# Cats and snakes



## currawong (Sep 6, 2008)

Hi there,

I'm new to this forum, so Hi! 

We've been thinking of getting a Children's Python for a long time now. I want to have the opportunity to hold a snake to make sure I can do it first, though  (and I will be doing this soon).

A question for you: I've recently been given the opportunity to take someone's kitten off their hands and wonder if having a cat is a good idea to have around a snake. 

Does anyone here keep cats _and_ snakes?


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## jasontini (Sep 6, 2008)

..i have 2 cats n 6 snakes...
Welcome to APS and enjoy your stay!


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## Jewly (Sep 6, 2008)

Yeah no problem at all. I have cats, birds and snakes and they all live quite happily together. The cats don't even worry too much about the birds even if they're out.


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## cockney red (Sep 6, 2008)

Jewly said:


> Yeah no problem at all. I have cats, birds and snakes and they all live quite happily together. The cats don't even worry too much about the birds even if they're out.


Thats what i like about cats, so good with other animals.


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## JoeBlakes (Sep 6, 2008)

3 cats, 6 snakes.. as snakes live in enclosures there is no problem.. Although the cats get really intrigued when the door for the cage is open or when the snakes are in there feeding tubs.. but never had any problems.. they just curious whats in there


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## Forensick (Sep 6, 2008)

i don't think thats curosity, i think thats jealousy....

my cats love getting into the enclosures.

i came home one day to find a cat in my beardie enclosure...

there was a freaked out beardie behind a rock... totally unharmed
and my cat asleep under the heat lamp, i dont think he even realised there was somethign else in there


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## pete12 (Sep 6, 2008)

yea my cat is fine with my coastal never had any dramas i think they dont hurt it because they know it belongs to a superior force than them.


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## Kathryn_ (Sep 6, 2008)

I've got two cats and a snake, I don't have the snake out or feed her with the cats around, and they've never shown any great interest in the enclosure or its contents when the door's closed. However, if the python finds it way out when you're not home and the cats are, what you might come home to doesn't bear thinking about. As long as you keep them out of one another's way and the enclosure is absolutely escape proof, you'll be fine


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## missllama (Sep 6, 2008)

i do 

the cats love the enclosures coz there warm they usually sleep all day ontop of my enclosure banks lol

they dont pay attention to the snakes really


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## Jewly (Sep 6, 2008)

My cat Elly loves to sleep on top of one of the snake enclosures too cause it's nice and warm


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## melgalea (Sep 6, 2008)

i use to once apon a time have both, but reptiles became to much of a passion for me to risk it with cats, and having to worry about them, and since i only had indoor cats i was paranoid, so i gave them to a loving home and havent looked back. 
dont get me wrong, i like cats, i just love snakes, and they are more important. my daughter has bugged me for another kitten, but it will be a cold day in hell before one steps foot in my house, ewwww @ smelly litter trays. hehe


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## Snake Catcher Victoria (Sep 6, 2008)

I;d never keep a cat but i wont begrudge some one who likes them keeping them.

A couple of things though, dont let your cat and your reptile come into too close a contact with each other and keep the cat inside at night and dont let it roam the streets unaccompanied by you.

In answer to your question



> A question for you: I've recently been given the opportunity to take someone's kitten off their hands and wonder if having a cat is a good idea to have around a snake.


 
A kitten around a young childreni is a recipe for disaster.

When you have the snake out, make sure the kitten is restrained or in another room..

jmo


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## Vincey (Sep 6, 2008)

Forensick said:


> i don't think thats curosity, i think thats jealousy....
> 
> my cats love getting into the enclosures.
> 
> ...



haha hilarious! if i were a cat i'd be jealous. free mice/rats/chooks. dont have to run around and fetch one!


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## Reptile_Boy (Sep 6, 2008)

had 10ft snake and a cat a while ago, they had a good relationship....till the snake got hungry. jokes. 

depends on how the cat is raised


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## Kyro (Sep 6, 2008)

Do none of you people that let your cats sleep on your snakes enclosures care about the stress your poor snakes are going through?


