What actually works to keep cats from chewing plants?

Question

Especially given how few things were sold at the pet store -- any suggestions for home-made stuff? Will keep looking in stores, but...

Oh! Houseplants, not outdoor things.

"Those poor friggin cats" graze on "Blue Spa Select" dry food, which has "Healthy Fresh Veggies & Fruit – Whole carrots, sweet potatoes, parsley and cranberries contain phytonutrients that help your cat stay healthy." And get treated with "Feline Greenies." And the latest batch of cat grass is still germinating, but the last batch wasn't much of a deterrent...

The wet food they get small amounts of has chunks of veg in it. Under-nourished in greenery these kitties are not...

I tried spraying the plants with lemon juice. It worked well -- for about two days.

(sigh)

Answer 1

Hi there...Many people believe mothballs work, however they are considered highly toxic and should NOT be used. Here's more information on this:
http://www.cvm.uiuc.edu/ope/enotes/showarticle.cfm?id=89
MOTHBALLS are toxic to cats which contains the ingredient Naphthalene. Mothballs are approximately twice as toxic as paradichlorobenzene, and cats are especially sensitive to naphthalene. Signs of ingestion of naphthalene mothballs include emesis, weakness, lethargy, brown-colored mucous membranes and collapses. Paradichlorobenzene mothballs may cause GI upset, ataxia, disorientation, and depression. Elevations in liver serum biochemical values may occur within 72 hours of indigestion.

Common odours which are effective deterrents for cats are:

Citronella works best for cats as well as citrus scents such as orange or lemon (primarily towards cats), cayenne pepper, coffee grounds, pipe tobacco, lavender oil, lemon grass oil, citronella oil, peppermint oil, eucalyptus oil, and mustard oil.

Grannick's Bitter Apple http://www.grannicks.com spray found at most pet stores worldwide.

"Havahart's Cat Repellent" uses capsaicin pepper and oil of mustard as its active ingredients. It repels by both taste and odor, has a lemon scent.

Every animal responds differently to each of these. Some will not be phased by them and others will be quite revolting.

For training purposes they are applied on items that are to encourage avoidance behaviours and not for use with a squirt bottle as they could harm the eyes or respiratory system. Test each substance and observe to see which works as a deterrent so that accidental injestion does not occur as some could then be fatal.

Answer 2

I have the same problem, and I eventually gave up on plants, I was worried they would make him sick. He wouldn't do it when I was home, because he knew he wasn't allowed, but if I was out, I would come home and they would be all chewed. I just have a cactus now.

Edit: To the person below who said that the cats are lacking in their diet - My cat eats quality Neutro food and has been provided with cat grass (he wont touch the cat grass) He just likes to eat the plants, like he likes to lick plastic bags and chew through bungy cords (found some on backpacks) and do other weird quirky things.

Answer 3

Cats hate citrus, so put orange or lemon slices near the base of the plant, and change the slices often.

You can also spray Tabasco sauce on the leaves. That's just cayenne pepper and vinegar, so you could also make your own solution.

Some plants are POISONOUS, so you should check this with your Vet to make sure you can keep the plant. If it's poisonous, I'd get rid of the plant and not take any chances.




.

Answer 4

There are sprays and granules you can put on your plants to keep all animals off of them. The best I've found is called Critter Ridder....it costs about 18.00 at Lowes. It's a pepper spray and you can spray it around the plant, you can also spray it on the plant, but you don't have to. You can also use this spray on anything else that you don't want animals to mess with. Call Lowes and talk to someone in Lawn and Garden,,,,they'll know exactly what you're talking about....it's very popular.

Answer 5

Well, I've got a little spray bottle and I spray him when he starts chewing or even when he gets by them. At a pet store or any Target-like store, you can buy this special little grass that you can grow especially for your cat to chew on and eat-it is actually good for them. It only takes a few days to grow.

Answer 6

Keep oat grass growing in the house the cats will eat this over your house plants. You can purchase it in some grocery stores or the pet shops or just grow it yourself very easy. If you keep it moist and trim it before it can go to seed it will grow for a long time.

Answer 7

I wonder if Bitter Apple Spray would work with cats? I found an interesting forum on this subject: http://forums2.gardenweb.com/forums/load/houseplt/msg0112005419205.html
Also they suggest growing greens for the cats to eat.
Good Luck!

Answer 8

Try feeding your cat broccoli and other green vegetables that are cooked till just a little tender.. There is also grass that you can get and plant for your cat to eat. They love to eat green vegetation and is why they will try to eat your houseplants.

Answer 9

Try a very small dab of hot sauce on the lower leaves.. It won't harm your pets, but after one bite they won't be looking to gnaw on the plant again because they'll associate it with pepper, which most animals will stay away from.

Answer 10

A solution of cyan pepper and water (one cup water and two tablespoons of cyann pepper) mist your plants lightly and your cats should leave it alone.

I should add it worked on my kitty and she chewed on everything.