my cat killed my gerbil.......

when my bf came home last time, the top of the cage was flipped and zoey ran like the dickens with my gerbil in her mouth, when he got her out of zoey's mouth she was still alive but barley. he let her lay for a few to see if she would come to it but then when he picked her up for a heart beat, it stopped and blood came out of her nose. my poor little gerbil....
now her mate is sad and confused on top of it. I wish gerbils got fixed, not I have a male & female in seperate cages that are lonely from losing there mates. the boy lost his only a couple months ago. on top of it zoey is scared of the bf now cuz he was so mad, he squirrted her a bunch and yelled at her while holding her up in the air (which she doesn't like him holding her to begin with). I don't feel like i should be mad at her...she's a cat...
was nice to to come home to last night....

I know it is difficult, but you can't blame a cat for doing what is natural. But I am sorry for you and for the other bereft little gerbil. Can you get him a new mate, or will that make things worse?

Originally Posted by ladycat

on top of it zoey is scared of the bf now cuz he was so mad, he squirrted her a bunch and yelled at her while holding her up in the air (which she doesn't like him holding her to begin with). I don't feel like i should be mad at her...she's a cat...

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I'm sorry for whats happend, but after reading what your bf did i'm quite chewed up

Sadly what Zoey did was pure instinct for a cat, and to hold her up like he did squirt her and yell at her it's no wonder she's terrified

I know I was not thrilled about the boyfriend doing that to her. after all even in the event of this I will still say she is the sweetest natured cat so for her to be this scared did upset me. (he heard it from me though) she is happy today though. I really don't know about getting another mate for her, I think she is at least 3 now and from what I understand 3-5 is the age expectancy. I don't know how she would react anyways, they were siblings.

I've been there, although I wasn't as attached to the gerbils we had (it's a long story ... roommates bought 2 gerbils as a sort of "kitty TV," the gerbils had babies, the lot of them escaped ... long story short: HabiTrail is not for gerbils) as you obviously were to yours. When I found Ozzie huddled behind the furnace with a baby gerbil in his mouth, I had a hard time looking at him the same way. It's one thing to know, intellectually, what your cat is capable of and what his instincts compel him to do; it's another thing entirely to witness it with your own eyes. I'm sorry you had to go through this.

I´m so sorry about it... .....

Aw, poor you, poor gerbil, and poor Zoey! I'm so sorry your bf reacted that way. I can understand being upset - but humans should also be smart enough to know that a cat is a cat, and instinct is instinct.



Laurie

Sorry to hear about your gerbil.

IMO its risky for any kind of "prey" to be living in the same house. I don't care how "safe" you think the little creatures are, and how much your cat ignores the prey, one day tables will turn.

I'm sorry for your loss, but learned a long time ago - you don't really mix mice, hamsters, small birds, gerbils with cats for a long time!

And NO the cat should NOT be punished at all for doing what comes natural! I'd have to PUNISH the bf!

I am sorry your lost your gerbil. But please do not get upset (or your boyfriend) at your cat. She is a feline and a carnivore- it is only instinct for her to try and hunt an animal that she would try to eat in the wild. When we first got Velvet (many years ago) i also had gerbils. When i was at school, she busted through the top of the tank and pulled out my gerbil Gus Gus. She decapitated him and left the "remains" under my bed. There was blood everywhere on the bed skirt and carpet- it was just aweful! I totally understand! But at the same time- i should not have had their cage to where she could get to it (i was 11 at the time). The cage should have been out of her reach. I could not get mad at her,even though i was upset, because she was only following her instincts. That's completly natural. Perhaps you can put your gerbils/small animals in another room when you're not there and shut the door so your cat can not get in there? or put them in an area that's out of her reach.

The only "out of reach" place would be a room where the cats are never allowed - other then that, they will eventually figure out how to get the "out of reach" prey! Count on it!

I am sorry for what has happened .......

You need to keep a close eye on Zoey. Cats being treated that way can internalize their stress. Stress in cats can cause all kinds of behavioral problems as well as health problems.

Your BF should be told to never deal with any of your animals like this. I would beat his a$$ but that would be abuse too. He was wrong in the way he handled her and you should watch him in the future. For your good and for your pets. That is not a natural reaction.

