My Cat is driving me INSANE?

Question

She is climbing the artificial prelite tree that I got last year. She is bending branches and knocking off ornaments. Oh and eating the fake needles then vomiting them. What a joyful thing to come home to or wake up to. Cat vomit and a frazzled tree. I can't put her in a room she goes UNDER the door to get out.

Any Advice.

Anything I can spray around the tree to make her stay way yet let us be in the room?

Answer 1

I gave up trying to keep the cats away from the tree....haven't had a tree in like 11 yrs.

My old cats use to strip the tree clean and organize the items all over the house. Candycanes on the couch, red balls in kitchen, blue in bedroom, green in bathroom. Till then I always thought cats were color blind.

A Christmas tree is like the ultimate toyland for cats.

Answer 2

I know there are products available - but can't for the life of me remember the names of them right now (Cat Scat?). Your veterinarian should be able to tell you the best product.

It has been my experience that cats like to climb the trees for numerous reasons. I have 3 cats, and while they do not eat the tree (maybe they don't like the taste of a real tree?), they do like to play with the ornaments. My solution has been to discourage climbing by placing the ornaments at 2-3 branches off the floor, and to work to train the cat to not climb the tree by offering other places they can climb (remember that cats like to have a good birds-eye view).
I have also found it helpful to anchor my tree to the wall with 50# fishing line and a small hook in the wall behind the tree. This keeps the tree from falling in case they do climb on it while I am at work.

You didn't mention whether or not your cat chases the lights; but if the lights are flashing that could be another reason. I can't put my lights on anything other than a slow, rotating flash, or my cats and dogs feel the need to "catch the light" and create a big ruckus.

I hope this helps some, good luck!

Answer 3

They all do this at one point or another, but they grow out of it after a couple of years.

Wire the ornaments on really tight a couple of branches off the floor. Florist wire is great.

Anchor the tree to the wall or a nearby heavy piece of furniture.

Put cat treats on the bottom branches and let them have those instead.

(Brighten them up with decdorative cookie sprinkles brushed on with egg white. Kitty will LOVE them, and they are good for kitty and won't cause illness or vomiting. A doubled thread sewed through the soft treat or looped around a crunchy treat. As little thread as possible because they WILL eat the thread. It won't hurt them or make them vomit if the threads are short.)

Try giving kitty distractions that keep their tummy full and makes them sleepy, so they won't feel like chewing and climbing. Then they may not go up higher. (Catnip will NOT make them sleepy, it will make them worse.)

If all else fails, put the TREE in a different room or a closet, not the CAT. A Christmas Tree on an outside balcony is BEAUTIFUL! Put the presents by the window inside.

We take the back branches off our artificial tree and back it into a corner, then anchor it. Then we only decorate the part on the front. That helps a lot, and also gives us more room to get around the tree.

Be aware that other things will attract your kitty at Christmas. MISTLETOE IS DEADLY TO KITTIES. Also, NEVER use any kind of tinsel or "icicles" but the 4 to 6 inch long solid clear acrylic type. It's not fun pulling disgusting strings of tinsel out of the back end of a yowling sick kitty.

They will try to climb garlands, and will knock over any figurines etc. you put up. I've had them jump up and hang from Christmas Stockings too.

Double sided sticky tape keeps my Christmas figurines and decor in place for the holidays. I do not use hanging garlands that hang down. Up and across is okay, like in doorways and along wall/ceiling junctions.

Kitty may also steal bows and ribbons off of presents. It's hilarious to watch a tiny kitty pull a sparkly bow off a present and run off with a bow bigger than their head in their mouth. It's worth keeping a video camera around and ready to go when you have a young cat at Christmas. You could end up making $10,000 on America's Funniest Animals!

Enjoy it while kitty is still young and playful. When they get old and have arthritis, all they do is sleep.

Merry Christmas! : )

Answer 4

Welcome to the world of cats! They sell spray on products at the pet store to keep pets off things. "Keep off" is one brand I think, but I've yet to find a single thing that works with my two cats. We gave up on live trees because they ate the needles..now they try to eat the wires instead. We gave up finally this year and only put things on that the cats can't destroy while they use the tree as a perch. At least you don't have wires with the pre-lit tree! I've heard that someone makes a netting to go over the entire tree but I'm sure mine would just use it to climb with. My guess is that after a few days yours will tire of it just like anything else. Sorry I couldn't be of more help! Hang in there..I'm sure kitty will!

Answer 5

secure the ornaments with plastic bag ties so they won't fall off and try "scat mats" (they usually have a bumpy surface) or animal repellent spray like bitter apple to keep the kitty away. If your kitty is able to get UNDER a door, sounds like she is still a kitten. Kittens are naturally curious about new and shiny things like ornaments, and in their lack of experience, will eat and climb things (sometimes knocking them over) that a mature cat wouldn't bother with. If you are in the room, you can try spraying her with a squirt bottle of water to deter her when she goes near the tree.

Answer 6

Cats and Christmas trees seem to be a problem. Forunately Christmas trees aren't around 12 months a year. I have never found a way to keep the little stinkers off the tree. Our salution to the problem was to eliminate the tree. Good luck

Answer 7

i know its frustrating....4 cats (one is a kitten) and a real tree....
this year is not so bad but i've heard that spraying the tree with peppermint (around the bottom) helps. If you don't like that, then there is something call Feli-away, comes in a pump bottle and helps with keeping kitties away from certain items and generally doesn't cost that much.

Answer 8

Oh boy, at least for December, I would invest in a large crate and put her cat box inside. You can release her after the tree is put up. I have never been successful in 'training' a cat not to climb a tree.

Answer 9

spray the cat with water everytime it goes near the tree

Answer 10

there is a spray sold at pet stores (petco for 1) that is offensive to animals. i don't know how it smells to humans. i have a cat 3 years old and the first xmas we went through the same thing.