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## currawong (Sep 6, 2008)

Thanks for all your replies. I also just found this thread which doesn't sound promising. 

I think I might leave the cat until we have a snake. The snake is more important to me than the cat.

Ah, it took this thread to get that thought! 

Good question, Kyro...I'd never thought of the snake's response to the cat before.


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## Chris89 (Sep 6, 2008)

We have 10 snakes in the house (in various rooms of the house) and 2 indoor cats - The cats don't seem to be bothered at all by the snakes, they'll sometimes look in the enclosures but they don't do anything. . Also, sometimes the cats like to sleep ontop of 1 of the enclosures - This doesn't seem to bother the snake, Even if he's on his branch or whatever and the cat gets ontop of the enclosure he doesn't move just stays put.


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## funcouple (Sep 9, 2008)

no problems unless u think u can leave ur snake and cat 2 play 2gether. ive got 17 snakes and 4 cats that all live in the house. theres no problems. the cats watch the snakes, the snakes watch the cats. but ill never find out who would win.


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## gman78 (Sep 9, 2008)

My snakes love cats.... Joke


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## No-two (Sep 9, 2008)

The cats here will peer into enclosures but they know they're not allowed near them. Other then the kitten no cat here will go near a snake enclosure (that might be the fact the the herprom door is allways locked? ) The kitten is learning though.


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## Sidonia (Sep 10, 2008)

As long as you have secure enclosures so the kitten can't get in/snake can't get out and have the kitten in a separate room to the snake whenever you have it out I can't see the problem in having a kitten at all.

When I had my cat he would sit there and be curious whenever he seen my snake moving around the enclosure but was terrified to go anywhere near it (but then again I once had a shoe in the door to keep it closed and he sat there staring at it as if it were a monster about to eat him and when I picked him up and moved him closer to it to show him it was just a shoe he freaked out and ran off :lol: )


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## $NaKe PiMp (Sep 10, 2008)

adult scrubbys love cats to play with


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## TonyPeacock (Sep 11, 2008)

*Trap neuter release*

I just wrote a piece on TNR (trap, neuter, release) of cats that a few of the animal welfare groups are getting into in Australia. I put a pic on the wildlife contents on one cat for one day on the piece (from NZ, so lizards not snakes).

If you are interested www.feral.typepad.com


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## herptrader (Sep 11, 2008)

Keeping cats and snakes will inevitably end in tears and large vet bills if (/when) the cat finds the snake.

Don't do it. It will end in tears.


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## becca (Sep 11, 2008)

I have one cat and 5 snakes. As long as your cages are fully closed and the cat cant open it, and the cat isnt around you when your holding the snake because are very fast, Then you'll be fine.


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## Hooglabah (Sep 11, 2008)

almost lost the girlfriends cat the other week she figured out how to open my centralians enclosure and walk right on in fortunantly he was cold from being out and slow to react (the cats not much bigger then a dwarf rabbit) and she got out in time barley. now she leaves a big gap between her and the snake at all time even when its in it enclosure


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## becca (Sep 11, 2008)

Yeh thats why is good to have locks on your enclosure's. Coz one day you may notice a lump in your pythons belly and think " hey i diddnt feed you today" lol.


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## Jonno from ERD (Sep 11, 2008)

TonyPeacock said:


> I just wrote a piece on TNR (trap, neuter, release) of cats that a few of the animal welfare groups are getting into in Australia. I put a pic on the wildlife contents on one cat for one day on the piece (from NZ, so lizards not snakes).
> 
> If you are interested www.feral.typepad.com



Why not trap and euthanise? Death isn't cruel, but pain is. There are several stress-free, painless, affordable methods of effectively euthanising a cat. 

What's the point of neutering and releasing?


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## Jonno from ERD (Sep 11, 2008)

Sorry, I just read your piece and realised you were against it, not for it  Sorry about that.


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## hallie (Sep 11, 2008)

Got 2 cats and 3 snakes, my cats dont even notice they are there...


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## Mangy_Wombat (Sep 11, 2008)

Jonno from ERD said:


> There are several stress-free, painless, affordable methods of effectively euthanising a cat. QUOTE]
> 
> It's called a head shot
> 
> ...