~I am soooo sorry for your loss. Although it isnt acceptable I understand why your boyfriend felt the way he did. Its hard to look at your pet the same after they have eaten another pet....Im not an expert with cats...but I own several and I have dogs and children as well....so I can say from a mothers stand point its aweful to come in and see something like that and be very upset.~

~I would let bf know that squirting/yelling at kitty AFTER the fact has no bearings on what kitty did...because Im sure as with dogs that unless you catch them in the act then they cannot understand the punishment for the crime~

~I also agree that if your other Gerbil is already 3 then adding a new mate to the mix wouldnt do much good because sooner or later you would be back to having one lonely Gerbil~

~I have had my cats/dog try to eat my little Hedgehog (RIP ZURI) before she past away of other causes....but its hard not to react in a situation like that. Just keep your cool and remembering that they are animals regardless of how we treat them and will act upon extinct!~

~Again Im so VERY VERY sorry! Hopefully kitty isnt too freaked out and boyfriend will get over it soon too~

It's awful that you lost your gerbil. As has been said though, your cat was only doing what is natural. To be honest, if you have that many cats around (all the ones in your sig) you've been very lucky to avoid any disasters so far.

What type of cage are you using? If it's one of those silly plastic types you really need to change it. Your best bet is to look at reptile cages, plain aquarium - a 20gal or 20 long (or larger), plus a plain sturdy screen lid - like this http://www.reptilesupply.com/product...roducts_id=908
then you would use 2 to 4 of these http://www.reptilesupply.com/product...roducts_id=913
They make all sorts of neat toys now that would allow you to use the space in an aquarium nicely.

I use these on my gecko cages, nothing can get in or out.
Get the cage up on a shelf or space that the cats cannot jump up onto, even make it difficult for them to look into the cage. This helps keeping their mind off it and removes a little of the temptation.

Good luck if you decide to get another gerbil.

Originally Posted by strange_wings

It's awful that you lost your gerbil.

As has been said though, your cat was only doing what is natural. To be honest, if you have that many cats around (all the ones in your sig) you've been very lucky to avoid any disasters so far.

What type of cage are you using? If it's one of those silly plastic types you really need to change it. Your best bet is to look at reptile cages, plain aquarium - a 20gal or 20 long (or larger), plus a plain sturdy screen lid - like this http://www.reptilesupply.com/product...roducts_id=908
then you would use 2 to 4 of these http://www.reptilesupply.com/product...roducts_id=913
They make all sorts of neat toys now that would allow you to use the space in an aquarium nicely.

I use these on my gecko cages, nothing can get in or out.

Get the cage up on a shelf or space that the cats cannot jump up onto, even make it difficult for them to look into the cage. This helps keeping their mind off it and removes a little of the temptation.

Good luck if you decide to get another gerbil.

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they are all in the aquarium tanks, I'm not sure how she got the top off but obviously she did.

thanks for all the responses. I know accidents happen. I gave my little girl cat extra loving this morning cuz i'm sure she didn't know that she did something "wrong in our eyes" I guess the gerbil was lucky enough not to have been ripped up on the outside. I'm not sure how i would have reacted to that. As for the bf well, he loves all the cats but I think sometimes he thinks of them as dogs (the ones that like to rough house). when we got zoey I actually had to make sure he didn't play with her the way he did with jenny as she turned out...well schitzo! the bf is way to similar to a child in many ways, sometimes I think he doesn't know any better cuz things don't sink in. I didn't have as many cats when I took the gerbils in and it was cuz a friend was moving and wanted them in a "good" home. poor gerbil. zoey actually got the other little gerbil who passed on a month or so before he passed and luckily we caught it on time before it was to late but i wonder if it was related?

Originally Posted by ladycat

they are all in the aquarium tanks, I'm not sure how she got the top off but obviously she did.

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Try some secure lid locks then? Any pet store should have them, just make sure they'll fit the lid and aquarium rim.

Having cats doesn't mean you're providing a bad home, it just means you have an extra challenge.

Originally Posted by ladycat

the bf is way to similar to a child in many ways, sometimes I think he doesn't know any better cuz things don't sink in.

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We all think that sometimes, they can't help it. Don't be too mad at him, tell him that it was useless to discipline the cat, and if he does it again that next time you'll squirt him when he does something bad.

Originally Posted by ladycat

zoey actually got the other little gerbil who passed on a month or so before he passed and luckily we caught it on time before it was to late but i wonder if it was related?

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There could have been internal damage, or just the stress alone from healing that could have been enough.

Awww, I am sorry you lost your gerbil.. I really hope Zoey is okay too after that treatment