Comments on: Extreme Measures

By: Pamela

Pamela — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 12:30:41 +0000

I am sure you have already seen that this does not work at all. In fact, it undermines the trust which makes cats want to please us. My post on Litter Tips and Tricks might help, and there is a whole bunch of information in my eBook, Cat 911.

By: Lace

Lace — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 02:54:52 +0000

I have two 18 month old male cats and they have a nasty habit of going potty outside the litter box and my roommate/sister is getting to the point of getting rid of the cats. She has unfortunately already resorted to physical punishment by taking them to the area where they pottied and swatting their behinds like you would a dog, but it seems that they haven’t learned. I need some suggestions so that I don’t come home to a cat free home one day!

By: Patrick

Patrick — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 00:54:05 +0000

Try using a Kitty Kong and put a treat or the paste that comes with the Kong. My cat loves it and it keeps her busy, instead of climbing all over the furniture, counters and my laptop. Hope this helps

By: Pamela

Pamela — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 13:20:55 +0000

At this age they do think the whole house is a playground. Can you restrict them to one room when you aren’t around?

By: kristina

kristina — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 02:16:13 +0000

i need some desparate help ! …. i cant take it anymore i have tried everything i have a 11 month old nutered male and a 5 month old female and there sooo bad ! whatever one does the other follows having a christmas tree with presents is a nightmare ! i woke up this morning to find out of the presents unwrapped and shredded… they are fine when someone is home but once we go to bed or leave its like the whole house is a play ground ive tried noise makers and a spray bottle nothing discourages them
kristina´s last [type] ..Sharing the same space

By: Pamela

Pamela — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 11:44:24 +0000

I did one I call The Begging.

But in your case, with 2 young Alphas, the best possibility is that they now see it as a game. They need a new game.

Create an entirely new and different routine, and start blocking off the counters until they learn it. At the same time, come up with a game they both love (since they like to outwit you, give them another way to do it) and play that if they go a certain amount of time (very short at first) that they can go in the kitchen, WITHOUT jumping up on the counters.

Rexes are part “monkey” and need a ladder or bookcase in the kitchen that they can climb. If they don’t have that, they will use what’s handy.

By: Desperate mother of 2 naughty kittens

Desperate mother of 2 naughty kittens — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 04:40:57 +0000

I have a question regarding my 2 six month old Devon Rex boys. I know the breed is notorious for counter surfing and stealing food, but these two are ridiculous. It’s gotten to the point where I can’t let them into our living room/kitchen area at all as they try to sneak scraps out of the garbage or they run around on the counter tops. They are very well fed and looked after, so the constant scrounging for food is driving me mad. I’ve tried spraying them with water, but it has no effect on them. I’m honestly at my wits’ end. Is this just the age of naughtiness, or is there a way I can let them into the kitchen one day and be able to trust them? Please help!!!!

By: Pauline

Pauline — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 07:13:59 +0000

If the cats are playing with things they know you like and want and sometimes smell like you or that you use constantly… they are obviously seeking your attention. Give them a cuddle, play a game with them and whatever toy you have. Make sure they know that in the scheme of things, they’re more important than a vase or a pencil. Put a large paper bag on the floor and tap on the bottom of it, so they can run in, roll a ball past the end of it so they can chase it. (If you have two people, roll a ball down a hallway past the cat – that way they can watch or chase and retreat and hide if they wish and the ball will still come back). If it’s one of those stress balls that are soft, you can probably bounce it – cats love bouncing things too.

By: snuzzle

snuzzle — Mon, 14 Nov 2011 00:56:26 +0000

Jack, my cat does this too. I can’t leave my half-drunk soda bottles unsupervised because she loves to find their center of gravity and tap them juuuust under that so they go clattering to the floor, spilling everywhere. Pencils, bottle tops, hair elastics, erasers… anything that can roll or be batted will be. I’m okay with letting her play with bottle tops, but wish she’d leave my pencils alone. She just seems to want to know what they are, if they’re toys, and why I am so interested in them (I noticed all of the items are things I use all the time!) I give her “figure it out” type toys that keep her interested and things that mimic my items, and she seems happy.

Oh and for breakables that you can’t put out of kitty’s reach, double sided sticky tape on the bottoms works well to keep them from being knocked over

By: jack

jack — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 21:47:43 +0000

Any ideas on how to “teach” a cat not quite 2 years old to quit batting every loose object she can find (vases, dishes, boxes, pencils, loose change, paintings she reaches by climbing on top of things)? We do things to redirect when we see her on the prowl. One of her favorites is to bat a chick pea or a pecan around the floor. Also, but less satisfying are bottle caps, empty thread spools, etc. But this does not seem to satisfy her need to find new things to knock over. When she knocks and breaks a vase or dish we yell “No” or “Bad,” so now when she does it seems like she knows she did bad. We’ve put away many of our favorite things to avoid them from being the next victim, but we can’t hide everything.