A tortoise and a cat

[Lyric Aarhaus]

Hi I have had a cat for 8 years now and before a year ago I wasn't worried about this, about a year ago Milo my cat started hunting and successfully killing rats. I am worried when I get my tortoise that Milo will try hunting them. Has anyone else been in my situation? How do I keep Milo from killing my tortoise? Any help you can offer would be nice! ?

 

[ZEROPILOT]

I keep my tortoises outdoors.
Babies included.
There are many feral cats out there. I've never had an issue with a cat harming a tortoise. They do like to get into the warm tortoise houses on cooler nights. And cats use the night houses and sandy areas as a bathroom. Tortoises eat cat poop. So that's an issue.
There are other dangers though. Many keepers report that their cat likes to sleep on top of their tortoises enclosure. That could cause the top to fall down and possibly start a fire.
Tortoises can eat cat hair and then there is the chance that a cat COULD harm a smaller tortoise.
I'd do everything I could to keep them from coming into contact with each other just to be safe. But some cars are very determined.

 

[Yvonne G]

The only cat/tortoise related thing I have experience with is the cat wanting to always get into the enclosure to lay under the light.

 

[Maggie3fan]

My cats are very well socialized...but don't ever bother my tortoises or turtles...or my 14 birds...

 

[TammyJ]

I would not let baby torts have a chance to get harassed or chewed on, played with, etc, by a cat.
My 3 cats either stare contemptuously at my adult tortoises or totally ignore them.

 

[Rnasty]

I help a couple with their two adult desert tortoises. They have 8 cats and they couldn't be bothered with the tortoises. I certainly would not allow my cats near my juveniles and might never let them around adults unsupervised. Seems like it's just easier to avoid needing to treat a tortoise for a scratched eye.

 

[Cathie G]

Hello and welcome to the forum. We use to have a cat that was really good with my Tortoise. Sapphire would come up and get warm beside the cat and snuggle. I could tell that the cat was creeped out though because you could actually see his skin crawling. I was watching to make sure nothing ever happened. But Sapphire isn't totally innocent he can become evil and attack also. I've seen that too. I don't think I would trust any animal with my tort unless I was there watching. ?

 

[Maggie3fan]

I help a couple with their two adult desert tortoises. They have 8 cats and they couldn't be bothered with the tortoises. I certainly would not allow my cats near my juveniles and might never let them around adults unsupervised. Seems like it's just easier to avoid needing to treat a tortoise for a scratched eye.

hey Fresno...my home town...

 

[Jan A]

Hi I have had a cat for 8 years now and before a year ago I wasn't worried about this, about a year ago Milo my cat started hunting and successfully killing rats. I am worried when I get my tortoise that Milo will try hunting them. Has anyone else been in my situation? How do I keep Milo from killing my tortoise? Any help you can offer would be nice! ?

If you're getting a hatchling, a cat that mouses or plays soccer (like my 4-1/2 lb. cat & still has their claws) would be very capable of tossing a hatchling several feet. From a table, oh my. So there's that

I've seen another of my cats ( now deceased) playing with a mouse for more than 10 minutes before it killed it. Jasper was the best mouser I've seen & he loved it. He was relentless once he had a target & it included vols which are much bigger than field mice. Keep that in mind about your cat if you're getting a hatchling or a juvenile.

 

[Tom]

Hi I have had a cat for 8 years now and before a year ago I wasn't worried about this, about a year ago Milo my cat started hunting and successfully killing rats. I am worried when I get my tortoise that Milo will try hunting them. Has anyone else been in my situation? How do I keep Milo from killing my tortoise? Any help you can offer would be nice! ?

Your new tortoise should be housed in a large closed chamber. The cat won't have access to it.

What species of tortoise are you getting and what size?

 

[Joshnup2]

I have a cat and a baby tortoise.i have a shelving unit from Menards that keeps his tub to high for him to jump into. My cat love to watch me give her a bath but I always keep a hand between them to make sure nothing happens. My cat drank her bath water and got sick from it so watch that. You just have to be conscious that cats are killer and tortoise are little grazers. I think mine would be ok together but I would be so upset with myself if something happens so I keep them apart. I heard somewhere that cat saliva and the bacteria in there claws are very bad for reptiles. Be careful and enjoy 2 amazing pets!!