Although I live in a distinctly urban environment, last night my cat brought to my attention the presence of two badgers in my small back garden. I was surprised. In fact I was very surprised. It is the first time that I’ve seen badgers in my garden although I routinely see foxes using a track behind my garden.
My surprise is partly due to there being no access for a badger to my garden. I have no idea how they got in because there’s a cat confinement fence around it. I’m going to check the garden today and will update the page afterwards (I am writing this at 6am in the morning in bed). UPDATE: As expected they had burrowed under the fence on the left side. This opening also explains why my cat has recently returned home via this route. This had bemused me to.
Their presence prompted me to check whether domestic cats are safe when badgers are around. Badgers are strong animals and when cornered can be aggressive and dangerous. That said, I love wildlife and I am perfectly happy to have them in my garden but I need to protect my cat.
Very low risk – Badgers are carrion eaters
My research indicates that it is unlikely, perhaps extremely unlikely, that a badger will hurt my cat. Cats rarely square up to a badger because they regard badgers as dangerous or a potential threat and avoid them. Badgers, for their part, would seem to be disinterested in attacking domestic cats.
The website badgerland.co.uk tells me that if a person sees a badger eating a domestic cat it’s almost certain to be a cat killed by some other means. Only in 2% of cases will a badger have killed the animal that it is feeding upon. In short, they eat carrion.
Escape route
Provided my cat has an escape route – which he has – then all should be well. There appears to be one caveat which is that if a person is moving to the countryside and has a young cat it might be wise to keep the cat inside between dawn and dusk if badgers come into the garden. This allows the cat to become familiar to the new environment and to learn about badgers.
Cats are able to escape if required. If there is a cat flap (cat door) to the house they can escape through it or if there is a climbing frame to climb up cats can escape that way. It would seem that the key to providing safety for your cat is to provide an escape route and let your cat use their intelligence and speed to protect themselves.
Cornered
There are instances when a badger might be dangerous to cats and dogs. This is when they are cornered and defending their cubs. But it appears to be very rare and they do not kill family pets such as cats and dogs unless under these particular circumstances.
Disagreement
I would expect some cat owners to disagree with my approach. Indeed many cat owners in America would regard my thoughts as irresponsible because they keep their cat companions inside the home at all times.
For me, it’s a balancing act between allowing my cat a chance to live a full life while taking steps to keep him safe. It will always be a compromise if you let your cat go outside. Of course, even inside the home domestic cats are not entirely safe, far from it in fact. There are many hazards inside the home including hidden chemicals in carpets and household plants to name just two.
As his guardian, I have to decide the balance of risk on behalf of my cat. I love wildlife and I believe that all animals have a right to live, which is equal to the human right to life, and it gives me pleasure to allow them to live in harmony with me and my cat.
An article I read recently in the newspaper said that one of the greatest relaxants for a person is to walk within nature for 20 to 30 minutes daily. In other words to connect with nature for half an hour a day. Doctors should prescribe it. I have always done this whenever possible and it unfailingly helps to make me feel better. We need to be part of nature and not distance ourselves from it. It takes us to our ancestral roots.
Letting badgers come into my garden and hopefully living in harmony with me and my cat should be good for us all.
P.S. I tried to film the badgers on my smartphone but it was too dark. I’ll try again if I see them again using a different camera.
Update: here is a camera trap video I made a few days ago (it is now 2nd August 2020). You can see the two badgers. My cat is also out at night. I am sure he bumps into them sometimes but keeps his distance.
Well thanks, Maureen, for telling us about your cat’s interaction with badgers. Interesting and what I would expect.
I have badgers in my garden also every night and my cat seems to tolerate them he sits and watches them only within a few feet away this has been going on for many years the also bring their family in the garden mom ,dad and two babies
Thank you, Bill, for your interesting comment. I enjoyed reading it. It’s quite a story. I completely understand why you supervise your cat outside. I think actually you have quite a nice compromise in that your cat is leash trained. This allows your cat to enjoy the outside and be mentally stimulated while being safe. Not many people actually do that because they don’t have the commitment to do it. And I agree that it can be dangerous for cats allowed outside unsupervised. The trend in America, as I understand it, is to increasingly keep cats indoors full-time.
Sadly, most of these cat owners don’t think hard enough about mentally stimulating their cat. Just keeping your cat inside the home full-time isn’t enough. It’s enough to keep them safe and to give their owners peace of mind but it is not enough in terms of creating an environmentally enriched place for a domestic cat to enjoy and where they can express their natural behaviours and desires.
I like what you’ve done. I am sorry that your experienced that horrible problem with the dog attack. You saved your cat’s life by the sound of it.
I allow my cat to go outside through the cat flap. I did try to keep him inside a garden enclosure but he escaped. I’m in the process of leash training him to do the kind of thing you do. I also have a cat stroller! Not many people have those. It does, allow me to take him further afield and be further mentally stimulated.
Thanks again for commenting.
Thank you for commenting, Carole. Personally, I completely agree with you. However, there is a current trend in countries such as America to keep cats indoors full-time. This brings peace of mind to the owner. The argument is that it is safer for the cats but, in my view, the negative aspects of keeping a cat indoors full-time outweigh the positive aspects in terms of security. So, as I said, I’m with you on this one. But the trend is against you because of increased urbanisation due to increased human population numbers.
It is completely wrong to keep a cat indoors! I have had cats all my life and they all had free rein to go out where and when they wanted through a catflap. I can sit on my patio and watch my cat running, jumping and playing on the lawn. She catches rats and mice, and enjoys her life to the full. How would you like to be kept indoors all your life? It is not natural for any healthy animal to be kept in prison.