Any tips for keeping cats away from my tarantula shelf?

[drusila]

I'm attaching photos but basically one of my cats loves climbing on anything and everything & I recently upgraded my tarantula shelf to a much nicer one, but the extra space (which is nice because I don't have to move the enclosures to open them) allows room for my silly boy to climb in there and it's driving me crazy! I don't want to change the setup much because I love it but how can I alter this or do anything to stop him from going on the shelf? I'm so worried he will knock one of the smaller enclosures off or that the movement is scaring / disturbing the spiders. Any advice is appreciated. My mom suggested putting some moth balls nearby but I'm worried that's not safe for the spiders. I considered a mesh screen or something? Idk. Any solution I can think of ruins the aesthetic. I've already moved the shelf to another area which may discourage it, but we'll see. Let me know what y'all think, I can't put them in a room away from the cats bc I live in a studio apartment that's completely open except for the bathroom.

 

[Mustafa67]

I'm attaching photos but basically one of my cats loves climbing on anything and everything & I recently upgraded my tarantula shelf to a much nicer one, but the extra space (which is nice because I don't have to move the enclosures to open them) allows room for my silly boy to climb in there and it's driving me crazy! I don't want to change the setup much because I love it but how can I alter this or do anything to stop him from going on the shelf? I'm so worried he will knock one of the smaller enclosures off or that the movement is scaring / disturbing the spiders. Any advice is appreciated. My mom suggested putting some moth balls nearby but I'm worried that's not safe for the spiders. I considered a mesh screen or something? Idk. Any solution I can think of ruins the aesthetic. I've already moved the shelf to another area which may discourage it, but we'll see. Let me know what y'all think, I can't put them in a room away from the cats bc I live in a studio apartment that's completely open except for the bathroom.

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Don’t get one

I‘ve been considering an indoor cat recently but I find them impractical after keeping tarantulas. Also, I cringe when I hear people call cats human names, plus the price of vaccinations etc. Indoor cat seem to need everything (cut nails etc) compared to cats that go outside and so many breeds have health issues.

IME cats love boxes, so place boxes around in some places? Maybe buy some high toys it can climb? Are there places in your studio you can move your Ts to?

 

[kingshockey]

exchange or buy a shelf with doors as a cat owner you should've known better. anything new in a cats area must be investigated and climbed ontop of

 

[Ultum4Spiderz]

I haven’t had a cat problem since I used a tv stand for a few slings , sadly lost a fireleg 🥲because the cat jumped 6 feet up in the air . And it damaged a speaker . My shelfs are so full now a cat can’t jump on them .

 

[viper69]

Put up a fence or something

 

[fcat]

Make a decoy spider shelf and put a label on it that says "No cats allowed" and it will be drawn to the decoy shelf.

Jokes aside

If you can't hang shelves about 7ft above the ground, I like Vipers idea. You are going to need to sacrifice something to pull this off safely. Let it be aesthetics and not anyone's life. I would velcro the bottom of the enclosures to the shelf as an extra measure, but that won't keep kitty safe from urticating hairs.

If you are willing to drop a couple hundred and some time, you could affix acrylic panels so you don't obscure your visibility but would need to drill a lot of ventilation, or leave gaps between the panels. It would probably be faster and the same price to just buy a display cabinet, but you may still sacrifice ventilation. And you'd need a wall anchor to keep it from tipping since kitty will find it's way to the top, at least with its front paws if it's not good at being a cat.

 

[aprilmayjunebugs]

exchange or buy a shelf with doors as a cat owner you should've known better. anything new in a cats area must be investigated and climbed ontop of

I only clicked on this to see that famous pic of your cat on top of your tarantula, lol.

Two things cats hate, the sticky side of tape and tin foil. It's unsightly, but hopefully kitty gets the picture and then you can take it off.

 

[Glorfindel]

Cats Dislike Water.
Squirt Gun Spray every time the Cats Misbehave.
Or
Get a Dog.

