HELP PLEASE!!!! T. Stirmi escaped

tarantulas118

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I have tarantulas in all phases of growth. From slings to full blown adults, all in the same room. Sure if you have a couple adults, fine. Any juveniles, slings, small arnboreals and you are asking for a catastrophe. Again, if you can have them in a room where the cat(s) CANNOT get in, yes. If they can, they will and again, it is when and not if.
I like cats, have owned some great ones, they are too much risk with small exotics. House Rabbits fill the same niche and are far less destructive.

I am not trying to scare anyone, you are a noob. When you have been on here multiple years and read all the "Help my cat knocked over my cage" reports you'll understand my position better.
I am deciding to keep the cat outside ( he likes it better there anyways ) we can’t get house rabbits my brothers is allergic. But yeah I’ll just keep him outside
 

darkness975

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Surprised the cat didn't get a face full of those setae.

Outside cats are horribly destructive to native species.
 
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ladyratri

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Sure if you have a couple adults, fine. Any juveniles, slings, small arnboreals and you are asking for a catastrophe. Again, if you can have them in a room where the cat(s) CANNOT get in, yes. If they can, they will and again, it is when and not if.
Depends on the cat to some extent as well. If I didn't have a T room, I'd keep my sling enclosures in a ventilated larger terrarium or cabinet/bookshelf with glass doors. Essentially create them a mini T room of their own that is enclosed but with reasonable air exchange. We have glass front shelves for other stuff, as do friends of ours, and none of the cats have ever managed to get into them.

For maintenance, either take the T(s) to a closed room or lock the cat(s) in one for the duration.

You can create separation without a dedicated room as long as you are vigilant about it. And even with a separate room, you have to be vigilant about not leaving the door ajar/unlatched, cats sneaking in and hiding under furniture etc.

Many setups could work as long as you are consistently paying attention.

Make anything cat-proof, and they'll build a better cat 🤣
 

Dry Desert

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Depends on the cat to some extent as well. If I didn't have a T room, I'd keep my sling enclosures in a ventilated larger terrarium or cabinet/bookshelf with glass doors. Essentially create them a mini T room of their own that is enclosed but with reasonable air exchange. We have glass front shelves for other stuff, as do friends of ours, and none of the cats have ever managed to get into them.

For maintenance, either take the T(s) to a closed room or lock the cat(s) in one for the duration.

You can create separation without a dedicated room as long as you are vigilant about it. And even with a separate room, you have to be vigilant about not leaving the door ajar/unlatched, cats sneaking in and hiding under furniture etc.

Many setups could work as long as you are consistently paying attention.

Make anything cat-proof, and they'll build a better cat 🤣
Re design your house for the sake of a cat - why ??
I personally hate the damn things, IMO they serve no purpose at all.
Other people's cats crap in my garden, most owners throw them out at night so they can spend all night desimating the native wildlife for the fun of it, then spend all day sleeping.
A nice dog is a far better option.
They provide unconditional love, devotion, and can't wait for the next walk, when they'll enjoy more time with you.

And they aren't at all interested in trying to knock T,s containers on the floor.

Cats are akin to crickets.
Not worth the hassle when there are far better options available.
 

ladyratri

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Re design your house for the sake of a cat - why ??
Nothing I suggested involves redesigning your house. In fact, the point was that you can keep smaller T enclosures safe from cats WITHOUT doing so, with some relatively inexpensive furniture.

My cats are strictly indoor only, seek me out to spend time in my lap, love being brushed and petted, and generally bring my whole family happiness. They have also shown little to no interest in my T's to date (but are still only allowed in that room with adult supervision).

I don't like dogs much -- proper dog care requires a much bigger time investment than proper cat care -- but I acknowledge that different pets are better suited for different people/families.

Then again, I keep crickets as my feeders, so at least I'm consistent? 🤷 The cricket bin is great kitty TV though 🤣
 

Cmac2111

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Cats and T's can be in the same room when owners are vigilant and responsible, my cats sleep/play in my bedroom which has loads of T's in there and I have zero issues because I know what they are doing... when I'm out/away from the room they are not allowed in simple as that, and if my cats ever displayed behavior like the OP's feline when in the presence of the T's, I would adjust things to make sure neither could access one another from then on (by relocating the T's or removing the cats from the room to sleep/play elsewhere, no signs of this behavior so far thankfully). Leaving a cat unsupervised around one's T's/ leaving the room you keep them open to cats when you aren't there is irresponsible IMO... I wouldn't allow it for cats, dogs or anything else when I'm not present. Cats themselves aren't the issue in this situation, lackadaisical owners are.
Outside cats are horribly destructive to native species.
This is, unfortunately, very true...
most owners throw them out at night so they can spend all night desimating the native wildlife for the fun of it,
...because of this.
And they aren't at all interested in trying to knock T,s containers on the floor
Perhaps not but my dog is relatively big, very high energy and could easily knock a container over by accident (say, if he were to crash into one of the units they're housed in)... I wouldn't trust him around my T's unsupervised any more than I would my cats, in fact I'd trust him less hence why my cats get in my bedroom when I'm present and he doesn't. All about the individual animal.
I personally hate the damn things, IMO they serve no purpose at all.
Edit: I disagree heavily with this, but I respect your opinion. Cats aren't for everybody, and they most certainly can be a menace when in the possession of ignorant owners.
 
