Fish & cat owners

[dendon]

Was at the library last night reading up on cats. I have one cat and my SO doesn''t want another but I am afraid Slippers is lonely. One of the books recommended getting fish (of course with a cover on the tank) to keep her company / occupied while we''re at work. If anyone already does this, what type of fish are best for a tank without an air pump?

Thanks!

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

Could you try leaving Animal Planet on for the cat first? I''d feel bad getting fish for the sole purpose of torturing them to entertain my cat.

 

[dendon]

Not to torture them, but to have them there for the cat to watch if she wanted to. The book said it was entertainment for them to watch them swim back and forth. I could leave the TV on but that''s an added cost for the electricity (not sure how much 8 hours a day would come to).

 

[emdash]

Does she have a window to look out of? Would it be possible to set up a birdfeeder outside for her to watch birds through the window?

I can''t do the birdfeeder b/c I''m in an apartment building, but my cat spends a lot of time looking out the window watching traffic.

 

[dendon]

That''s a great idea!! I think I''ll try that first.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

We''re planning to get a fish for my son''s birthday and the gal at the pet store suggested a Beta. She said they''re easy and don''t need the bowl cleaned very often.

 

[tlh]

a beta w/ a bamboo plant. be careful, those bowls aren''t so sturdy.

and.. I know you''re at work during the day, but cats are nocturnal animals... so they really sleep a lot during the day. I''d recommend a laser pointer for when you''re at home to play with your kitty!

 

[princesss]

You can get a timer for the TV and just put it on for an hour a day. You can also queue up a Cat Sitter DVD. My cats LOVE that! It''s videos of birds and fish on a loop, and my kitties sit in front of the TV and try to swat at it. (They also did this with the presidential debates, though, so maybe they just like the colours.)

 

[dendon]

Thanks for the replies!!!

 

[Little Monster]

hmm... we own 2 cats, 1 dog, tons o'' fish... we did get the 2nd cat to keep the 1st one company ; ) The fish were an unrelated project.

we do find the cats watching the fish a lot -- they''ll sit behind one of the tanks on the counter and paw at them (just at the glass -- not endangering them in the slightest).

have you tried leaving windows open? that seems to keep them occupied for hours - we say they''re "watching the news" when they sit there a long time :p

bird feeders outside a window they can access is a great idea too -- our cats start ''chirping'' and making all kinds of crazy noises when they see the birds!

one last note: ALL fish appreciate air pumps... while Betta fish CAN live in small bowls or vases, they are MUCH happier with a tank to swim in, a heater, filter, etc... A small aquarium setup (10 gallons) doesn''t cost too much, is really easy to set up, and gives you a much larger selection of fish to pick from.

just my 2c.
little monster