 

[drusila]

Don’t get one

I‘ve been considering an indoor cat recently but I find them impractical after keeping tarantulas. Also, I cringe when I hear people call cats human names, plus the price of vaccinations etc. Indoor cat seem to need everything (cut nails etc) compared to cats that go outside and so many breeds have health issues.

IME cats love boxes, so place boxes around in some places? Maybe buy some high toys it can climb? Are there places in your studio you can move your Ts to?

So I did move the shelf to another area that they don't seem to spend as much time, and arranged the furniture a bit differently. I'm hoping they won't go near it.

I haven’t had a cat problem since I used a tv stand for a few slings , sadly lost a fireleg 🥲because the cat jumped 6 feet up in the air . And it damaged a speaker . My shelfs are so full now a cat can’t jump on them .

Yeah, my last shelving unit was pretty full, and the tiers were shorter, so there wasn't any room for him to do this. I wanted to be able to open enclosures without moving them all out and disturbing the tarantulas, so I wanted this one with more space, but the space allows cats to fit...

Make a decoy spider shelf and put a label on it that says "No cats allowed" and it will be drawn to the decoy shelf.

Jokes aside

If you can't hang shelves about 7ft above the ground, I like Vipers idea. You are going to need to sacrifice something to pull this off safely. Let it be aesthetics and not anyone's life. I would velcro the bottom of the enclosures to the shelf as an extra measure, but that won't keep kitty safe from urticating hairs.

If you are willing to drop a couple hundred and some time, you could affix acrylic panels so you don't obscure your visibility but would need to drill a lot of ventilation, or leave gaps between the panels. It would probably be faster and the same price to just buy a display cabinet, but you may still sacrifice ventilation. And you'd need a wall anchor to keep it from tipping since kitty will find it's way to the top, at least with its front paws if it's not good at being a cat.

Right now I'm going to see if the shelf being in a different location reduces / eliminates this issue. In the past, the area had a bookshelf that they liked to sit on. I think they're just used to that even though it's been a while and I've got tarantula enclosures there now. It seems like they like that area? I'm thinking that in this new spot, where they don't spend much time, they might not notice or care about the shelf. I've tried to arrange everything so nothing could easily be moved or knocked off, and I'm discouraging them if they go near it by spritzing them with the water sprayer.

Hoping this will work... I love both my cats and my spiders so if this continues I may have to invest in a different kind of shelf.

Cats Dislike Water.
Squirt Gun Spray every time the Cats Misbehave.
Or
Get a Dog.

I do have a squirt bottle but the problem is, when you spritz them they tend to jump / run, so it's not a good idea to spray him when he's on my shelf. He'd probably be more likely to break something or knock over an enclosure if I did that... I've been spritzing him when he's near it on the floor though

 

[TLSizzle]

No lol
Lucky mine don't hurt anything, they just chill.

 

[freedomisle]

I'm attaching photos but basically one of my cats loves climbing on anything and everything & I recently upgraded my tarantula shelf to a much nicer one, but the extra space (which is nice because I don't have to move the enclosures to open them) allows room for my silly boy to climb in there and it's driving me crazy! I don't want to change the setup much because I love it but how can I alter this or do anything to stop him from going on the shelf? I'm so worried he will knock one of the smaller enclosures off or that the movement is scaring / disturbing the spiders. Any advice is appreciated. My mom suggested putting some moth balls nearby but I'm worried that's not safe for the spiders. I considered a mesh screen or something? Idk. Any solution I can think of ruins the aesthetic. I've already moved the shelf to another area which may discourage it, but we'll see. Let me know what y'all think, I can't put them in a room away from the cats bc I live in a studio apartment that's completely open except for the bathroom.

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I can relate, had two cats that for some reason are fascinated by my tarantulas. I don't let them in the room unless I am present as a precaution.