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Zoopy

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I am not trying to scare anyone, you are a noob. When you have been on here multiple years and read all the "Help my cat knocked over my cage" reports you'll understand my position better.
I am about 99.99% certain that my opinion in this regard will not change in 10 years, nor in 50 years. Thousands, if not millions of people keep tarantulas as pets and not everyone is very careful or equally responsible. It is only logical that we are going to see reports of cats and tarantulas having problems. We also see lots of reports of people being bitten by their T's, but I doubt anyone here will tell newcomers that it's a question of when, not if they will be bitten.

Several things have to go wrong before you have problems with cats and tarantulas. If your cats getting into the room is a guarantee that they're going to cause problems with your tarantulas, it's because your tarantula enclosures/containers are in a spot accessible to the cat, which they shouldn't be. OP's cat got to their tarantula because of several husbandry mistakes that not even a new keeper should make.

Proper precautions can very easily avoid disaster, even if the cat gets access to the T room. Nothing is ever 100% certain, but it's definitely not this doom and gloom that you're presenting. I'd rather educate people on keeping their exotic pets in cat inaccessible spots like bookshelves or cupboards that the cats can't get to.

Also, I'm not new to keeping exotic pets, just new to Ts. I've kept cats and a variety of exotic pets in my life. Even when I kept pet rats I didn't have any issues, because common sense prevailed. Responsible people who take proper precautions are unlikely to have problems. Irresponsible people will have problems, cats or no cats.

I personally hate the damn things, IMO they serve no purpose at all.
I'm always a bit confused when people start talking about the usefulness or purpose of their pets, more so on a forum for arachnids that are often affectionately called pet rocks. If I had to get pets only because of their usefulness or purpose, I definitely wouldn't have spiders. ;)
 
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moricollins

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When you have been on here multiple years and read all the "Help my cat knocked over my cage" reports you'll understand my position better.
So so so so so many of these...



A proper enclosure will be too heavy for a cat to push over
For an adult terrestrial tarantula perhaps. But, only perhaps. I've known cats that would climb up onto shelves and knock over 2 gallon potted plants which would weigh as much as most tarantula enclosures would.
If you do all your feeding or maintenance with the door closed and the cats not in the room, the chances are slim of them every directly interacting
Agreed. If the cat can't get into where the tarantulas are then they can't harm the Tarantula which was what @Matt Man said...
 

Matt Man

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Surprised the cat didn't get a face full of those setae.

Outside cats are horribly destructive to native species.
this, and each other, with feline leukemia and FIV spread through their interactions.
Lost my favorite cat to Leukemia many, many years ago because she was a brawler


many valid points here, and yes it can be done, but one must remain vigilant, and sadly most folks can't maintain that 24/7. It also requires more work and more space (like placing sling containers inside bigger tanks) which too can be done. My problem is I have 100% faith in a cat's nature and about 10% faith in human nature
 
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campj

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I'm always a bit confused when people start talking about the usefulness or purpose of their pets, more so on a forum for arachnids that are often affectionately called pet rocks. If I had to get pets only because of their usefulness or purpose, I definitely wouldn't have spiders. ;)
OK then we go the German route and say that we have "specimens". I don't pet my bugs.

Also, it looks like OP's spider died. Was it the cat that did it??? https://arachnoboards.com/threads/could-you-use-a-used-enclosure-for-another-t.359181/
 

Mountaindani

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Surprised the cat didn't get a face full of those setae.

Outside cats are horribly destructive to native species.
Any cat that is allowed outdoors is just an invasive species. Some towns here have bylaws that it's illegal to let your cats out. Can't say I disagree. I have 2 who act like prisoners. But it's my responsibility to keep them safe. As well as all my other pets. Sorry for the rant.
 

Dry Desert

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Any cat that is allowed outdoors is just an invasive species. Some towns here have bylaws that it's illegal to let your cats out. Can't say I disagree. I have 2 who act like prisoners. But it's my responsibility to keep them safe. As well as all my other pets. Sorry for the rant.
Quite right to.
No other pet is allowed to roam around freely as cats do, if it were a dog it would be caught and taken to the pound, or whatever you call it.
Same would apply to any other pet roaming around freely.
 

tarantulas118

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OK then we go the German route and say that we have "specimens". I don't pet my bugs.

Also, it looks like OP's spider died. Was it the cat that did it??? https://arachnoboards.com/threads/could-you-use-a-used-enclosure-for-another-t.359181/
Yup
 

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Dry Desert

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This is the same myopic point of view spider haters have. Replace the word cats with tarantulas and how do you feel now?
Regarding my " myopic " point of view concerning cats, that's my view, hate the useless things, so do my three dogs !!
 

tarantulas118

Arachnoknight
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I personally hate the damn things, IMO they serve no purpose at all.
where we live they serve a lot of purpose, they chase down the mice that eat almost everything we worked for, I’ve never seen a Dog catch a mouse let alone 20
A nice dog is a far better option.
They provide unconditional love, devotion, and can't wait for the next walk, when they'll enjoy more time with you.
You kmow what else they provide…. Crap and piss all over your darn house, at least you don’t have to take your cat out 10 times a day.
you think cats are so bad, yeah they kill Tarantulas and other small animals if they can get to them but a cat you can stop them once they’ve started. You don’t know how many chickens we lost due to dogs, our dogs , stray dogs , neighbors dogs , all sorts of dogs And once they’ve started you can’t just chase after them and stop them, they have a thirst for murder. I’ve had nothing but bad experiences with dogs , our neighbors dog chased down and killed my cat earlier this year we found him with his brain leaking out of his head. And don’t tell me we’ve just had a bad one, we’ve had at least 6 of all kinds, and each one was bad, the only “good” dog we’ve had is the only dog we have now and even then with everything he’s done it’s hard to believe we still have him. And trust me we can all agree that cats are cleaner.
 
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