How do you keep cats from climbing up the Christmas Tree??

Question

I have three cats and in the past (3 different cats) I used lemon, orange and lime rinds to repell the cats from climbing up the tree. However, those cats actually ATE the rinds. Should I try this method again OR does anyone know what to do now?

I will keep the ornaments to a minimum on the tree and very few on the bottom. Before the tree is set up next month, I need an idea.

Help!

Answer 1

Well you've got a very basic "cat problem" and almost all cats have this issue.....CURIOSITY !!!

We had a male who would do the same thing. We couldn't break him of his curiosity regarding the new, climbable, thing in the house.

After the tree fell over a couple of times I decided to simply prevent the fall-overs of the tree and just let him get it out of his system.

What I did was screw the tree stand to the floor. Most stands, whether they're the 3 legged type or the full round base will have holes in them for just that purpose. Falling Xmas trees has been a problem for a long time so the manufactures design their tree stands with that in mind.

After he climbed it a few times he simply quit doing it. Yes we had to pick up a few balls and straighten out some garland but it wasn't a big deal.

Putting a screw(s) through your carpeting will not harm anything and it will not show after you remove the screws. The flooring under your carpet is most likely sheathing (plywood) anyway, so it's no big deal to put a screw in it. (However, if you have carpeted over a hardwood floor you may want to think twice before screwing that tree stand down.)

I use the 1.25" or 1.50" sheet-rock screws for this. They are very pointed and fairly coarse threads so they pass through the carpet fibers and the backing with ease and enter the underlying sheathing quite easily. You can use most any screws, but I've found these to work very well.

You can get small boxes of them at Home Depot, Lowes, or any building supply center and hardware stores.

Hope this helps.

Answer 2

Looks like we all agree with the water thing then haha Shut them outta the room when you're not home, and when your are, keep a small water gun ( not the huuuge super soakers kids play with) or a spray bottle when you are home! Gotta be (very slightly) cruel to be kind...if they didn't learn through the water method, they'd learn through the tree-falling-down-on-top-of-them method... All in all, considering that you would have to put the tree up again, if they pulled it over, the water one seems easiest! Also try not to let anything shiny dangle from the bottom of the tree, they will be attracted to it ! Another thing to try, is attach small bits of orange peel around the bottom branches, cats (usually) HATE the smell of orange ( or maybe lemon would work,i'm not sure) Good Luck xxx

Answer 3

Try getting a clean, empty spray bottle of some sort and fill it with water and spray the cats everytime they get near the tree. This doesnt hurt the cats but they sure dont like it. Over time they will learn to associate the christmas tree with the unpleasantness of the water. Unfortunately this will take some time on your part because you will have to catch them messing with the tree and always have that sprayer handy.

When I first got my cat and it became Christmas time and I put my tree up, I would come home from work EVERY SINGLE DAY and my tree would be on the floor tipped over and all the ornaments would be scattered around the house. Although it is hilarious now when I think of it, it wasnt that funny then. It was quite frustrating. I even thought of taking the tree down. But I used the water bottle thing and in a few days she was leery and a week or so later she stopped completely.

Ive had her for six years and although she will occasionally sneak over and bat an ornament to the ground, i no longer come home to a demolished tree.

Good Luck and God Bless.

Answer 4

This might sound silly but instead of lemon rind cut a lemon into quarters and place them around the tree. My friends dog will eat rind but she wont even go near a cut up lemon, might do the same for cats. :-)

Answer 5

The only foolproof way I know is to shut the cats out of the room that has the tree in it. Cats are cats, and that thing is a tree.

Answer 6

Buy the cat a little house thing that they can climb on and it may stop them from climbing on the tree. My cat never climbed the tree he just took the ornaments off so I put his own ornaments on the bottom.

Answer 7

I gave up on trying to keep the cats out of the Christmas Tree. Instead, I tied the ornaments and lights on with string. It is sort of cute to wake up and find the cats asleep in the tree branches.

Answer 8

go to your local pet store and ask someone there what sprays they have for that. Most pets stores should have sprays. I go to petco for it. After a while they just dont like the smell and give it.

if that fails shut the cat out of the room.

Answer 9

I have noticed that my cats HATE nail polish remover....this might sound strange, but is worth a try! Dip some cotton balls in remover and put them under the tree and by the trunk. After a while you won't be able to smell it but they still will! Other than that, there isn't anything I can think of that would stop them from playing in the tree....

Answer 10

One method that worked for my cat was to set a couple of mouse traps in the tree.When she started to get up in the tree the traps would go off and scare her away.Put them high enough she won't get hurt.The sound of the snap a few times should do it.

Answer 11

teach your cat well.use your IQ, imaginations, and experiences.others might not help you because these cats are yours.