Get out of the Christmas tree!!

Originally Posted by AlleyGirl

I think this is the site Pami was referring to http://www.fluffytails.ca/christmas.asp

Hilarious!

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Thanks for posting the link

Originally Posted by MarleyAndMe

I would let him play with it but how do you distinguish between batting at the ornaments and chewing the lights...you don't, so for his safety I'd rather not chance it.

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That's another reason why i wouldn't put one up if your unsure.

You asked us and we answered

I figured out last night that our two were just playing with it to get a rise out of me. I saw them out of the corner of my eye batting at an ornament and looking straight at me, and when I turned to look at them they ran away so I would chase them. They came back, batted at it, I pretended not to see it, and they went on to something else.

Originally Posted by carla1183

I figured out last night that our two were just playing with it to get a rise out of me. I saw them out of the corner of my eye batting at an ornament and looking straight at me, and when I turned to look at them they ran away so I would chase them. They came back, batted at it, I pretended not to see it, and they went on to something else.

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they are smart little beings

Ok, I know I'm insane but last year I put the tree up because we had a new kitten. Friday is nine and he's never yet missed sleeping in the Christmas tree. Like the others, I've "cat proofed" my tree. I found that if I bend the ornament hooks around the branches they can't get the ornaments off and also like the others, I don't have anything that could break. Mostly, Friday likes sleeping in the tree and Seti likes attacking the tree skirt. No idea why but then he's a strange little cat. Hemmy and Kit leave it alone. I blogged about it last year. Here's a link if you want to see my kitties and my tree: http://howtoholdacat.blogspot.com/

I have no idea if this would work in your situation or not, but this is what I did, since Kiwi is only 5 months old...
About a month ago I bought an aritficial pine garland (.97 cents at WM) and wrapped it around the pillar in our front entrance. I hung plastic and wooden ornaments in it, and ribbon bows. It looked cute, and naturaly Kiwi went crazy for it. I ignored her, since it was safe for her to climb. This became "her" christmas tree. Last week when we put our tree up Kiwi was right there completely absorbed in the whole thing, but I just took her out, said "NO" firmly and brought her to "her" tree. After a day of this, Kiwi can't be bothered with "our" tree whatsoever because she knows its just no fun. As I am typing this she is mid-way up "her" tree attacking one of the bows. She loves that thing so much, that I think I am going to use the garland to make her her own pine cat tree after christmas.

Originally Posted by PurpleCJ-7

About a month ago I bought an aritficial pine garland (.97 cents at WM) and wrapped it around the pillar in our front entrance. I hung plastic and wooden ornaments in it, and ribbon bows.

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Send pics!

Hehe, well, from experience I can tell you this is a lost cause! We've tried for YEARS to put up a nice big tree. Nope. Destroyed every year!

It's not the destruction that upsets me, it's the light strings and all the small bits on the ornaments I worry about!

We've given up and just gotten a small one foot tree we keep on top of the entertainment stand, they can't get to it up there!!! (I shouldn't speak so soon...you can never outwit a cat!)

I would worry about the cat eating something he isn't suppose to and hurting himself. Sometimes cats can eat string and it can kill them.
I can't think of anything that can keep him off your tree, this product from Petsmart might SSSCat. http://www.ssscat.com/

What I did last year, with limited success...was spray the bottom most ornaments and lighting wires with "no bite" spray. That seemed to deter most chewing. But, we have a fake tree and they did tip it once. We will have it in a corner this year...hopefully with a sturdier stand... and shatter proof ornaments.

Art

I just put a Christmas tree up for the first time since I've been on my own. Neither has ever seen a Christmas tree. Seamus is 3 and totally uninterested in the thing, Freddy, being a 5 month old kitten and rambunctious to begin with, immediately jumped in yesterday as soon as I had it set up. It's a 6 ft fake tree with the lights already in it. I'm pretty resigned to the fact that he will attack the tree and do some damage, my other half, not so much. I searched the internet for some ways to prevent, and one site said they don't like the smell of citrus or peppermint, so we bought a couple citrus car air fresheners and embedded them into the tree and bought peppermint oil and orange oil used for baking and I dabbed the bottom pieces of the tree with a Qtip covered in the peppermint oil. Right now, the house stinks like peppermint and orange, and both me and boys are a little unhappy about that, but it's keeping Freddy away from the tree.

Originally Posted by erinca7821

I searched the internet for some ways to prevent, and one site said they don't like the smell of citrus or peppermint, so we bought a couple citrus car air fresheners and embedded them into the tree and bought peppermint oil and orange oil used for baking and I dabbed the bottom pieces of the tree with a Qtip covered in the peppermint oil. Right now, the house stinks like peppermint and orange, and both me and boys are a little unhappy about that, but it's keeping Freddy away from the tree.

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Peppermint oil can be toxic to cats just from being inhaled. Any essential oil can be.

http://cats.about.com/od/housekeepin...omatherapy.htm

I did not know that, I will be reading up on that more, the site I found just said spray a little peppermint oil on the tree. It isn't aromatherapy oils or anything like that, I got it in the baking section at AC Moore.

This is why we wait to put our tree up until a couple days before Xmas eve, and then take it down right after xmas. Even if they do try to climb it, a few days isn't long enough for them to completely destroy it...at least the cats I've had wouldn't.

Originally Posted by MarleyAndMe

Im not taking it down, I thought there had to be something I can do to keep him out of it. By your suggestion, Im not thinking so. Well I can keep him in the bedrooms while we are gone and at night. I guess it's going to be a loooong month! Do cats usually grow out of this or should I expect it every year??

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My cats are old timers now but even 8 years ago, none of them really bothered with the tree. They did like to take turns hiding under it, to then pounce on one of their unsuspecting buddies. heh heh. A couple would drink the sugar water in the bottom of the tree stand (so I'd have to cover it with tin foil).

Until I could be sure they wouldn't knock it over, I would secure it to the wall.......take one of those elastic/bungee cord things and wrap it around the middle of the trunk.....then attach to a "hook" (the kind you screw in) in the wall. Best to ensure the "hook" is screwed through the drywall and into a stud or it's not real secure.

I'd of course not put tinsel on the tree. No glass balls.

Maybe if you can do these sorts of things, you can keep the tree up? It's probably a pretty big novelty to the kitties now....but after a couple of days it won't be so much? If you can secure it so that it won't topple over, and ensure you're using cat-friendly decorations, you should be okay.

well our tree has been up for a few weeks now and marley still loves it, but he loves to lay under it now more than anything!! which is just fine on occasion he is still batting at all the shiney things that are hanging down so i took howtoholdacat's advice and wrapped the plastic hooks around the branch so they aren't flying off everywhere....thank you so much for that suggestion!! he also loves when he is doing his nightly rounds of running rampid through the house to make running under the tree and out the other side a part of his course. so now i really don't care if he plays and isn't getting into trouble, he is learning he can't chew on the tree and lights...i just say his name and he gives me a burrrrr and moves on. just takes time i guess. thank you all for your suggestions and concerns, now i realize that he thinks i did all of this for him, and thats okay

So glad to hear it's working out and the tree and Marley both are surviving happily together.

I put up the tree yesterday. I got a pine with needles because the branches are week and hopefully will not allow the cats to climb it. Maya was laying under it yesterday, but made no attempt to climb it......yet.

Maya did bat at a couple of lower ornaments though but quickly lost interest.

Aww, this is bringing me memories of last year, living with 2, two year old kittens. A christmas tree is giant cat toy.

I got lucky with my new kitty, 5-6ish year old Chester, we just put up the tree, and he's decided that underneath is his new bed.