Get off the counters!

Can someone please suggest ways to train two 4 month old kittens from jumping on the kitchen counters? I have some of the sticky tape thats sold in Petsmart on the countertops but it doesn't seem to stop them? I'm really trying to do what I can to keep them off and would appreciate any suggestions.

Thanks.

Ssscat Cat deterrent

Works whether you are home or not

I allow mine on the counters, except when I'm preparing food. To start with I would put them down each time until they learnt to stay on the floor while I was cooking.

I just wipe down the counters before getting food out

Originally Posted by missymotus

I allow mine on the counters, except when I'm preparing food. To start with I would put them down each time until they learnt to stay on the floor while I was cooking.

I just wipe down the counters before getting food out

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Me too. I invest heavily in Chlorox Bleach Spray and Wipes. I gave up trying to keep my cats off the counters a long time ago. It was an exercise in futility and self-punishment in my home. With 4 extremely curious and active Siamese cats, other than a few certain exceptions, there is no place in my house that hasn't been thoroughly inspected and reinspected several times over. (Don't know why they feel the need, it was the exact same countertop as it was a little while ago when they last checked it ... )

My mom used to leave orange & lemon peels on tables & counters(or anywhere she didn't want our family cats to jump up on). Unfortunately, they only worked on repelling daughters. The mother cat, she just jumped up whenever she wanted, walked around the peels, then daughters eventually started to do the same

My baby-cat seems behaving good but the truth is, she probably knows better that I don't leave any of my food out on literally anywhere within her reach.

I'd say that's another option. Don't leave anything out on the counter that may attract your kitties

Originally Posted by KKH

I'd say that's another option. Don't leave anything out on the counter that may attract your kitties

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Mine don't go up to get things, there is never anything there for them. They are just nosy cats that love to climb and explore everything, so I let them

This article may help (published in our cat behavior section here on tcs) -
http://www.thecatsite.com/Behavior/2...-Counters.html

Originally Posted by missymotus

I allow mine on the counters, except when I'm preparing food. To start with I would put them down each time until they learnt to stay on the floor while I was cooking.

I just wipe down the counters before getting food out

Click to expand...

Same here. I usually give them their wet food as i'm preparing mine as well so their preoccupied

My cats do not go on the kitchen counter when I am around. I suspect they go up occasionally when the urge to check what is up there (and mommy is away) is too strong to resist.

Mine won't stay down.I use Lysol wipes after they get down, when I need to use the area.

The boys have never showed an interest.

We found Jack on the counter two times at our old apartment, during the time we were packing to move. The boxes were piled up in the dining room/kitchen and he was able to walk right from the boxes to the counter.

Neither of our two boys are really jumpers or climbers--which may be why the counter doesn't interest them.

Leslie

Sometimes Sebastian or Caesar will jump up there. DBF will sorta yell "down" but I prefer just gently pushing them by the rear until they jump off or just picking them up and putting them down. I figure if they jump up and I put them down eventually they'll get tired of that and just stop. Sometimes I'll squirt them in the rear with a water bottle or I'll try to deter them by throwing a toy.

Originally Posted by Yuki

An aircan ( the one used to blow dust off from computers or monitor ) works, and spray water bottle should work too.

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Please do NOT use a compressed air can - they are dangerous to use even on humans who are much larger in size than little cats. Also spray water bottles need to be used with caution. If you get ANY water in the cat's ear, even by accident, it can cause a bad infection which, if left unnoticed/untreated can lead to deafness.

Originally Posted by missymotus

I allow mine on the counters, except when I'm preparing food. To start with I would put them down each time until they learnt to stay on the floor while I was cooking.

I just wipe down the counters before getting food out

Click to expand...

Originally Posted by missymotus

Mine don't go up to get things, there is never anything there for them. They are just nosy cats that love to climb and explore everything, so I let them

Click to expand...

Originally Posted by krazy kat2

Mine won't stay down.I use Lysol wipes after they get down, when I need to use the area.

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Ditto to all of the above. If you find something that works let us know.

I don't even try Cats are snoopy and love heights so I just keep the counters wiped down. I don't let them up when I am cooking or the stove is hot tho. My kitchen counters are L shaped with an island bar and Sparky thinks it's great fun to jump from one to the other, which is quite a distance. Lani is too fat to jump that high so I sometimes leave something for her to get on so she can get up there. They like to sit up there and annoy the dogs

I don't necessarily like it so much that my kids jump up on to the counters, but everything I have tried has been ineffective at keeping them down. Now, when they jump up there and I do not want them there at that time, I turn on the kitchen sink faucet and say DOWN! sharply ... they think they are gonna get spritzed with water when they hear it running, so they run away.

My cats have all learned to stay off counters, and they stay off the tables when I'm present (I know they go on them when I'm not there. The cats haven't learned how to cover their tracks yet...) I don't have a magic solution, though.

If they're going up when you're around, it may be an attention-getting activity. "Look at me, I'm a bad kitty, you better come stop me!" The best way to deal with this is to ignore them, then give them attention when they get off.

Spraying water can work, but it takes time. And even after that it may not work.

It also depends on the situation. If one cat discovers that the counter is a convenient escape from another, you may not be able to stop it. We had one girl who did this.

We cleared off the top of the microwave cart, and started feeding her there. When she jumped on the counter we'd pull the "helpful dunce" routine: "Oh, poor little kitty! You tried to jump onto your place and missed. Here, let me put you in your special place." After about six or eight weeks of helpful idiots putting her on the microwave cart and getting food and attention there (we made a point of petting her and giving her special attention whenever she was there, and stopping the moment a paw just happened to wander onto the counter) she finally decided that she'd rather be on the cart. After another six months or so, the dynamics changed and she didn't want the cart any more, but still stayed off the counter.

All I can say is try the ideas in the article, try to stay tuned in to where the cat's head is, be patient, and, as always with a cat, be prepared to not only fail in modifying their behavior but to discover that they've modified =yours=.

I want to thank everyone for their input. Unfortunately this is one of those things where I cannot compromise. The kittens have full reign of every part of the house. The kitchen counters are just not negotiable. I can say with certainty that they are not climbing up to the cabinets to get away from anything or any one as where one goes up, the other will always follow. I tried sticky tape on the counters and found that they actually like the stuff and were often observed laying on the counters right on the tape!
They have learned, so far, not to go on the counters when I'm home, but like another member posted, they cannot hide their paw tracks! I come home to the innocent "look, we've been good all day" faces, only to see tracks all over the counters and stove. Not to mention the clear sign that they've been up on the cabinets; one of their toys is up there!
My next step is to put a barrier on top of the refrigerator like a box or something that will block them from going up to the cabinets. I hope that it's the main reason for going up there since there is never food on the counters.

Thanks again to all!

I don't see what the big deal is but I know it's personal preference.

Even without a cat, kitchen counters are not sterile or really clean. So, I would wipe them down with antibacterial wipes before making food anyways.

It used to drive me crazy that they would go on the counters, but now I let them. Trying to keep them off was a loosing battle. Like everyone else here, I just wipe down the counters before cooking with a Clorox Wipe.

What is cute though is my older baby Rascal. He will come and keep me company while I am doing the dishes or washing salad He is so sweet