, she (?) may have the smallest portion of territory of all your cats (and/or maybe lost some recently to one of the others), and so she is going to the next down in the pecking order (in her eyes) - the chooks! - to try and get some of THEIR territory.
If you spend a lot of time with the chooks maybe she is also a little bit jealous of them ?

thanks for that Zoidberg, i think you might be right. she is the youngest of our cats (only approx 6 months old - aw!) and does share the garden with our two (neutered) tomcats.

i hadn't seen it that way, that she might be trying to claim her own little part of the garden but you could very well be right.

she could also be a little bit jealous, she does tend to jump in more when i'm in there with them, and now you've got me thinking she does kind of do ''look at me'' stuff when i'm there ... clawing on their logpile, going into the henhouse etc.

hmmm

[Zoidberg]

Ahh yes sounds like she's maybe feeling a bit left out ...... we once had a problem with one of our cats wee'ing in inappropriate places IN the house (not the hen house, our house  :oops:  ) so I did a bit of research on cat behaviour.
They can be very subtle on the outside but it's amazing what's apparently going on in those heads!