Cat on my desk

[ALF]

So we have a new~ish kitten. He's 4 months old. He's very affectionate... a big heart and a very small brain.

Problem is he is quite impossible to train not to jump up on tables/desks. The kitchen table is a no-no as I've explained to my wife, we can't have the cat strutting around on the dinner table as that is where we eat and he shits in a box and walks around in it. Plus he eats the only potted plant we have on that table.

Also he likes to get up on the laptop PC and sleep on the keyboard (...it's warm?) which results in shutdowns, subsequent lost data. He always manages to step on the power button. The other night the speaker started blasting system beeps at 5am because he was pressing the wrong keys at once!

Anyway, I've tried shouting at him, but he ignores me. I tried a squirt gun but that won't work because of the laptops on the tables. Plus he didn't really seem to mind being wet, he's one of those crazy cats that loves water; makes a mess of his water dish when he's bored. I pick him up by the scruff of the neck, remove him from the forbidden zone and scold him, but as weeks and months go by I realize it's not setting in.

Any tips? Has anyone trained their cat not to do certain things, or do they just have the run of the house?

Also, any ideas about how to get him to stop gnawing on the power cords?

thanks.

 

[Joshua Howard]

Christmas Eve 2007, when I was working at Wal-Mart, some folks were giving away black kittens outside the store. I took one, and named him "Santa." After a while I gave him away, because I couldn't keep him from knocking over things on shelves, tables, countertops... etc.. It seemed as if he left a trail of disaster everywhere he went, and I never had any luck affecting change.

Can you close your laptop when it isn't in use? That would seem like the easiest course of action.

 

[Miss Chicken]

I find that most cats eventually grow out of their kitten behaviour. Maybe you will just have to hang in there for a while.

Confine your cat to a separate room away from the computer at night. We used to let our kittens have access to the bathroom and hallway at night (and the bedrooms if the occupants didn't mind the kitten being in with them).

As for chewing cords - the best way to deal with that is to provide a more interesting alternative. Maybe cardboard boxes to play in and chew on, and some dangling toys.

Also provide him with a cat gym or something he is allowed to climb.

Also a warm hot water bottle might keep him off the computer.

 

[ALF]

Can you close your laptop when it isn't in use? That would seem like the easiest course of action.

I would be fine with this as a solution, but I want to keep my programs running... every time I close it it goes into standby mode.

 

[ALF]

Confine your cat to a separate room away from the computer at night. We used to let our kittens have access to the bathroom and hallway at night (and the bedrooms if the occupants didn't mind the kitten being in with them).

That is a great suggestion... however I finally got a proper computer desk set up and there's no room for it in the bedroom (forbidden kitty zone) so I had to set it up in the main living area.

He plays with everything.

 

[Miss Chicken]

Can you close your laptop when it isn't in use? That would seem like the easiest course of action.

I would be fine with this as a solution, but I want to keep my programs running... every time I close it it goes into standby mode.

Get a sturdy container and place it upside-down over the laptop when it isn't in use.

 

[Commander Rabbit]

She's a real cutie!

I've never met a kitty that didn't like a keyboard. Since yours is a laptop, just close it when you're not using it. (Edited to add: oh never mind, I just read your post about why you don't close it. I like the idea of covering it w/ a sturdy box.)

One of my cats doesn't mind getting wet, either. But gnawing on cords is dangerous, and walking on the dinner table is unappetizing, at best. Try adding a little vinegar to the water in the spray bottle.

Also, you might want to join a cats forum and ask for ideas there. There's a very active one at About.com.

 

[Commander Rabbit]

By the way, I disagree w/ your assessment of "very small brain." He seems to be very curious -- and getting everything he wants, despite your best efforts -- so I'd say he's quite smart.

 

[Supreme Admiral]

Oh, yes, Commander Rabbit, that's cat is very smart and sure know how to push the button on you!

 

[Nerdius Maximus]

Does he have claws? Get him a scratching post IMMEDIATELY. Take one of his paws and start rubbing it against the post. I did that with one of mine when she was a kitten, and she's never scratched anything else other than the post. I know you didn't say anything about scratching, but it's only a matter of time, so get on that ASAP, lol.
As far as the power cords thing goes, that's a problem. Try getting something like this
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2754400

And spray it on a rag or something, wipe it on the cords. Should make them bitter to the taste. And clean the table with some kind of strongly-scented citrus cleaner to keep them off of it. How well that will work, I don't know. The plants, those can be poisonous depending on what they are so you'll probably just have to put those out of reach, like on top of a bookshelf or something.

Also, get him plenty of toys to play with, and get him interested in them. Just make sure not to leave him unattended with anything that's got big feathers, strings, or loose parts that he could possibly break off and ingest. (Def keep all strings out of reach. They can get wrapped around a cat's intestines and kill it) You could even make some toys. Take and old sock, fill it with catnip and tie it off, for example.

You could also get him a friend to keep him occupied, but that could easily backfire and double your problems, if they decide they hate each other, lol.

 

[Nerdius Maximus]

Can you close your laptop when it isn't in use? That would seem like the easiest course of action.

I would be fine with this as a solution, but I want to keep my programs running... every time I close it it goes into standby mode.

Get a sturdy container and place it upside-down over the laptop when it isn't in use.

Yeah, but he wants to keep it running and that would cause it to overheat.

 

[Miss Chicken]

Not if the container had ventilation. I think a sturdy square laundry basket would probably do. If he is worried about cords that go into the computer all he would have to do is cut away some of the plastic away from the rim of the basket so that the cords could go though.

 

[Captain Ice]

You're talking about a notebook computer, right?

How about just moving it into your bedroom when it's not in use?

 

[RAMA]

 

[RoJoHen]

Why would you want to ever deny your cat the pleasure of randomly wandering onto your keyboard and messing things up? It's their favorite past-time!

 

[Miss Chicken]

I believe that the real Miss Chicken used to posts on Trekbbs when I was out. That is why many of my former posts were somewhat bizarre.

Now she has found other message boards to post on.

 

[Kelthaz]

Can you close your laptop when it isn't in use? That would seem like the easiest course of action.

I would be fine with this as a solution, but I want to keep my programs running... every time I close it it goes into standby mode.

Well you can change the settings on your laptop so it doesn't go into standby. Assuming you're on XP, try this.

• Right Click
• Properties
• Screen Saver Tab
• Power
• Advanced Tab
• When I Close the Lid on my portable computer > Do Nothing

 

[Crusher Disciple]

In my experience, neutered male cats are the sweetest creatures on earth, but as a group not the brightest bulbs in the candelabra.

Neutered female cats are cranky and conniving. And usually very, very fat.

 

[Data Holmes]

You cannot train cats. The harder you try, the more they do the thing they aren't just to piss you off. Because as any long term cat owner knows, the cat is who is really in charge, they just let you think you are because they really don't give a shit unless you piss them off.

 

[Crusher Disciple]

My cat just glared at me with this disgusted look on his face when he heard the Dr. Who theme.

Yes, we're watching Dr Who. GET OVER IT!

Toldja male cats weren't that smart....