Bad bad cats

  • Thread starter Thread starter milefile
  • 31 comments
  • 1,169 views
milefile

milefile

Messages
10,832
Does anyone know an effective way to keep cats away from a certain area of the house?

Here's the deal. I have three cats. My wife's late grandmother gave her an antique china cabinet and the cats climb up the front of it and get on top... where we thought fragile things would be safe. But noooo... They get up there when we are not home and in the middle of the night. The wood is all scratched up, which can be fixed, but it has to stop... for my sanity. Somebody suggested mouse traps but when I got whacked trying to set one I quickly realized that's too much and would probably hurt them, which isn't the goal. We just want them to not go near the china cabinet. We could actually keep thm out of that entire room since there is nothing in there for them anyway.

Right now I am stuck between a hormonal, overly emotional pregnant woman and three cats that have no comprehension of damage or property and could care less about her grandmother's heirloom. And to make matters worse the cats (two of them) were mine before we met so I am guilty by association.

Anybody got any ideas?
 
try putting a shock mat there, something that emits a low pulse of eletric into thecat, not hurting them, but enough that would make them not want to stay on it and enough that they'll learn after the first time.
 
The only thing that comes to mind is closing the room to the door. I've had cats in my various households for nearly 20 years and it's the only consistently successful method.

They know you don't want them in there, you know that, don't you?
 
Yeah, that's the only real method - deny them access to the whole room. Which is probably impossible if it's your dining room. My other suggestions are:

1) Keep a spray bottle (like an old one from tire cleaner or something) that can be adjusted for a nice tight stream. Fill it with clean water and a little vinegar, and dilligently squirt the hell out of them any time they try to get up on it.

2) Put boxes on top of the cabinet, up to the ceiling, so there is no place for them to get up to.
 
Originally posted by vat_man
The only thing that comes to mind is closing the room to the door. I've had cats in my various households for nearly 20 years and it's the only consistently successful method.

They know you don't want them in there, you know that, don't you?
Click to expand...

Oh yes. I know. Little ****s.
 
Originally posted by neon_duke
Yeah, that's the only real method - deny them access to the whole room. Which is probably impossible if it's your dining room. My other suggestions are:

1) Keep a spray bottle (like an old one from tire cleaner or something) that can be adjusted for a nice tight stream. Fill it with clean water and a little vinegar, and dilligently squirt the hell out of them any time they try to get up on it.

2) Put boxes on top of the cabinet, up to the ceiling, so there is no place for them to get up to.
Click to expand...

I've done the spray bottle. They very quickly learned that as soon as I moved they would get sprayed so they'd be gone before I could even take aim. And one of them I think liked it. She'd just stand there and lick it off. And it doesn't work when we're not there. That's the thing about cats, they only listen when you're there. As soon as you go to bed it's a frickin' free-for-all.

The boxes thing won't work because it'll make out front room look like a warehouse. The wife would never go for that.

There's no door to close since we have an open floor plan.

Ya know, I never got them declawed because I think it's cruel. And then I get so pissed at them, particularly when my wife flips out over it (I can't really blame her) and I think "that's it! They're all getting declawed!" Then I look at that site and slap myself for even considering it.

I saw this thing and am considering giving it a try. It should work the same on top of a china cabinet.
 
Yes the spay bottle works great, when we got Cosmo he kept attacking Shayna, so we squirted him, and now he's calmed down.

I'd also say to just keep going to the cat when it's in that area of the house, pick it up, and carry it somewhere else. Keep repeating, and the cat might not go to that part.

Also buy a lot of cat toys, ones that you know the cats like, and keep them away from this cabinet. You could also use some little packets of Cat-Nip, they'll love the cat-nip, so then just keep the little packets away from the cabinet.

Hope that helps...

I have a problem of Cosmo going into my room at night and trying to chew through stuff(wires, paper, other stuff)...usually I yell at him to get out, or I just get up and take him out of the room. Now he just goes in my room and looks around, but he doesn't chew things as much.
 
I just bought this and I hope it works.

The three cats are one boy and two girls. The boy, Luna, is very good. All he ever wants is to be in your lap, purring and kneading. That's his whole life.

