my 3 kittens get on the stove counter and table at night to get into stuff, how do I make them stop this ?????

Question

my kittens are 4 mon and 8 mon. they get into the bread, their treats, they have gotten into croutons, anything they can chew open ! I wan tto make them stay off the table and counters !!!!! I have tried several things to keep them off stuff but nothing works and they are so fast when I find them doing this that they get away from me before i can spank them ! PLEASE HELP ME !!!!!!!!

Answer 1

Crate them at night.. and get a good nights sleep..

Answer 2

The hard thing here is you need to punish the act of jumping on the counter, not the act of the human catching you on the counter. They just learn to do it when the human isn't watching if you shoo them off. Best thing is to find a way to booby-trap the counters. They make mats that give a small shock when stepped on (like a static electricity spark), usually you can get "dummy mats" that look like the sparky one but dont do anything (and are much cheaper) once the cats learn to avoid the mat.

Cheap alternatives: Cookie sheets with water in them, double-sided tape or duct tape sticky side up, soda cans full of pennies that are balanced to fall over when the stove is jumped on, plastic carpet runner laid upside-down so the spikes are up. Canned air is a good alternative to squirt bottles (computer duster spray). Makes a loud noise, ruffles their fur, and makes no mess for you to clean up. Canned air and squirt bottles work better because it's a sneak attack, they don't know it came from you, it's just something unpleasant that happened when they jumped on the counter. I don't even need to keep the air handy now that my boy is grown, I just have to mimic the sound it makes!

In the meantime, put the bread and treats and stuff in a child-proofed cupboard or big Tupperware containers.

Answer 3

I've heard several people mention trying that astro turf stuff, can't think of what it's called. They're door mats, usually green plastic things that stick up. It's uncomfortable on their feet. Also, get a bread box and put the bread in that. That's what i ended up doing. My cats loved to rip into a loaf of bread. Put the other stuff in a cabinet or in a container. Could also try confining them to a bedroom or other room with a door(& litterbox). Also try a spray bottle with water. When they're on the counter, squirt them-better then spanking them. But they'll probably always want to get into the food. And, they'll probably always sneak up onto the counter & table when you're not around.

Answer 4

First of all, NEVER spank a cat. It just doesn't work; and it only makes the cat fear you. If you have to make a point, like "get off the counter," get a squirt gun, fill it with water, and squirt away. I've never known a cat that wouldn't respond to it. That way, you can make your point from across the room.

This worked for me to keep my cats off my computer. Get some aluminum foil, tear off sheets big enough to cover your counters and stove, crinkle it until it's no longer smooth, then flatten it again and place it on the surfaces. Cats don't like the rough surface, or the the metal, tinny sound of the foil.

Pet shops sell dog and cat repellants; and they might work for some cats, but personally I've not had much luck with them. But please, no spanking! Yelling and squirting are much more effective and much more humane.

Answer 5

I understand, I have 5 4 month old kittens myself and here is how to train them. Get yourself a strong spray bottle and fill it with water. carry it around with you when your in the house and instead of spanking set if for stream and give them a good blast until they start running. Do this every time your cat does something you don't like, it's your house and you are in charge, be patient and don't stop doing this sooner or later they will associate the stove and cabinet with punishment and good luck

Answer 6

Confine your kittens in a cat-safe room at night or when you can't be around to supervise them. A spare bedroom will be perfect. Thing is, the kittens know where they can find all these interesting stuff to play with and eat in the kitchen. They have to "unlearn" these experiences. So, confine them in a spare room. Put their toys in there, their food bowl and water bowl and of course the kitty litter. Remove breakables, strings, yarns, rubber bands, plants, vases, etc. from that room. If you can, lock the closet - unless it is empty. Put them in there with a night light. Close the door. Have good night sleep. :)

Answer 7

Try putting aluminum foil opn the entire counter top. When the cat jumps up, they will here that sounds and the foil will slide and scare them so they will jump back down. After a few times of this, they'll stop. Or you could lock them up at night in a room with their food and litter box.

Answer 8

Cats do not like certain surfaces. Put your food entirely away, beyond their reach into a cabinet or the fridge. Put newspaper, slippery vinyl tablecloth, they will find something else to do if it has no interest to them. They probably like iritating you, even children like negative attention if they cannot have more positive attention, such as petting, talking to them, make them feel loved! Feed them somewhere else by the way, not on your table or counters. Outside your kitchen, on a shelf inside the house, etc.

Answer 9

Get a "SCAT MAT" ... but I hear they are pricey. (google "scat mat"; I'm sure you will find several online places to purchase one). Supposedly, this works best and soon becomes a conditioned device so that you can place one that is a dummy mat in other areas once the cat has been trained to the scat mat... and they will not go.

You can put looped tape with the sticky side up on the areas you don't want your kitties to go. Cats hate getting stuck to the tape. But it works.

You can soak large cotton balls with peppermint oil and place them around where you don't want kitties to hang out and they will run from the smell of it.

I had a cat that just would not stay out of my betta's fish bowl to drink. So I put ginger on the counter around the fish bowl. It took him a few times, but he finally quit jumping up on the counter!!! Besides the smell, he didn't like getting it on his paws and then licking it.

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Answer 10

This should help:

Pawprints on The Counter by Feline Behaviorist Pam Johnson-Bennett
http://home.ivillage.com/pets/cats/0,,26b8,00.html

Never spank your cat. Physical punishment does nothing but make your cat afraid of you.

Answer 11

I were given the same difficulty with a canine I were given from the pound. He receives too excited and he pees. You puppy him and he pees. You scold him and he pees. the priority is called some thing like urination submission i am going to't save in ideas. i became advised that there is not any treatment for it. So now I save the canine outdoors the domicile in any respect cases.