Stubborn cat, 'fishing' in fish tank, solution.

So I have a very smart yet stubborn cat that just won't learn. He loves 'fishing' in my tanks which I say is a big no no. If he just drank the water it wouldn't be of big as a deal. But he goes from the litter box to the fish tanks and proceeds to go shoulder deep trying to catch fish. NOT okay. Not only is he trying to catch fish but then I have not only paws prints all over my tanks then he has litter in his paws which basically turns to clay mud, that which doesn't get washed of in the tank water. The clay muddy prints stain the plastics and leave lovely marks. And on top of that he was doing it so often the water would get cloudy from the clay being deposited in the water on top of the bacteria from what the cats released into their litter box.

Corrective measures started off when I caught him doing it he would get squirted with a water bottle. He learned to wait until I wasn't around. So then I read online how to keep cats off counters and applied some of these methods to the tops of the tanks. I started off with clear tape sticky side up, cats hate sticky things right? Uh huh, sure. He would walk all over it as if it wasn't there. So next I tried masking tape, a little stickier, nope still didn't bother him. Next I tried duct tape, nope, still no effect other than him standing on it and trying to eat it.

I was at my wits end with his 'fishing'. Thankfully he was horrible at the catching part. So I got mad enough to the point I went to the dollar store and took some cardboard from work and home I went. I spent most of the evening putting thumb tacks into pieces of cardboard strategically cut to fit the top of each tank, which at the time was 10 between my former roommate and I. Finally when done strips of cardboard were laid on top of all the tanks. I figured a few pokes from dull short tacks will definitely keep him away.

Well I learned there was two exceptions to this. He is the world's smartest idiot cat. I swear. That's a long story though. However, he is smart enough to figure out there was a pattern to the thumb tacks. And he figured out how to step between them! Argh! So I added more tacks to fill in the small gaps, apparently not small enough. I left the strips just loose on the tops of tanks for easy removal to clean tanks and as well add a little scare factor when he would step on them and they would slide easy.

Almost daily for the first week I would come home from work to find cardboard on the floor. After the second week that reduced greatly. Then he started thinking again. 'HEY! These move!' So he would get on an object close to the tank use his paw and claws to hook the cardboard or tacks and pull them down so he could still get on the tanks!! Criminey!!

So, again frustrated, irritated, and convinced I would out smart this darn cat I used clear tape rolled to stick the cardboard down to the lids so he couldn't remove them himself. This enticed him to start thinking again. Ugh... He would bite the corner of the cardboard and pull up and get it to move that route!!! When he wants to be he is VERY smart as you can tell! So my last ditch effort short of a shock collar was duct tape rolled up and used to stick the cardboard to the lids. Finally! Success!!!

I have tried removing the cardboard after a year of it being on there and he, yet again, is smart enough to tell it's gone and goes back to his bad habits. So, for as long as I have him and fish tanks the tack strips must stay. I have thoroughly checked his paws after he had stepped on these to make sure it wasn't actually puncturing the pads, injury is not my goal. And I haven't seen even a red spot on his pads. So I guarantee he is fine. It's just extremely uncomfortable.

Here are some pictures of what I do, since I had to make more for my new tank tonight, for anyone else who may have this issue.


Cut cardboard to necessary size and push thumb tacks through.



Put tape over to secure tacks to cardboard to keep from falling into tank.



Put tape side down on tank lids.



This shows how the cardboard helps reduce down the length of the thumb tack posts to keep from harming the cat.



Place cardboard to lids of tank.



And here is the smart stinker.

Watching a fish tank that's come a long ways, look familiar fishNAbowl?





And his show picture from before I got him

Time for those tanks to get some cyclone fencing.....   This gorilla warfare you are waging is crazy to me.....

However,  I allowed my cat to try fishing once in my garage tank..... He only did it once when my big rio mag umbee came out of the water at his face and tried to bite him..... Cat hasn't had any interest in my tanks since. 

If your cat doesn't like water, you could also just do an amphilophus tank.... These suckers splash so much during feelings that I have to wipe water off of the walls and soak it up out of the carpet almost nightly.....

Or an electric catfish might also be another option

Beautiful cat by the way!

Haha we have an understanding now. I don't think my 10, 20, or 30 would hold a big'n very well. He loves water though just not the squirt bottle. He plays in his water dish and I can give him a bath easily.

