No jumping on the counter!!!

Ok- so my 8mo kit Nico recently figured out he is now big enough to jump up to our kitchen counters. He is allowed on EVERYTHING else in the apt but this, as I don't want him licking dirty dishes or sink water (which I try to keep to a minimum, but I am a busy girl), or walking on the stove. But nothing I am doing to "train" him off is working! I have tried shaking loud things, like a can of coins, blocking the edges off (he still finds a way up, he has very long legs and can jump high), and now I am using double-sided tape on the counters, which he doesn't mind much. I try making a big fuss and scary noises (like the coins) when he jumps up, but he is a brave one and just gives me a "why are you doing that?" look.

Anyone else have any ideas?

I never tried to keep my cats off the counters. To do so would be like drying off a car in the middle of a rainstorm; I have 6 cats and I'm gone 9 hours a day!

So, what I do is, if / when there are dirty dishes soaking in the sink and I don't want my babies licking the things, I either use this large glass cutting board & set it overtop, or just put a dishtowel overtop of the soaking pans.

Normally I just make it a major habit of mine to rinse stuff & put it into the dishwasher immediately. But for the "soaking" baked-on stuff... yeah I have to cover it or else cats are up there drinking the soapy water!

Dishtowels & glass cutting boards work... double sided tape wouldn't offer a prayer for me, Hammie just loves chewing tape, he took off with a bunch of used masking tape when I was done painting recently, ran through the house with the stuff stuck to him, chewing on it!

Saba has discovered this too! The little miss is a jumper, alright...we're learning, as she is new to us by only a month now.....
I use a clap of my hands and a firm "NO", butI don't yell or threaten her in any way. Usually she just jumps down. Sometimes, she flirts with the idea of behaving and stares at me with a twinkle in her eye... and I walk over and gently take her down with a firm no. I am too much of a marshmallow, for sure!

My boys were terrible with this when we first got them, and nothing would deter them as they are also fearless!!

However, a combination of two things has helped, and they're both in understanding that cats are just naturally curious and like to be involved!!

1) I keep the benches as clear as possible. I know you're busy, and so was I, I work full time (and the rest!) and study as well, but now I just make the extra effort to put scraps straight into the bin and dishes into the dishwasher.

and

2) Our kitchen and living area is one big open part of our house, so I placed their kitty condo in between the two areas, so they can see what's happenning when i'm cooking dinner without jumping up!!


Good luck! I know how frustrating it can be

I'm with Sarah: I don't leave dirty dishes around (they go into the dishwasher) and I have a medium sized cat condo in the kitchen. When they are on the counter, they get moved to the table or condo so they can see what I'm doing. If they are on the section of counter by the stove, they get my fiercest holler before they are escorted off, as that is a HUGE no-no.

Sorry, but I had to laugh at your story - they are SOOOOOOO proud of themselves when they realize that they are "big boys" and can jump up on the counter.

You are doing the right thing. Try bubble wrap or citrus type cleaners in the mix of counter deterants. Keep all playthings (like pens) off the counters. What works for one cat won't work for others.

You can also get those plastic computer mats, cut them to fit and put them on the counter upside down, so the rubber points point up. One jump on this, and they won't get back on the countertop. It doesn't hurt them, but it does startle them.

I like the computer mat idea! I will have to try it. And force myself to the keep the counters clean and sinks clear- unfortunately I have no dishwasher >groan<.

hissy said:

You can also get those plastic computer mats, cut them to fit and put them on the counter upside down, so the rubber points point up. One jump on this, and they won't get back on the countertop. It doesn't hurt them, but it does startle them.

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This is a fantastic idea! I'm currently trying tinfoil to correct this behaviour. So far Jupiter has jumped up on it once, and he slipped which made him jump back down. So far, no more attempts to get back on the counter, but we'll see how it goes. If the tin foil ends up being a bust, I'll definitely try this!

You can get pet behave sprays that leave a nasty taste and smell in thier mouth and will stop them in thier tracks, just spray it on the side of the counter before you go out and the cat won't bother anymore (ask in the pet shop and they will give you some) as soon as he goes near the stuff,  i don't agree with letting cats on the counter where food is prepared, that is very unhygienic, why would anyone do that is beyond me.

On top of what everyone else said, don't use double sided tape, use lint roller sheets! They'll stick to him when he jumps up and then stay on him when he runs away. My cat constantly jumps up on surfaces I don't want him on but as long as I keep the sheets scattered around, he stays away.

Minka said:

On top of what everyone else said, don't use double sided tape, use lint roller sheets! They'll stick to him when he jumps up and then stay on him when he runs away. My cat constantly jumps up on surfaces I don't want him on but as long as I keep the sheets scattered around, he stays away.

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I've had the opposite luck. Double sided tape works like a charm for me. But sometimes if I'm lazy before work, I'll lint roll myself, and then instead of throwing it into the trash, I'll just lay the "used" piece of sticky lint roller paper on the kitchen table. I've been around and see the cats step/lay on those and they do run around like idiots for a couple seconds, but then the paper comes off of them and off of the table and the cat then hops right back up on the table. The double sided tape doesn't move and therefore the cats can't move it and then lay there anyhow.

We've had one cat that would never work on.  Truman would come running when he heard me unrolling masking tape, duct tape, or pulling the sticky labels off new blue jeans.  He would pester us until we stuck some on him.  He would dance and prance and twist to get it off, then stand there until we put it on him again.  He'd keep doing it until it wouldn't stick to him any more.
 

RIccaDawn said:

I've had the opposite luck. Double sided tape works like a charm for me. But sometimes if I'm lazy before work, I'll lint roll myself, and then instead of throwing it into the trash, I'll just lay the "used" piece of sticky lint roller paper on the kitchen table. I've been around and see the cats step/lay on those and they do run around like idiots for a couple seconds, but then the paper comes off of them and off of the table and the cat then hops right back up on the table. The double sided tape doesn't move and therefore the cats can't move it and then lay there anyhow.

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I put lots of strips of it on the table so even if a couple come off, there are always more up there.

squirting water from a plastic bottle will get your cat moving. better yet share the counter with kitty. kitty

will not drink dirty water--your lucky if kitty drinks clean water.

daddyincr said:

squirting water from a plastic bottle will get your cat moving. better yet share the counter with kitty. kitty
will not drink dirty water--your lucky if kitty drinks clean water.

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Please do not use a spray bottle on your cat. It will not work to change behaviour, only to frighten him and make him wary of you. As soon as you leave he will be up there again. A firm 'no' and lift down every time is better. And never leave anything up there that smells good or that will attract them.

jennyranson said:

Please do not use a spray bottle on your cat. It will not work to change behaviour, only to frighten him and make him wary of you. As soon as you leave he will be up there again. A firm 'no' and lift down every time is better. And never leave anything up there that smells good or that will attract them.

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Like cooked chicken lol, you would never get them away from the counter, also another tip, don't put thier food bags above the counter where they can see them, that is asking for trouble imo put them in the cubards bellow out of site.

New to TheCatSite and this is my very first post!  Love the mat idea and will definitely try it with my 5-month-old exploratory Oliver.  Now off to find a thread that addresses biting ...