Cat vs. Christmas Tree round I?

Question

i have a 6 month old calico in my house. it is strickly an indoor cat and i baby it like crazy. she is good and doesn't get into trouble... she is just very playful. this is her first christmas and i'm afraid she is going to mess up our christmas tree and our large nativity set. how should i punish her or teach her not to climb the tree or anything... what should i do about this prob?

Answer 1

hang some lemon or orange peels inside the tree(where no one can see them) Most cats hate the smell of citrus and won't go near it.This is what our vet told us to do about our cats...however it doesn't work for us because sadly our dog loves the smell of citrus and will knock down the tree to find the "treat" inside lol

Answer 2

I have an 8 yr old calico and deal with the same problem every year. She is also an indoor kitty and I have babied her to the "n'th" degree. I found that using a fake tree helps. I guess there's something about the smell that is attractive to her and whenever I've had a real tree she always climbed up the middle. I recently purchased a fiber optic tree and sprayed it lightly with the spray you can get at pet stores that is supposed to keep cats from scratching on furniture...she hasn't touched it. I also talk to her a lot (which I am sure sounds crazy) but I've told her that its so pretty and to be careful with mommy's pretty tree. I also reward her everyday when I come home from work and see that its still standing. I think she is very proud of the pretty tree too because when my other cats come near it she sort of spats at them to keep them away. I don't really worry about it anymore. I think you need to just find something that will work for you and your cat. You can try what I did. I hope this helps. Have a merry 1st Christmas!!!

Answer 3

Cats dislike the smell of menthol or eucalyptus oil. Add a few drops to water and spray a mist of this over the tree. You can also do the same with the nativity set, or smear the oil directly onto it. My cats were chewing the lower branches of my fibre optic tree, and I've found this has put them off going near it. The good thing about this deterrent, is that it works when I'm not around to keep an eye on them.

You can also surround the base of the tree with pine cones which you have scented with menthol or eucalyptus. Cats hate the feel of pine cones underfoot, so it also helps stop them wanting to get to close to the tree.

Answer 4

It's in the cat's nature to play with the ornaments. Put only unbreakable ornaments on the lower branches of the tree so she won't break them when she decides to play with them. I think that also helps keep her from climbing the tree.

I guess I'm just very lucky this will be my cat's third Christmas and she seems to love the tree. When I'm around she curls up on the tree skirt and sleeps under the tree. She does like the ornaments and I find the unbreakable ones (especially the cloth ones that slide across the hardwood floors so well) all over the house.

Answer 5

She's a CAT!! Of COURSE she's going to go for the tree and everything else. You just brought a bunch of new TOYS for her and she's delighted! She won't understand why you are upset...

First of all, TIE the tree in place. This is essential. Then, if you have any breakable, really valuable ornaments, don't put them out this year. You can use them again next year when she's not quite as playful. Put UNBREAKABLE ornaments on the lower part of the tree and try to be amused when you find them in the kitchen, bedroom, basement...

If your nativity set is breakable, can you just not use it this year? If you MUST put it up, then make sure to use museum putty or Moretite to stick the pieces in place. You can TRY to train her not to go near it with a squirt gun, but in my experience, that really doesn't work. She might avoid it while you are in the room, but as soon as you leave...

Do NOT use tinsel, ever. Many cats and dogs have swalled this stuff, with disasterous results. It can be DEADLY.

We also have a kitten this year -- and we had THREE last year! We LOVE to see them climb the tree, it's just such a natural thing for them to do. OK yes, the tree can be worse for wear, but to us, the living, breathing kitties are far more important than any old tree. I don't mean that to sound so ... condescending ... it's just the way we feel. I hope you can try to see the fun and amusement of having a kitten at Christmas!

Have fun!

Answer 6

We have the exact problem. We have a 10 month tabby kitten, who is also indoors... and can be very, very wild.
We got our christmas tree today and he is very curious, but not to the point where he'll actually climb it. It's a Douglas fur so it's pretty full, which would make it hard to climb.
So, my suggestion would be:
1. Get a full christmas tree (full as in lush, looots of branches)
2. NO TINSEL.
3. No low-hanging ornaments
4. Secure it with something. We placed little hooks on each side of the wall then tied part of the tree with wire so if for some reason he DID jump on it, it wouldn't fall.


Good luck! :)

Answer 7

I hear there are citrus sprays that cats dislike. I would put the nativity scene somewhere the cat cannot get. Next year, when the kitten is no longer a kitten and has calmed a bit, then you have a much better chance of nothing being broken. I am dealing with a kitten that is about 4 months. Any suggestions to keep it off the counters when we are not home?

Answer 8

On Paper the Pacers have the better starting line-up but the Pacers just don`t have a deep scoring bench and that is going to catch up with them. This is going to be a very close series, both teams have a lot of flaws. I don`t believe the knicks can guard the Pacers bigs at all. The knicks have to move the ball because with Indiana perimeter defenders its going to be tough to just get off a shot. The ways it looks Carmelo will have to play defense in this series and the question is who does he guard; the bigger West or the faster more dynamic George and I believe he can`t guard either player. The Pacers have no answer for Melo so for them the goal is to limit everyone else and don`t allow second chance opportunities. Hibbert has to out-play Chandler if the Pacers want to have a chance at possibly winning this series. George Hill vs Raymond Felton I believe will decide who wins the series. The benches have a wide gap mostly because of JR Smith, the pacers only have Tyler Hansbrough & DJ Augustin to contribute off the bench while the knicks have Smith, Kidd, Martin and possibly Amare Stoudemire. My prediection is Knicks in 7 simply because they have home court advantage

Answer 9

THe same thing happend to my cat. I tried spraying it buy it didn't work. So I went to the $2 shop (Go-Lo or whatever cheap shop you got) and i bought a rabit cage ( it is like a thing that you can pull apart). THen i set it up around my tree. The cat could still climb the cage but i put a bell on the cage so when it climbed it it........ whatever the word is.... made a sound. THen i would rush in and yell NO! it would get frightened but it works. PS dont yell to loud or it will fall and hurt itself.

Answer 10

Don't hang ornaments on the bottom couple of feet on the tree...do NOT put tinsel on your tree she will eat it and throw up. Cats love trees, put things (presents under tree so she can't get close to the trunk once she gets to the trunk, up she will go. She will probably tap at the ornaments she can get to, so keep the cheap ones lower! Good luck, my kitties have been around trees for years and they just bat at a couple of the plastic ornaments...otherwise they bother nothing.

Answer 11

I have the same problem with a dillute calico I adopted a few months ago, so I decided to put up a small tree on a bookshelf she couldn't climb yet.