help with my kitten and xmas tree?

Question

Has anybody got any ideas as to how I can keep my 5
month old kitten out of my xmas tree, she keeps climbing to the top, and wrecking it,
sensible answers only please
I wont get rid of kitten or the tree.

Answer 1

When she gets to the top tie her there, better than a fairy anyway.

Answer 2

You've got no chance of stopping it - if your cat wants to climb/attack the tree she is going to do it! My parents cat is about ten and EVERY year she runs up the inside of the tree and knocks it over! That scares her so once is even - she then goes on to eat the tinsel and has had to visit the vets to have tinsel removed from her behind when she cannot get it out herself! Find your kitten something MUCH more interesting to do. Get some toys and some catnip and perhaps a scratching post. If all else fails, try a water pistol and get her wet each time she approaches the tree. Hopefully that way she will associate approaching the tree with getting wet - something she won't like. It sounds cruel but it isn't - it's only water. Good luck - I hope your tree survives the festive period!

Answer 3

We have a large hook in our ceiling to which we tie the top of the tree at Christmas; once the tree comes down I replace it with a hanging basket with a Nephrolepsis plant so there is no need to remove the hook - it is a decorative feature all year.
We make sure that any baubles are non-breakable since the little people are sure to remove them to bat around the living room.
We reckon we get as much fun out of watching the cats play with the Christmas tree decorations as we do out of the tree.
Of course you don't want to get rid of your kitten (I had to have a lovely silver tabby put to sleep today, so feeling more than a bit sad), but kittens do love to climb trees. You could try a squirty water bottle to try and deter kitty; unfortunately they have short memories!

Answer 4

One of my cats (the other 2 generally ignore the tree) did this the first year we got him (he was about 9 months old)--he climbed part way up our tree, knocking things off as he went! He nearly tipped our tree over (it was a small one--3.5 feet tall at the most)! We used a technique of startling him to convince him the tree wasn't his plaything. Now, he enjoys watching us decorate, and will go around and sniff everything really well, or bat an ornament or two, but that's about it. We now have to worry more about him getting into his presents early than him destroying the tree!

You can try this: take a can and fill it with some coins. Whenever your cat goes to attack the tree, throw it in her general direction (you want the loud noise to scare her--you don't want to hit her with the can). This should make her stop what she's doing and jump, looking around starled. Do it each time she goes for the tree.

If that isn't a strong enough warning for her, you can get a spray bottle and squirt her with some water whens she starts climbing up the tree. Once she discovers that something unpleasant happens every time she gets in the tree, she should stop.

Now if it is more of a battle of the wills, you might try this technique. Each time she gets in the tree, get up, remove ger from it, say "No!" firmly, plop her on the ground, and then ignore her. Repeat each time, until she learns that you mean business. Eventually one of you has to get tired of this "game" and if you don't give in first, she should eventually give up on trying to get in the tree.

You may also try getting a fake tree--some cats like the scent of real Christmas trees, and will be attracted to them. I have noticed that my cats all seem to pay quite a bit less attention to fake trees than real ones (we alternate every year or so between real and fake trees). You may also want to only use plastic ornaments until your cat learns to stay out of the tree, so the she won't break them and broken glass won't get in any soft paws or feet.

Best wishes to you and your cat!

Answer 5

Cats dislike the smell of menthol or eucalyptus oil which you can buy cheaply at the chemist. (Olbas oil or Vicks Vapor rub have the same effect, and you can see the cat visibly back off from the smell). Add a few drops to water and spray a mist of this over the tree, 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 6

I don't really think that there is away to stop the kitten,
it's in their nature to climb, But here is a suggesting:
Put a tall gate that they can't climb or jump over on the
Room where the tree is at. Other than that move the tree
to a room that it can't get in.
Or lots of kitty nip to keep it busy.
Good Luck! You'll Need it!

Answer 7

Here's two things for you to try:

1. Sprinkle some cayenne pepper onto your Christmas tree. Cats HATE cayenne pepper and it acts as a good deterent. It certainly worked with my cat when he was being a naughty kitten!

or

2. Spray her with some water everytime she starts to climb the tree.

You can buy empty spray bottles relatively cheaply from pet shops or DIY stores. DO NOT use a washed out cleaning product bottle, just as a safety precaution.

She'll eventually link either one of these things with climbing the Christmas tree, and if she doesn't like it, then she'll stop. It's behaviour correction.

It's a good idea to get her trained with this now, otherwise you'll have problems like this every Christmas.

Good luck!

Answer 8

"For small kittens wrap tinfoil around the trunk. They don't like putting their nails into it and it will keep them from climbing the tree."
This is what's working for us. Cats hate tin foil like they hate vacuum cleaners. (shrug) Circling the tree with pans of water might also work but is less pretty and it would just be your luck that your kitten is one of the few who adore water! lol
She may also be too young to respond to catnip or even immune to it altogether. Almost 50% of all cats are.
The are loads of great articles on the net for pet-safe holidays that point out dangers we would never think of.
Have a look at the links below and happy holidays!

Answer 9

There's not much you can do. We had 2 kittens that did this. After the first year, though, it wasn't a problem.

You might try putting the tree in a place where you can tie it up to something to support it and keep it from falling over. We tied ours to the drapery hardware with fishing line. The cats still climbed it, but at least it was stable.

Answer 10

You can put cayenne around or on the tree, cats don't really like it. I was able to make a circle of it around my kitten and she refused to move past the line of it, they might know it's spicy and not want to get it on themselves. Sprinkle a little on the tree maybe too, she might stop climbing it and playing with it when she realizes it's spicy.

Answer 11

Kitty is climbing cuz she wants to be as high up as she can. It is a behavioural issue. Give her something she can climb on, like a kitty tree. You can purchase one at like walmart for about $50. Also try putting a citris scent around the tree. Cats do not like the smell of citrus. It hurts their wee noses.