Widget won't stay off the cat tree - HELP PLEASE!

[Kiwidget]

Okay, Widget WILL NOT stay off the cat tree, or my cats for that matter. He likes to crawl all over them and preen their fur. I have given him other stuff to preen, and he just loves the cats. It makes me incredibly nervous. One thing that drives me absolutely insane and prevents me from leaving him unattended is the fact that he KEEPS FLYING ON THE CAT TREE... it's almost like it's some sort of game for him. I try to keep him off of it, he flies back on it. I've tried putting him in his cage immediately when he lands on the cat tree. I let him out, he's fine for a minute or two, and then he flies on it again. I'm worried that the cats are going to stop being apathetic about him eventually and start to become a little too curious.

What do I do? I can't figure out a solution and I'm not getting rid of the cat tree. My cats love it and it wouldn't be fair to them just because my bird wants to act like a jerk.

I'm at my wit's end here and any advice would be appreciated.

 

[QuackQuack]

Can you change the room that the cat tree is in or put it far enough away that a wing clip will keep him from flying on it?

 

[Kiwidget]

It's in the living room, and it's been rearranged twice. He just loves the damn thing, I don't understand it. He has his own playgym as well with all kinds of toys and treats on it, which he likes, but he still flies onto the cat tree. Often, he flies onto my cat's back and crawls all over her. So far she's been pretty good about it, she mews to get my attention instead of biting at him. It gets so difficult because the cat tree is really tall and I can't reach the top. When he flies up there, I have to shake the cat tree to get him to fly off of it, but I can't do that when there's a cat on it.

I really don't want to clip his wings BECAUSE of the cats. I want him to be able to fly away from them just in case. They've never bothered him before, but the thought of him having difficulty flying makes me really nervous. Maybe I should clip him anyway? I don't know.

 

[happycat]

Put the cat tree out of his sight maybe?

Or put HIM somewhere else, OR when hes out put the cats in another room

 

[Kiwidget]

I'm really hoping to stumble upon some sort of training method to teach him that it isn't okay to go on the cat tree, and it's not a game like he seems to think it is. It's like his version of playing chase with me, and it's only fun for him.

He spends the majority of his day out of his cage, so locking the cats up is not an option for me. I could try putting the cat tree in another room I suppose, maybe they would be okay with it. I don't want to make my cats unhappy just because my bird is a dip**** with no sense of self preservation. Okay, I'm just kidding, I love my bird............... most of the time. lol

 

[Kiwidget]

Okay... experiment. I put the cat tree in the guest room and moved Widget's playgym to where the cat tree used to be. I will report back with my findings!

 

[MollyGreenCheeks]

Recommend getting rid of the cats...Did I say that out loud? Sorry, had too!

 

[DannyA93]

Recommend getting rid of the cats...Did I say that out loud? Sorry, had too!

HAHA! nice

 

[Rio Mom]

I close my cats into another room anytime a bird is out.

 

[Sulphiria]

Why not get a small cat tree you can put by his playgym for him?

 

[Amber]

I had a similar thing with Alex. He grew up visiting my mothers with me, where my very laid back old cat lives, the only other animal I trust with Alex (In actual fact the cat is terrified of parrot bites after our friends hyacinth got him one, and he has been raised around budgies, cockatiels etc his whole life. Hard to explain, but he is harmless. Our other cat we used to have though, ohhhh boy, I loved him, but would not have trusted him!) and he somehow got it into his feathered little head that ALL cats are ok. This would have been ok if my housemate did not have two cat, one who was ok around alex in the cage, but the other who was a real hunter. Would not trust either. Although they were kept separate when Alex was out (closed doors, etc) Alex would try to get to them to play.

Only thing I can recommend is that if you are not 110% about your cats and the bird, that they need to be separate when he is out. That might mean moving the cage, letting the bird out in one room an the cats in another, etc.

You're wise not to trust them completely. Too many people think their animals are ok in a situation when they are not (I see SO MANY dog owners with overexcitable, but very sweet, dogs that think 'she will be ok' in a situation or off lead or something and have their dog nip or bite someone out of excitement. Same with some cat owners and their birds. We all see in our pets what we went them to be, and sometimes its hard to see beyond that and to actually judge them and what they may do)