Cats on the Counter, Training Help?
Dear Readers:
I need your help in the cat training department. It may seem surprising to tell you these kittens aren’t perfect. And yes, they are so cute it’s hard to believe they don’t obey my every command. In fact, their cuteness is the only thing keeping them around sometimes-to be honest.
Max gets a kick out of knocking the mannequin heads off of the fireplace mantel. Bianca has literally figured out how to turn on the kitchen sink faucet and sets up camp in the sink to drink to her little heart’s content. (She has a dish of fresh water each day, but this apparently isn’t good enough.)
This is how our discipline began with the tender kittens: A firm “NO” and a finger wag.
This did absolutely nothing.
Second came the squirt bottle. Initially, they didn’t like it and would run for the hills. But, then they got used to being hosed and held their ground as I sprayed them directly in the face during their naughty escapade.
We have since upgraded to an air horn. It’s ear splitting and I hate to use it-mostly because it deafens me and I know the neighbors can hear it. (I’m sure they just chalk it up to “those weird Greimans”.)
I think the cats are getting used to this, too.
For example, I have been sick for the last few days. The house was suddenly too quiet. I forced myself out of bed to find Max lounging on the kitchen counter and he was watching Bianca licking water from the faucet. They saw me-air horn and all, but went right on with what they were doing. I honked the air horn and both kittens scattered off into the living room-but were right back in position maybe 5 minutes later.
So, dear readers: how do you train your cat? I need some suggestions before I go crazy.
*knocking the mannequin heads off of the fireplace mantel*
Best sentence I have read in a blog in a long time! ~laffin~
It’s pretty weird, isn’t it?….
eeerrmrmm…actually no. It’s not weird. I totally get it.
Cats hat citrus smells. You could start using a cirtus oil to clean your counters.
A friends cat used to pee in one of her potted plants. She threw some orange peels into the pot and the cat never went near it again.
I also add vinegar to my water bottle. My cats HATE that. My corgi however does not. She tends to go around smelling like a pickle.
Oh! And you can buy little kitty water fountains. They love those!
I’m hoping someone else comments with advice because I have the same problem. My cat always runs off the counter when I walk into the kitchen so I don’t even need a spray bottle or anything. So I need something to keep her off the counter when I’m not around. I did read somewhere that cats just like to be in high places. So I’m kind of thinking of getting one of those tower things made for cats and sticking it in the kitchen. That way she has something to climb on that she’s actually supposed to be on…
Margaret-
I’ve been wondering about getting a few shelves made specifically for cats. I agree that they like to be in high places, too. Although, this still doesn’t keep Bianca out of the sink…I hope someone else has some advice too!
I had a problem when I was pregnant with the cats. They slept in the empty crib. I researched like crazy on how to keep them out and away from it and came up with a few interesting discoveries. First I used citrus but our cats are mutants and it didn’t bother them much. Then I tried putting bowls of chili powder in and around the crib and this worked for a few of them but one consistently kept getting in the crib for her naps. Not cool. The best thing I have found to work is aluminum foil. I covered the mattress with it and she HATED that. I don’t know if you could use any of those ideas because your problem is a little different than mine but you’re a crafty lady so I’m sure you could come up with a way for one of them to work. Hope this helps!
This is a bit inconvenient, but it worked for us. I used a citrus spray and also lined the perimeter of the counter with empty cans (like soda cans). Cat jumps up, cans make clanging noise and fall everywhere, cat doesn’t like noise and falling. It took a couple of weeks for ours to get the picture, but they eventually did. Worked well for our counter surfing dog too. Hope you find something that works for you too!
Thanks Natalie! I see aluminum foil, soda cans filled with pennies and citrus spray in our future. I’ll keep all of you updated on any training progress with the two perps.
Foil worked to keep my cats from attempting to shred my couch to pieces. I know they are supposed to hate the feel of it so that is worth a try. Also, try taking large sheets of butcher paper and make loops of tape (sticky side out) on the paper and then lay it out (tape side up obviously) on your counter tops. Cats do not like having things stuck to their paws and once their little pads hit the sticky tape, they will try to get out of there. Just be consistent and leave that “tape trap” on the counters whenever you are not using them.
Jennifer-
Good advice! The tape might deter a certain Bianca-but I think Max will see it as fun. He loves tapes or anything crinkly in his silly little mouth. I am also trying the foil. They don’t seem to hate it, but don’t seem to love it either.
Today, I came home to the kitchen faucet running-running!. Not just dripping. That Bianca is one smart cookie…
hi, I have two cats. I’ve tried all the tricks mentioned here, but then I saw myself like a cat slave and decided to take time and patience. I saw some Cesar Millam programs about training dogs and decided to use some of his advice with my cats, marking the space as a leader of them. I tell you that with repetition and persistance, it’s possible to change their behaviour¡¡¡ For some things I gave up for some time and started again after some days. I used body language together with clear message. I don’t know if this makes sense to you, but it worked for me and got rid of all the equipement¡¡