Kitten jumped on cooktop last night!!! (She's fine) What to do??

marieba

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I was cooking last night on the back 2 burners of my gas cooktop, when I noticed Sasha (4 mo) looking mighty interested for the first time. (She must be part Italian Siamese as I was making sauce and boiling pasta!).

I called to my daughter to come distract the cat, but before I knew it, she jumped straight up and got her front paws hooked onto the cooktop. I grabbed right off, and luckily the grids weren't hot (they are cast iron and often will get warm even if you are using a different burner)

I scolded her, but we all know how well that works...


I've been finding her more and more on the counters (now she jumps from the floor, right *over* the foil on the stools and counter edge) and the table. We "hsst" and say "NO" and get her down immediately, but it's not stopping.

how do I get her to not jump on the counters--for her own safety?? I can't always be right next to a pot that is cooking..

help!
 

meowqueensdaddy

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here's an anecdote that may help..

My GF's cat, Winnie, was pretty awful about jumping up on the countertops when she was a small kitten. That all ended after her family installed a wood stove in their living room. Winnie jumped up on the stove only one time while it was hot, and has never done it again. Once was all it took for her to learn.

With gas, though, I think the only thing you can do is just never leave the stove unattended while it's lit. The cats that I've known don't tend to understand fire too well, and instilling good behavior in kittens and adolescents can be a lengthy process. Sometimes, it just takes time.
 

aswient

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One of my little guys does that, my kitchen has two entrances, standard doors so I put gates across the thresholds. I also used empty cans with pennies in it that I kept on the edges of the counter tops, especially the ones by the stove. So when he jumped up on the counter, at least one of the cans would get knocked over. Needless to say he'd take off out of the kitchen. Eventually he got the message. Good luck.
 

sweetkara

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My cat sleeps on my stove when I'm not home!! I have burner covers but when I do cook (which is rare..lol) I don't leave the burners unattended at ALL.

I have one of those laser pointer things that moves on its own-- I turn that on in another room to distract the cats when I cook.
 

ut0pia

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The SSS cat would not work on all cats...My Jake doesn't care if something sprays him he doesn't care if he steps on foil or tape, either...He is impossible to train...We don't have stools on the countertops though so I hope that he will never learn to get on top of the counters- he is 12 weeks old now..
 

cococat

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Originally Posted by ut0pia

The SSS cat would not work on all cats...My Jake doesn't care if something sprays him he doesn't care if he steps on foil or tape, either...He is impossible to train...We don't have stools on the countertops though so I hope that he will never learn to get on top of the counters- he is 12 weeks old now..
No stools here either, just a cat that is amazing with jumping. That was our last resort, the sss cat, we tried everything else to no avail. Sorry it didn't work for you. your cat is very young, only 12 weeks. there is hope I would think
 

misty8723

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Swanie is the one that does that in my house. I only cook on the back burners, and I try not to leave them unattended. When I'm done cooking, because the burner is still hot for awhile, I will put a pot with water on the burner so if he does get up there, he hopefully can't walk on the actual burner. I also keep a dust mop nearby, because he runs whenever I pick it up.

Always remember that having cats reduces your stress
 

ut0pia

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Originally Posted by cococat

No stools here either, just a cat that is amazing with jumping. That was our last resort, the sss cat, we tried everything else to no avail. Sorry it didn't work for you. your cat is very young, only 12 weeks. there is hope I would think
wow, I really hope he doesn't learn to get on the countertops...We are only trying to get him away from getting on tables but this isn't a huge deal..And after he hears the spray he will simply hesitate for a second, look around kind of startled and scared and then continue on with walking on the table lol...When I saw the video on the SSS cat website now, I though wow this is definitely an exaggeration, with the cat running away as soon as he hears the spray...I'm glad it does work for some cats though..
 

cococat

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Originally Posted by ut0pia

..I'm glad it does work for some cats though..
it does and it is the strangest thing as our cat isn't scared of anything! nothing ever phased this cat. they are new so who knows if they will work over long term and we bought several and lined them up.
We also always have kept the counters very clean so she never gets rewarded for going up there but she likes to jump and be nosey and she has a couple cat trees. vertical space is pretty important for cats. Hopefully he doesn't discover the counters!!!
 

mtcart

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"Buddy", our adopted feral cat never gets on the counters but we have a real rascal, "Cleo." She is about 5 months old now and she constantly gets up on my counters, especially when I am working in the kitchen. I put her down and she jumps right back up, I get water on my fingertips and flip it on her and sometimes she'll get down but then just licks off the water and then she's right back up again. She also stands up next to the cupboards, opens them and goes inside and then jumps up into the drawers. I have to clean constantly. Sometimes when I am cooking or when we are eating, I put her in her soft carrier and set her in the middle of the room so we can have some peace.

One night I was doing laundry and I thought she had gotten into my washer somehow. I called and called and it turns out she jumped up the wall and down the hole in the drywall where the drain hose is attached and ended up in the cold air return space under my laundry room closet. She finally decided she wanted out and there her paw was fishing through the cold air return vent. So I took the vent off and cleaned off all the dust and now I have to put her in the bathroom before I open the laundry room doors as this has happened twice.

