New TV & 5 Cats; Tie it Down?

libby74

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Our 17 y/o floor model tv bit the dust, and we replaced it (much to DH's delight) with a 37' flat-screen. Have you seen the little pedestals those things sit on?! While shopping around, for a solid 5 hours yesterday, one of my questions to the salesperson was always, "How easy is this gonig to be to tip over? I've got 5 rambunctious cats." Each and every one looked at me as if I was a complete doofus and assured me that no, a cat couldn't knock the tv over.
Well, I don't believe them. I didn't think a cat could turn on a stove, either
. Anyway, does anyone else worry about this? Have you taken steps to "attach" the tv to the stand? Mounting it on the wall was suggested, but is not an option at all.
Am I worrying for nothing, or do others think this way?
Any ideas on how to keep the tv stable?
Am I just a doofus after all?
 

monaxlisa

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first of all, Nice!!
I got a flat screen a while back (about 9 months) and its sitting on one of those old giant tvs from the 60's with the fake wooden box. The new TV came with a little strap to keep it from tipping, so I've attached it to the old tv with that. Ive got a Great Dane (145lbs) that jumps around and you can feel it in the entire house (the neighbors can probably hear the thumping too) and the TV wiggles a little bit but its never tipped over. The biggest problem I've had with my cats is that they seem to think the space behind the tv with all the cords is some kind of secret gateway and I catch them trying to poke around back there sometimes.
Oh, and I love your signature!!
 

sarahp

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I also have a large flat screen tv on a pedestal - this is the result:





It's pretty sturdy but I always worry that she'll knock it over. I have double sided tape across the top of the tv, and I spray the water bottle in her direction if she tries to get up there. She still wants to be up there, but she only does it now when she wants attention
 

GoldyCat

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One of my cats uses the TV as a jumping-off place to get to the top of the bookcase. The first time I saw her do it I almost had a heart attack. I have my TV on a turntable thing, which makes it even more unstable. I was sure I would come home one day to find it in a million pieces on the floor.

I thought about using strapping tape, you know the kind that's meant for packages, but it really doesn't look very nice. Then I remembered that I had gotten something called Gorilla Tape at Lowe's or Home Depot. It's about 2" wide, made of cloth or vinyl I think, and very strong. The one I have is black, don't know if it comes in other colors. I put the tape across the ends of the TV stand "foot" and wrapped it under the shelf where the TV sits. So far it seems to be working. I'm just waiting for the cats to discover the tape and start picking at it.


You wouldn't want to use this on nice wood furniture. It would probably mess up the finish.
 
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libby74

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I had gotten something called Gorilla Tape
Actually, I had (jokingly
) told DH that I was going to use some Gorilla Glue to hold the tv down!
We did have to buy a tv stand--a knock down do-it-yourself cabinet that didn't cost an arm and a leg, and it has a very dark (almost black) finish. I'm willing to drill holes in the top of it, so a little glue residue wouldn't bother me. My first thought was to carefully drill a couple of holes in the tv's pedestal and use eye-bolts to pass thru the pedestal and into the wooden cabinet the tv is sitting on. DH is afraid I'll crack the pedestal if I drill thru it.
My second thought was to put screw-eyes into the woodwork behind the tv and wrap a bungee cord or rope around the pedestal, then attach the rope to the screw eyes.
I caught one of my girls giving the tv the eye this morning; I swear she was getting ready to jump on top of it until I called her name. I hadn't even thought of one of them jumping on it until I saw that. Now I'm more convinced than ever that I need to hold the tv down some how.

Oh, and I love your signature!!
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yosemite

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First of all, that's one heck of a large TV - 37 feet!


We have a flat screen and the cats don't bother it at all. I think the attachment for the screen is pretty solid, at least ours is.
 

emy4cats

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I would try to add something to it so it does not get knoled over, but I over worry about things. I knew a little girl who was killed by one of those big flat screan TVs falling on her so I over worry about it. I know a little girl is alot stronger then kitties, but I don't think you can ever be too safe when it comes to that sort of thing.
 

oci-lot

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Can you hang it on the wall... I know with some new TV's they can hang on the wall if you buy the mounting kit.
 

meowers

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I am afraid of it tipping over too! We have a big flat screen that we havent moved it yet, but i just know the cats will want to play on it. Hanging it is not an option fir us either. Let me know what happens
 
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libby74

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First of all, that's one heck of a large TV - 37 feet!
Well, I guess I am a doofus after all!


Can you hang it on the wall... I know with some new TV's they can hang on the wall if you buy the mounting kit.
Nope, hanging it is just not an option. Our house is over 100 years old, and apparently the builder had never heard of 16" on center studs. Plus, it's really hard on my neck trying to look up, so it has to be on a stand.
 

jugen

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We have a 61 inch and the cats never try and get on it. They are content to be up on other things, the counters, the window sills, the tables....

I know they can get up there though, I've seen them on the 240 gln fish tank. It's taller then I am and I'm 5'4".
 

valanhb

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Don't have any help, but I am reading with interest since I know we're going to get one sooner or later...sooner if DH has anything to say about it!

And I don't believe sales guys who obviously don't know the power of determined cats. When we bought our mattress, one of those "Do Not Disturb" mattresses where they show someone jumping on the bed without spilling the glass of wine, I told the sales guy that I bet our kitten could make the whole bed move. He laughed and said a house cat couldn't possibly do that, let alone a kitten! Well, he hadn't met our heavy-footed Trent who even as a kitten bounced the whole bed when jumping up to the mattress. And now we have 2 cats who move the whole bed (Trent and Mojo), but 3 that do not. So to say a cat can't knock over a television? Yeah, right!
 
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