How do I keep my cat out of my house plants?

Question

I have big house plants in huge clay pots. although she has a litter box she still likes to dig and sometimes go to bathroom in the dirt. one plant I had for years died from this and I don't wanna lose another. Right now the rest of my plants are on the patio but I want to bring them back inside . I need somthing that will keep her away from my plant while I'm at work also. HELP

Answer 1

Here is a link to products for sale at Petco which repell cats:
http://www.petco.com/petco_Page_PC_productlist_Nav_207_N_23+140.aspx

Answer 2

You may want to place some rocks on the soil to prevent digging, and litter box use.
There is spray that you can get from the pet store that the cat can't stand the smell of. I had to spray this on my pots a few times. It worked like a charm. They haven't messed with the plants in a few years.
I've sprayed that stuff around my car before to keep the cats putting prints on the paint.

Answer 3

He's decided he likes the house plant better. Make the plant less desirable by covering the dirt around the plant base with a sheet of aluminum foil so he resumes using his litter box. After about a week remove the foil. Then place some medium size decorative rocks on the soil so he doesn't think it's a good place to start using again.

Answer 4

My cat was doing that too, this is what I did:

I got this thing called SSScat! It's a motion-activated aerosol can that sprays when it sees motion. It makes a loud hissing noise and scares the crap out of the cat!

I put mine on the edge of the clay pot (you can put it on the inside too if the edge is too thin) and after about 5-10 times the cat totally stayed away from the plant. Once he stayed away from the plant, I moved the SSScat to the kitchen table, the counter tops, and other places I didn't want him to go.

It worked like a charm!!! www.ssscat.com

Answer 5

I heard of one way to keep them off things is to put balloons where you don't want them to go. Then when they jump up the balloons will pop from their claws and the noise will make them jump down. That sounds tricky though. I mean what if they don't land on a balloon. Might be worth a try though. I thought maybe to have some boards cut to fit around the plants and lay on the top of the pots. If you were at home more a squirt gun, or spray bottle of water is effective to teach them to stay down.
Good luck.

Answer 6

Get her some cat grass that you can grow. It is usually available at Petsmart, or other pet supply stores. Most of the time, cats eat plants and grass when their stomachs hurt or ache.This grass is good for cats, and better then the ones out in the yard. You may want to put the grass by the plant so that the cat will be tempted to eat the grass instead.

Answer 7

I broke my very determined cat from this by taking chicken wire and putting it around the plant. Although it didn't look very nice, my plants lived. After he was out of this habit, I dug out my old rock collection from the barn and put them in the pot. I don't have to water them as much, and I have had compliments from people wondering where I bought the rocks!
I tried the aluminum foil, my cat just got it out of the pot and played with it.

Answer 8

There are a few things you can do.

I ended up placing big rocks in the dirt that the cat can't move. I also use a mixture of water and hot pepper (like cayenne or jabanero) spray and spray the base of the plant.

I had to get creative and put my plants in bird cages so my cat wouldn't get to them.

Luck!

Answer 9

had this problem .. cats juts love to dig and poo in all that compost.. my solution was to go out and buy decorative pebbles, big ones and put them all around the base of the plant.. cats can't get to the soil to big thereore they l;eave the plants alone..
be careful though because some house plants can be poisonious to cats.
the list is endless
CAT POISONS
The following table lists some plants that are poisonous to cats. Some you will not have heard of and some will surprise you. Don't worry too much as your cat is unlikely to eat any of these items voluntarily. They know what is bad for them. Just be aware how different a cats stomach and digestive system is to ours and please, always consult your veterinarian if you believe your pet has been poisoned

Alfalfa, Almond pits, Aloe Vera, Amaryllis, Apple seeds, Apricot pits, Arrowhead vine, Asparagus fern, Azalea
Balsam pear, Beech, Begonias, Bird of paradise, Bittersweet, Black locust, Boston ivy, Box, Buttercups
Caladium, Castor bean, Cherry pits, seeds & leaves, Chrysanthemum, Coleus, Columbine, Creeping Charlie, Creeping fig, Crown-of-thorns, Cyclamen, Castor bean, Cherry pits, seeds & leaves, Chrysanthemum, Coleus, Columbine, Creeping Charlie, Creeping fig, Crown-of-thorns, Cyclamen
Daffodil, Daphne, Deadly nightshade, Delphinium, Dieffenbachia, Drunk cane
Easter Lily, Elephant's ear, Emerald duke
Foxglove
Heart ivy, Heart leaf, Holly, Honeysuckle berries, Horse chestnut,
Hydrangea I
Iris, Ivies (all)
Jack-in-the-pulpit, Japanese Yew, Jasmine, Jerusalem Cherrylarkspur, Japanese Yew, Jasmine, Jerusalem cherry larkspur
,Liliies Lily-of-the-valley, Lupine
Majesty, Marble queen, Marijuana, Mescal bean, Mistletoe berries,
Mock orange, Monkshood, Morning glory, Mushrooms
Needlepoint ivy, Nephthytis
Oleander
Parlor ivy, Peach pits & leaves, Periwinkle, Philodendron, Poinsettia, Poison hemlock, potato, green parts & eyes, Pothos, Pot mum, Precatory bean, Privet
Red princess, Rhododendron, Rhubarb, Ripple ivy, Rosary pea
Saddle leaf, Skunk cabbage, Spider mum, Split leaf, Spraneri fern
Tobacco
Umbrella plant
Weeping fig, Wisteria
Yews (all)

Answer 10

They dislike walking on crinkled cellophane and aluminum foil.....but that's not too practical, and even less attractive. A very coarse stone or bark mulch might be an unpleasant "crust" to paw through....but if the odor of urine is already there, most cats (and all the neighbor's cats for miles around) will consistently return to the scene of the crime, mulch or not.

Answer 11

Put rocks or pine cones over the dirt. You can just gather whatever is around your yard, or you can go to a craft shop and buy bags of nice-looking river stones.