 

[Mustafa67]

No lol
Lucky mine don't hurt anything, they just chill.
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I love the second pic

 

[TLSizzle]

I loooove that cat!! He's my giant baby.

 

[Mustafa67]

I loooove that cat!! He's my giant baby.

He’s so funny lying there with all the enclosures beside him like that

 

[kingshockey]

So I did move the shelf to another area that they don't seem to spend as much time, and arranged the furniture a bit differently. I'm hoping they won't go near it.

not gonna work unless you do what i do with my cat lock it up into a room(keeps em all safe) while i feed and fill water dishes. or you can just happen to have a few"escaped" feeders(treats) get loose during feeding. my cat still has to make sure the ts eat their dinner though. cat also knows what petsmart bags mean crickets are in the house

 

[HOITrance]

Cucumbers. The answer is cucumbers lol. Idk why, but cats are terrified of them lol

in all seriousness a lot of good suggestions above. Either fence it off, or put things that will deter your cat from being near there

 

[drusila]

I'm attaching photos but basically one of my cats loves climbing on anything and everything & I recently upgraded my tarantula shelf to a much nicer one, but the extra space (which is nice because I don't have to move the enclosures to open them) allows room for my silly boy to climb in there and it's driving me crazy! I don't want to change the setup much because I love it but how can I alter this or do anything to stop him from going on the shelf? I'm so worried he will knock one of the smaller enclosures off or that the movement is scaring / disturbing the spiders. Any advice is appreciated. My mom suggested putting some moth balls nearby but I'm worried that's not safe for the spiders. I considered a mesh screen or something? Idk. Any solution I can think of ruins the aesthetic. I've already moved the shelf to another area which may discourage it, but we'll see. Let me know what y'all think, I can't put them in a room away from the cats bc I live in a studio apartment that's completely open except for the bathroom.

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Update: Just wanted to let y'all know I figured out a solution. I cut a piece of screen mesh (like the material used on porches) to the right size so that it can wrap around the entire front of the shelf. Then I hot-glued these strong magnets to the four corners and this allows me to attach / remove the screen covers easily (the black parts of the shelf are metal) without disturbing the spiders. This solution means I can still see the enclosures & they still get ventilation but my cats can't do anything. So far they haven't tried anything

 

[HOITrance]

That’s a damned good idea actually. Kudos!

 

[Mustafa67]

Update: Just wanted to let y'all know I figured out a solution. I cut a piece of screen mesh (like the material used on porches) to the right size so that it can wrap around the entire front of the shelf. Then I hot-glued these strong magnets to the four corners and this allows me to attach / remove the screen covers easily (the black parts of the shelf are metal) without disturbing the spiders. This solution means I can still see the enclosures & they still get ventilation but my cats can't do anything. So far they haven't tried anything

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It’s so funny you needed to do this I love your tarantula enclosures setup

 

[Kada]

Keeping large mammals that like to jump, climb,play, kill around enclosures that are easily opened, broken, cracked, or fall is basically a bad idea. Cats shouldnt be allowed near a spider shelf. Or any shelf with fragile or living things. It's easier to close a door than make an accident proof shelf setup that actually works. Vipers suggestion of a fence works, but is ugly and inconvenient, I doubt many would do this.

Many people will say they don't have problems. but it's not if, it's when. Not worth the risk. Communal tarantula setups seem more logical than cats with tarantula enclosures to be honest. It's just a bad idea. same as say reptile enclosures with top lighting. cats and electronics, especially heat ones, bad idea! Cats are killers, very active and very playful. That's very dangerous. If a person is willing to trust their most treasured China inherited by the Queen or delicate crystal figurines etc on a high shelf with their cats, then maybe you can trust your cat around a tank lol. Even then, a pet is far more responsibility than the most priceless of treasures. simply not worth it.

Like a seat belt. usually don't need it, but when things hit the fan, regret is the only thing people will be posting afterwards. easier to prevent the problem. no cats.