She wants outside all the time too and of course we don't let her as we live in the desert with coyotes, etc. So she gets mad, growls a little and stomps off. She is a real little terror I just hope she grows out of some of it. I plan to look into the SSS you all are talking about.

We got her from a couple who said she was too much for their older cat. I should have had a clue when I arrived to pick her up and her food, toys and bed were all sitting outside on the sidewalk. On the bright side, she plays and plays with our other cat, chases her toys all over the house and even plays fetch with her toy mice. When she's not getting into something, she's really sweet and cuddly.
 

karmasmom

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It can be hard to do but we try to keep the kitties lock up in their rooms while cooking. We don't have a ton of space to work in and the last thing I want to have happen is trip over a cat and get burned or worse, me or them. Monkey the 5 year old cat is better about not getting in the way but the baby Roxy 11 months now just has no concept of it. We find its just best for all involved to jeep them locked away. Monkey just curls up and takes a nap but Roxy cries nonstop I think its cause she can smell the food and wants to eat. She will try to eat everything.
 

carlos81

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i'll try a few of these, but does anyone have anything that will keep her off the counters/cooker when i am out?

I just don't want the cat anywhere where i would cook, just see it as too anhygenic!

She did it today, halfway through me cooking, but climbed onto the chopping board i was using!!
 
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marieba

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I'll have to look into SSSST (or however it's spelled)

Cans with pennies, she just ignores. And I don't want to squirt water...

We're really working at keeping her off the table as well. She knows it is wrong. I'll catch her on a chair, poking her little head up over the table top--I'll say "NO!" and her head ducks down, until she thinks I'm not looking and then up it pops again! If she does get onto the table--I say "NO!" as I'm heading to get her --she goes totally flat against the table--I can barely get my hand under to scoop her off. If I didn't think it was gross, I'd think it pretty funny! (And I am completely ignoring the fact that she walks where ever she pleases whilst we aren't home. If I don't see her, she's not doing it...la, la, la...)

Unfortunately we can't shut her away whilst cooking. The way our house is set up, the main floor is her domain and there are no doors, except for our office which has a glass door, so she could see us! All the rooms open onto one another--and don't forget, Sasha is Siamese--if she is awake, she wants to be where we are! If she's asleep, she wants to be where we are!


I'll just be keeping at it...hopefully the NOs will work eventually as she grows.

ever the optimist,

marieba
 

cheylink

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Originally Posted by marieba

I'll have to look into SSSST (or however it's spelled)

Cans with pennies, she just ignores. And I don't want to squirt water...

We're really working at keeping her off the table as well. She knows it is wrong. I'll catch her on a chair, poking her little head up over the table top--I'll say "NO!" and her head ducks down, until she thinks I'm not looking and then up it pops again! If she does get onto the table--I say "NO!" as I'm heading to get her --she goes totally flat against the table--I can barely get my hand under to scoop her off. If I didn't think it was gross, I'd think it pretty funny! (And I am completely ignoring the fact that she walks where ever she pleases whilst we aren't home. If I don't see her, she's not doing it...la, la, la...)

Unfortunately we can't shut her away whilst cooking. The way our house is set up, the main floor is her domain and there are no doors, except for our office which has a glass door, so she could see us! All the rooms open onto one another--and don't forget, Sasha is Siamese--if she is awake, she wants to be where we are! If she's asleep, she wants to be where we are!


I'll just be keeping at it...hopefully the NOs will work eventually as she grows.

ever the optimist,

marieba
It is sooooo important to be consistent when it comes to this type of training. Everyone in the home needs to follow through the same. It is also very important to have her complete the action of getting down herself otherwise she most likely isn't understanding what you want. The basic command "no" should be used to stop her before she jumps. After all, this isn't the only time you are going to use this word. If she has already jumped up, you get her attention, clap or shh, and say down while pointing from where she is then to the floor. Snapping your fingers helps them focus on your hand gesture. At first she won't understand, so persistence and maybe a little scoot or gentle push of the edge. It is essential to be consistent and she shouldn't be allowed on the counters, tables, dressers, anything similar till she learns this command. After all, you are looking out for her safety!
 

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I shut mine out of the kitchen while I am cooking, it is far too dangerous to have 3 very active and curious young male cats "helping" when there are sharp knives and hot pans about. I once had to take Radar to the vet because when he was a kitten he tried to stick his head in a cup of near-boiling point hot tea, he has no common sense whatsoever (he was fine but had to have eyedrops for a week).

They are allowed in the kitchen at all other times, when I am done cooking I put cold water in the pots and pans I used and put them back on the hob so they cannot step on the elements (I have electric hobs) while they are still hot after use, and there are no hot pans for them to investigate - the pans get washed up after we have eaten by which time the hobs have cooled.
 

emmylou

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If foil isn't working, try upside-down plastic carpet runners (the kind with plastic points that stick up). Most cats don't like walking on those.

And I agree, try a spray bottle of water whenever you do see her on the counters or stove. It will take some time and repetition to teach the lesson.
 
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