Max-proofing recommendations needed ASAP, please!

gingersmom

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So last night when I got home from work, I found the cabinets under the bathroom and kitchen sinks wide open, as well as the cabinet OVER the sink, and a small table had been knocked over. (Nothing broken!)

Max greeted me at the door, yelling at me that he was bored and darn it human, play with me NOW!

So I whipped out a peacock feather only to have him kill it dead within 5 minutes.


So. I need to ATTEMPT to Max-proof my cabinets.

I am not a big fan of the cabinet latches that you open the door a little then press down on the plastic thingie, as I think Max will be able to figure those out pretty darned quickly.

Does anyone have any cabinet lock or latch recommendations for Max-proofing? Unfortunately, storage space is minimal in my small apartment, so I have absolutely no place to keep household cleaning chemicals other than under the sinks. And it really freaks me out to think that he is sniffing around the bottles.

Not to mention the fact that he has already tossed some glasses out of the cabinet.

I tried putting a chair in front of the cabinet doors, but he (and Ginger) can move them out of the way, the rascals.

Any suggestions?
 

bnwalker2

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I wish I knew! Spike is the same way, loves to open anything he can. The worst thing is that our bedroom door doesn't latch all the way so he can push or pull it open from either side. We've had to lock it shut with a piece of sisal rope going from the doorknob to nails on the wall!
 
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gingersmom

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Originally Posted by Natalie_ca

Do the cabinets have knobs on them? If so you could use a strong rubber band hooked over 2 knobs to keep the doors closed.
Tried that already, came home to find said thick rubber band on floor being played with by Ferris.
 

pami

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Originally Posted by Natalie_ca

Do the cabinets have knobs on them? If so you could use a strong rubber band hooked over 2 knobs to keep the doors closed.
If Max or any of her other babies are like mine and determined they will chew the rubber band and if swallowed could be potentially dangerous.

I feel for you Betsy I wake up many days with cabinets all open, but with the cleaning chemicals I would be scared, too. Maybe have a look around Home Depot or Lowes.

Heres some different product on Amazon .... also a baby store would have something you might could use.

http://www.amazon.com/b?ie=UTF8&node=166865011&tag=&tag=thecatsite
 

twstychik

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I'd still try the latches... they are pretty cheap and worth a shot at least. My first though was "is he really dexterous enough to open the latches?" My next thought was the loop latches that Pami posted. I also saw some magnet latches but they would have to be super strong magnets.
 
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gingersmom

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Originally Posted by twstychik

I'd still try the latches... they are pretty cheap and worth a shot at least. My first though was "is he really dexterous enough to open the latches?" My next thought was the loop latches that Pami posted. I also saw some magnet latches but they would have to be super strong magnets.
I probably will, but my thought was, why have to go through this twice over if they don't work - Max is REALLY smart, and I see his brain working when he looks at things - you can literally SEE him figuring things out.

It's a bit scary.


I think I need to find some way that I can solicit donations for a "please help me buy a cat wheel for the bored bengals" fund.
 

gemlady

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You might try storing the cleaning supplies in a covered storage bin until you can find a solution to securing the cabinets.

But you had to have Bengals...
 

hopehacker

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Max sounds an awful lot like Simba. With Simba, anything that is locked away from him, means that he is determined to break into the locked area. If it is NOT locked away, he has little or no interest. So, I leave my cleaning supplies out on the kitchen counter, and he doesn't bother them. He is only interested in getting into things that he is NOT supposed to get into.

When Simba was still somewhat of a kitten (less than a year old), he was determined that I was not going to close one of my dresser drawers. He'd open it up every time I closed it, and then he'd drag everything out of it. So..I finally gave in and left the dresser drawer open, and he stopped bothering it, and stopped dragging things out. Now, believe it or not, I can close it.

Simba still knocks down all of my nick nacks, because I can't stand to leave them on the floor, but he is still determined to get into things he's not supposed to get into, so I play psycology with him.
 
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gingersmom

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Originally Posted by gemlady

You might try storing the cleaning supplies in a covered storage bin until you can find a solution to securing the cabinets.

But you had to have Bengals...
Oh hush your face, woman!


Actually, that does make some sense - now...if I could just figure out where to store the covered bin, as it won't fit under the sink with the pipes.
 

gemlady

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Perhaps the bottles can lay on their sides in short bins?

And don't hush me, woman!
 
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gingersmom

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Originally Posted by gemlady

Perhaps the bottles can lay on their sides in short bins?

And don't hush me, woman!


Nope, got too many of them to do that.

I just ordered some of those standard babyproof cabinet locks from eBay for real cheap, so I'll give those a shot first.
 

tavia'smom

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all I can say is good luck and I have missed hearing about him I remember you getting him but I haven't gotten to read much about him but like your other kits he's beautiful.
 

laureen227

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yup, know what you're talking about... to some extent. Cable feels that any cabinet should be accessible so she can investigate. i got these safety locks, & she can't open the cabinets i've equipped with them.
i also have 3 different fasteners on the laundry room doors. finally had to use a hook-&-eye screen door latch to keep them out!
 

crittermom

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They sell things in the child safety area.They are like magnets, that when the door/cupboard are opened, it makes a loud noise.Maybe that would deture him from opening the cabinets?
Good luck!
 

momofmany

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I don't have anything to add, but I have to share this:

I once had a cat named Max. Everytime he caused a mess in the house, we simply called that mess "The Max Factor". His usual antics involved knocking things off the counters to the floor where the dogs would be waiting to chew them up. We still laugh about it.
 
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gingersmom

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My roomie was calling him "Mad Max" within a couple of days. Says that boy has the devil in him - you can see it in his eyes.


I'm wondering what I'll be going home to this evening...


I just bought not one, but TWO Da Birds, both are 1-pc wands, plus I got a whole bunch of extra attachments. That ought to help a bit - now, if I could just find a little more time in my very long day to actually do nothing but PLAY with him...


It's really hard to multi-task while playing with a leaping bengal!
 

kai bengals

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Betsy,

I'm going to agree with the advice that Hope has given you. The "naughty" bengals (Max is obviously a charter member), seem to like to investigate/get into/immerse themselves/make it a life mission to get into anything that is deemed off limits by their humans.

Mine enjoy removing the floor vents and climbing into the A/C/Heating ventilation system under the floor. This drives me and Teri nuts and it's dangerous. I'm sure they know this and relish making us crazy!

I do think you need to lock up your cabinets some how, but it will help if you make the "interesting" things, less interesting by making them more available.

I'm sure you know this by now. Bengals bore easily.
 
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