How do I stop my cat from getting into the Christmas tree?

Question

She always stays under it and messes with all the ornaments and strings of beads and lights. How do I stop her from tearing it all down? I spank her on the bottom and put her outside when I catch her doing it but when I let her back in she heads straight for the tree. What can I do to stop this behavior?

Answer 1

ScatMat! It lays on the floor by your tree and gives a harmless static shock when stepped on. Safer then letting your cat near all the light wires or broken bulbs. I shocked myself 1st and it's just like static from carpet. My cats learned the 1st time. Also works for dogs. Now I don't even have to turn it on. They have it at most large pet stores.

Answer 2

1. Ornaments that aren't breakable at the bottom.

2. Motion-activated toy under the tree. Something kitty isn't going to like. (Maybe it's just mine that's skittish, but the Santa we got and put under the tree was a godsend- unintentional though it was!) Just be sure it's something you can tolerate hearing/ seeing at odd times of the day and night. Nothing like being awakened to a freaked out kitty and a strange voice singing "Have a Holly Jolly Christmas" in the living room at 3 a.m. with weird flashing lights!

3. Use the spray bottle if necessary, but remember, the tree has electricity attached, so be careful where you aim!

I'd be wary of using the repellent if you're going to put gifts under the tree. Some people have allergic reactions to that sort of thing.

Answer 3

LOL That's the million dollar question! Let me know when you find out! In the meantime, tie the tree to the ceiling so it won't tip over, use plastic ornaments, hang them with ribbon so kitty won't get hurt by the wire hangers. Don't use tinsel or icicles-she might eat them and get sick. Other than that, just keeping her out of the same room as the tree is all you can do. Don't waste money on the "keep off" spray. It just stinks up the room and the cats still climb the tree. Good luck and if you find a solution to to keep her away, please bottle it and put me down for a lifetime supply! Good luck!

Answer 4

Thank God!
I'm not the only one with this problem.
I have two cats, and they LOVE to play with the tree.
Here are some mistakes I made:
-Once, we used thouse silk ball ornaments, BAD idea. All it is is a bunch of thread wrapped around a foam ball. My cats tore them up, got tangled up in the sring and then dragged it ALL over the house! It took us three hours to get it all cleaned up.
-My husband thought it would be funny to top the tree with a toy mouse to see what the cats would do. Once they saw it, they climbed up the tree and got into a fight over it and then the entire thing came crashing down! Took FOREVER to clean that mess up.
-Presents are like inumerable in our house because we have five kids. The cats think it is fun to shred rolls of wrapping paper into confetti and then chase it around the house, one morning we woke up and EVERY single present was torn to peices!

All we have done was not let them go two feet near the tree. The spray smell stuff is just a bunch of crap, don't buy it! Just get one of those spray bottles and fill it with water then give them a good squirt when the do it.

We have the cat problem under controll, But now we have a terrible little thing called a two year old that thinks it sounds cool when you throw glass ornaments on the ground and they bust into little peices that cut you when you least expect it!


Oh, the fun never ends................

Answer 5

We select our tree with an eye towards sturdiness first and beauty second. Sharing the tree with our cats is part of the fun and the challenge of the holiday. Diesel is a 24 lb. Savannah. With his size in mind, we usually gravitate towards something like a noble pine. The main thing is that it have very sturdy brances since Diesel likes to drape himself over a branch to take naps and prepare to pounce. (we also use a very wide-based tree stand to prevent tipping ).We decorate with plastic, fabric and other non-breakable ornaments and avoid any tinsel or ornaments that can't safely be batted around by a playful cat. I do have to remove sagging limbs and re-adjust light strands but the result is worth it. The cats have a great time and we have fun watching them.We all have a memorable Christmas. (by the way, curly ribbon is a real choke hazard for my cat he is drawn to it like a magnet so that is also removed from any packages under the tree ).

Answer 6

I will be eagerly watching this thread! I am living in dread of my cat (1 year old) taking roost in the Christmas tree. I fear it's inevitable! Edited to add: I'm thinking of putting up my christmas tree with nothing in it for a few days and fixing it so that if he jumps into it lots of rattles or coins or something noisy will happen to try and deter the behaviour. Not hugely hopeful - he still loves lying on my ironing board, yet he knows he gets sprayed if he does. Cheeky little blighter!

Answer 7

Ha ha! Don't they bring joy and entertainment to our lives! And they give us funny stories, too! My cat, also, didn't stop until he pulled the tree over on himself one time! We finally learned to tie the tree to the ceiling and only put non-breakable ornaments near the bottom.

(This works when you have young children, as well! ;-) My sister vividly remembers pulling the Christmas tree on top of herself and getting pinned under it when she was about three years old. I think she says her first memory is of lying flat on her back with the tree on top of her. She didn't know whether to call our mom, or whether NOT to call our mom, so she was just laying there silently when our mom walked in there and discovered her! My mom says, "you should have seen the look on her face!" LOL.)

Back to the cat: the bottle to spray water is an excellent idea. I used a squirt gun, which is a really cheap, easy investment! Try not to let the cat know the squirt of water originates with you. One of my cats learned that the water gun only was a threat when I was around, and he learned to sneak around me to do his naughty tricks! But I became more sneaky too, and the next cat never learned I was the cause of the squirted water. I guess he thought it was punishment from god, and so he never learned the bad habit of sneaking around behind my back!

Another trick may be to spray the bottom of the tree or the area around the tree with the cat repellent you can purchase from the pet store. I think your vet can also teach you the recipe for cat repellent spray and you then can make your own using a spray bottle. (If I remember, it's about one tablespoon of ammonia in a spray bottle full of water, but I might be mistaken.)

Good luck and have fun! It sounds like you have a curious and inquisitive kitty, a sure sign of happiness, so adjust your life and enjoy the special moments and special memories!

Answer 8

OH I hope your cat is not declawed. It will be cruelty if you put the a declawed cat outside.
About X mas tree, my cat used to do the same. But she stopped doing that because the last time she did, the tree fell over her - thank God she didn't get electricuted! You should see her face, (I could swear there was an expression!)
Hehe now the tree is safe and I didn't even have to discipline her.
Good luck!

Answer 9

I haven't read any other responses but has anyone suggested putting balloons behind the tree? Cats are afraid of balloons. Blow up a couple and put them behind the tree. If the cat pops them, they will take off. It scares them

Answer 10

If you get a really good answer e-mail me!!! I pluck kittens out of the branches every year!!! I just think of them as "decor" now!. I have learned not to decorate the bottom 1-2' of the tree (yeah---looks really nice!!!)