Bengals are notorious trouble makers!! You have to exercise them several times a day and even then they still are into everything. They are too smart for their own good.

MorganEA wrote:Bengals are notorious trouble makers!! You have to exercise them several times a day and even then they still are into everything. They are too smart for their own good.

So very true they get in to EVERYTHING! My boyfriend forgot to close the toilet lid tonight and I got a nice surprise because he had been playing in the water. Smh. Yet a bird outside flying by scares him, or when it gets windy he is terrified. If you leave food out he is much much worse than a dog for stealing it. I love him, wouldn't get rid of him for anything. But I will NEVER own another one!

Silver Bengal, wo I am not a cat person by any stretch of the imagination, but that is a truly stunning cat. As for keeping him of the tank, I han't a clue but the tack strips looks formidable

STINKER!   - does he lift the lid too? My cats will lift lids , so I started using rubber bands to hold down the tops. After fabricating acrylic lids for the backs the cats have no room to reach a paw in. The only opening is the 6" X 3" opening near the overflow where they drink.
My cats get into the toilet too. What's up with that?!?!?! We should teach them to use it to potty! Haha!

There is another solution.... get him an ipad

Oh man, that tackboard looks impaling! And it is a bit of an eyesore isn't it? How about getting someone with crafty skills to build a hood for the tank out of wood. That way you would have a lid that covered the tank and filter, and there would be no gaps for the cat to fish through. You could even carpet the top, and now you would have a fishtank cat perch combo!

fishNAbowl wrote:STINKER!   - does he lift the lid too? My cats will lift lids , so I started using rubber bands to hold down the tops. After fabricating acrylic lids for the backs the cats have no room to reach a paw in. The only opening is the 6" X 3" opening near the overflow where they drink.
My cats get into the toilet too. What's up with that?!?!?! We should teach them to use it to potty! Haha!

It's the fresh/running water thing. I have a fountain for my cats and it deters them from drinking but playing in it is a different story.

My parents knew someone whose cat was toilet trained. It even flushed too.

MRTom wrote:Oh man, that tackboard looks impaling! And it is a bit of an eyesore isn't it? How about getting someone with crafty skills to build a hood for the tank out of wood. That way you would have a lid that covered the tank and filter, and there would be no gaps for the cat to fish through. You could even carpet the top, and now you would have a fishtank cat perch combo!

That would work if he wouldn't scratch the crap out of it. He LOVES to scratch. I don't have any show tanks per say and none are in areas where guests see them so I don't mind the tack strips. As I stated, I have checked his pads for injury and have never found any. I as well tried them first on myself to more of a degree than an 11lbs cat jumping on them. I didn't have any punctures either.

DMD123 wrote:There is another solution.... get him an ipad

hahah he watches the mouse on my laptop and will swat at it too.

zach_discus wrote:Silver Bengal, wo I am not a cat person by any stretch of the imagination, but that is a truly stunning cat. As for keeping him of the tank, I han't a clue but the tack strips looks formidable

Thanks I thought so too and snow leopards are one one of my favorite wild animals and he reminded me of a mini version. They are supposed to be dog like in behavior and he is in many ways. One of their key things is being walked on a harness like a dog. However, this doesn't work for him. :/ He wasn't started on one as a kitten so he freezes when you put it on him. He is literally a gorgeous cat. He was shown before I adopted him and he has titles behind his name. From what they quoted was "Second silver bengal to ever achieve Supreme Grand Champion in show." He has kittens running around but was fixed prior to me getting him.

Have you tried one of those giant hamster wheels? A person I know breeds bengals and she has the wheels all over her house.
Cute video that I found

I haven't but I think that's too simple for him to learn how to use. When I said smartest idiot cat I meant it. Simple stuff he doesn't get yet when it comes to pulling the cardboard off the top he can figure that out.

He used to be a breeder. When he had his dumb moments we used to say he screwed his brains out. Lol

If he can follow a laser pointer he should be able to figure it out. I'm thinking about building one for my cats, my vet keeps telling me that my orange tabby is too chubby.

Lol he can't always follow a laser pointer. Only about 1/3 times you try it with him.

 that is one stubborn cat.

VERY much so, can you PM the breeder you know. I'm having difficulty with his food and kinda want to see if they may know something that will work.

what issues are you having?