Archive article, written 2009–2016. Not yet reviewed by a veterinarian. About our articles
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| Introducing a new cat to the household |
| As long as your cat goes outdoors, he
will always hunt, and not much you do will change that. A bell collar
may help a bit to alert prey to the cat's presence, but plenty of cats
hunt quite effectively with such collars. Electrical Cord Chewing Question How can I get my kitten to stop chewing on electrical cords? I keep finding electrical cords that my eight-month-old kitten is chewing. I've concealed the cords as much as possible and removed the ones I could, but he is persistent in finding them and chewing on them. Answer It sounds like you have a normal, inquisitive kitten. But chewing on electrical cords is quite dangerous. The good news is that he should start outgrowing this behavior soon. Have you tried putting something distasteful on the cords? Cayenne pepper spray or bitter apple spray can deter some cats from chewing. You can also cover the cords with paper towel tubing or PVC pipe. Your kitty should lose house privileges unless someone is home to supervise him. When you're not at home, put him in a room with no cords. Also, make sure that your kitten has plenty of appropriate toys to play with. One way you can make his toys go further is to put a few out for him to play with, and put the rest away. A few days later, hide the toys that were left out, and leave out some new toys that had been put away. Even old toys will look new to your cat after they've been hidden for a few days. With a bit of persistence, your kitten will start to leave the cords alone. If, in spite of all these precautions, you catch him chewing on the cords, chase him away with a squirt of water from a spray bottle. Don't yell at him or spank him; just calmly squirt him until he leaves the cords alone. Good luck with your kitten! |
| Cats and Jumping Question My cat is 20 months old, and he jumps on kitchen counters, the kitchen table, bedroom chests…everywhere he's not supposed to! Help! How can I get my cat to stop jumping on everything? Answer Cats will generally jump up on things if there is a reason for them to jump up there. They'll jump onto counters to look for food or to look out a window. If you have a dog that bothers the cat, your kitty may be looking for a higher place to escape. At his age, he is also very curious and willing to explore lots of places. Methods of keeping him off counters and furniture include putting double-sided tape all over the forbidden area or putting a plastic carpet runner upside-down on it. Don't use mousetraps-they can be dangerous if he gets a foot stuck in one. If he's jumping on things to reach a window, cover up the window for awhile so he can't look out of it, or just accept that he is going to get up there to gaze outside. If he's jumping onto things in search of food, be very careful not to leave any food accessible. For any of these methods to work, however, you'll have to keep it up for quite awhile, at least several weeks. If he gets on the counter and discovers that there is no unpleasantness there, he'll be encouraged to continue jumping up there. Keeping him occupied with play sessions several times a day may also discourage him from looking for his own entertainment. Why does my cat attack me? Question Sometimes my cat will be content and purring when I'm petting him, and then suddenly his tail will start to twitch and he'll start to bite my hands. He also loves to jump out and attack my feet when I'm walking by. Why does he get carried away and attack me? |