The girls are always fighting and chasing eachother around the house, leaping over furniture, cornering eachother and hissing like maniacs. Their whole life is based on waiting to see what the other will do next. One will sit on one end of the room and the other will sit at the other end and they just wait for the other to make a move, for hours sometimes. They're obsessed and comptetitive. They never hurt eachother, but they have hurt others inadvertently. One got an ex-girlfriend right on the eyeball with a claw. That wasn't pretty. And my wife has been scratched twice this month due to their spontaneous explosions. They come flying out of nowhere, right accross your lap or over your shoulder and before you even know what happened you've got a bloody cat scratch. I get anxious if they both come around me at the same time due to their destructive potential. It worries me because my wife's leg could easily be our baby's face. That's the one thing that would get these cats evicted.

The best cat toy I know of is a laser pointer. They never tire of that, nor do I.

I really have a love/hate relationship with these cats. I guess it's my fault because when they were younger I let them do whatever they wanted. I lived alone and didn't have anything nice for them to ruin.
 
Spank them every time they go in the room and toss em out. That'll teach the little ****s.
 
Originally posted by milefile
I just bought this and I hope it works.
The best cat toy I know of is a laser pointer. They never tire of that, nor do I.
Click to expand...

Same here. I like making them spin around in circles then turn it off and they go wandering around and end up falling over. Watching them walk sideways is soo hilarious.

Oh, milefile, I'll give you one week before you through that mat out, because of it pissing you off. Or your wife for that matter :nervous:
 
This seems appropriate for this subject
 

Attachments

  • kitty.gif
    kitty.gif
    4.3 KB · Views: 58
Here's what I do with "Destructo" (a.k.a. Patch)...feed him well...he's at his most destrcutive when he's hungry.

Another solution is to buy a squirt bottle. (Squirt guns always seem to leak, for some reason.) Fill it wih water, and turn the nozzle so it will shoot the furthest, without getting the floor totally wet. Now when kitty is doing something wrong, sneak up so they can't see you, and let 'em have it!

The first hit gives you the look of shock, the second is the realization that they're wet, the third is RUN RUN RUN!

I've never known a cat that liked to get wet, it's always worked for me.
 
You could always keep your cats outside. I don't think any pets should be inside. I have three Bullmastiff *****es and they know that their place is outside, but if you can't bear the thought of your cat outside, I'd recommend the squirter. Either that or you could get a kids cap gun and let one rip each time you see the cat where it shouldn't be.
 
Originally posted by Acid X
Spank them every time they go in the room and toss em out. That'll teach the little ****s.
Click to expand...

That works on two of them. The baby(two years old), however, is the most stubborn animal I've ever encountered. I've grabbed her by the scruf of her neck and yelled at her and she gets this pathetic "how could you... please don't hurt me" look. Then I feel bad and put her down. In an instant she is back doing it again. :banghead: And that's not even counting when we're away all day. I wish I could train the dog to enforce our rules. But they're all partners in crime.
 
Originally posted by pupik
Here's what I do with "Destructo" (a.k.a. Patch)...feed him well...he's at his most destrcutive when he's hungry.

Another solution is to buy a squirt bottle. (Squirt guns always seem to leak, for some reason.) Fill it wih water, and turn the nozzle so it will shoot the furthest, without getting the floor totally wet. Now when kitty is doing something wrong, sneak up so they can't see you, and let 'em have it!

The first hit gives you the look of shock, the second is the realization that they're wet, the third is RUN RUN RUN!

I've never known a cat that liked to get wet, it's always worked for me.
Click to expand...

The squirt bottle worked for a while but they figured out when they were about to get sprayed and would run before I could get them. :banghead: (again)

Cats are quite smart. Unfortunately they do not express it through obedience like dogs. Which I guess is part of why I like cats.
 
And I can't close any doors because it's the main room of the house, the room everybody has to go through to get anywhere else. It's an open floorplan. That would be so easy.
 
:D

Honestly, it's been so long since I'd trained my cat I don't remember what we did. I don't think he got more obedient as he aged; I think he got smart enough to do what he wasn't supposed to when we weren't around. :lol:

Then again, he broke his hip in two places when he was young (maybe around a year old). That seemed to take a little of the piss & vinegar out of him.
 
I was thinking of something more along the lines of 850 fps. You know, a .22 or something. Anything larger just means a bigger cleanup and it's not really any more effective.

When did you resurrect the DB moniker?
 
i missed moes face so i thought it was time for a change.

i had an air rifle a few years back that could hit over 1000 fps. ill give you a hint...something to do with car suspension ;)
 
ive gotta run mate, ill send you a PM on the specifics next time im on. its a lot of fun blowing things in half with an air rifle :lol:.

later mate.
 

Latest Posts

Back