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## TonyPeacock (Sep 11, 2008)

*Tnr*



Jonno from ERD said:


> Why not trap and euthanise? isn't cruel, but pain is. There are several stress-free, painless, affordable methods of effectively euthanising a cat.
> 
> What's the point of neutering and releasing?


 
It's the in-thing in the States. Some welfare organisations are interested here, but I don't see any advantages at all. Just trying to get them to think hard before jumping into it.


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## redbellybite (Sep 12, 2008)

herptrader said:


> Keeping cats and snakes will inevitably end in tears and large vet bills if (/when) the cat finds the snake.
> 
> Don't do it. It will end in tears.


dissagree....commonsense tells you not to mix both ....so as alot have said snakes out ,cats away..you guys are also forgetting DOGS can and do damage to snakes as well its so bloody one eyed on here!.alot get on their high horse about cats not because of any other reason but they have a personal dislike to them :evil:.I HAVE SEEN THE DAMAGE DOGS HAVE DONE TO SNAKES AND ITS NOT PRETTY! all animals that you have in the home can impose on each other if not looked after correctly .........I find the biggest offending animal to our snakes is THE HUMAN one !


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## jasontini (Sep 12, 2008)

..totally agreed..


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## TonyPeacock (Sep 12, 2008)

*Dog damage*



redbellybite said:


> dissagree....commonsense tells you not to mix both ....so as alot have said snakes out ,cats away..you guys are also forgetting DOGS can and do damage to snakes as well its so bloody one eyed on here!.alot get on their high horse about cats not because of any other reason but they have a personal dislike to them :evil:.I HAVE SEEN THE DAMAGE DOGS HAVE DONE TO SNAKES AND ITS NOT PRETTY! all animals that you have in the home can impose on each other if not looked after correctly .........I find the biggest offending animal to our snakes is THE HUMAN one !


 

We bought a small property outside Canberra and the previous owners advised us to own fox terriers or Jack Russells to "keep the snakes down". 

Once we owned the place, we realised they had a grave yard for dogs on the hill, with at least seven graves (I wonder how many snakes that added up to?)

We couldn't believe the stupidity of having dogs that would go after snakes that would otherwise have just taken off without anyone knowing they were even there. These people had children too - it seemed to us that kids would try and save a pet dog in a fight with a snake and could easily end in disaster.


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## xycom (Sep 15, 2008)

ssssnakeman said:


> A couple of things though, dont let your cat and your reptile come into too close a contact with each other and keep the cat inside at night and dont let it roam the streets unaccompanied by you.


 
Keeping your cat inside at night doesn't save the local snakes and lizards which are out during the day. I usually get a few blue tongues come into care after a cat has played with them. Many of them die or get euthanized. 
There's an old lady who is a repeat offender, she rings me every summer with injured animals (mainly blue tongues) her cats have brought home. It's frustrating, I can't get angry and yell at her otherwise she won't ring anymore but it happens every year.


Per


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## britt (Sep 16, 2008)

the day i brought my 4th snake i accidnetaly left the cage door open and my cat was walking around. My snake didnt even try to strike at her or nothing.


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## shadoe (Sep 16, 2008)

i lost a cat to a massive python (no idea what species) under our house... i guess it wouldnt matter while the snakes are small!


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## No-two (Sep 16, 2008)

Introduce the cat to the snake while the cat is very young, teach it to fear snakes, or coincide with them, whatever floats your boat. I have a 4 month old kitten at the moment and, personally, I prefer to teach her to fear the snakes so she'll stay away from them completely, not only for the snakes' safety but for her own safety as well. There are plenty of snakes here that would munch on her with ease if any of them ever escaped and got in contact with her.


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## Sidonia (Sep 16, 2008)

How exactly do you teach it to fear a snake? :?


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## Australis (Sep 16, 2008)

start with burtons.


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## Snake Catcher Victoria (Sep 16, 2008)

> How exactly do you teach it to fear a snake? :?


Electricity is a good teacher..But seriously, just dont let them come into contact with the native animals.
The ball is in your court and the responsibility lies fully with you, the cat owner.


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