Keeping kittens off the dining table

I wonder if anyone can help with a behaviour problem which is growing increasingly exasperating. Our two 6 month old Burmese kittens will insist on jumping on and walking all over the dining table whilst we are eating. They are so cheeky they will go for food on the plates we are actually eating from and help themselves if they are not stopped. They lick up bits of food on cutlery or that the children spill around their plates and generally disrupt all mealtimes. They knock sauces, cornflake boxes, milk bottles etc over as they go from one place to another trying to get at anything edible.

We have NEVER fed them titbits from the table, so have never encouraged them to start begging. I always feed them before we eat, so they don't have the excuse/reason of being hungry. They will not be distracted by toys at all, when there's food on the scene.

We have tried just removing them, constantly putting them on the floor and saying nothing, but they just jump straight back on, actually clawing their way up someone's leg or leaping on to someone's lap to get there. We have tried hissing at them or speaking in a cross voice, but they don't care a button. I have been trying to avoid the water squirt route, partly because I know some are of the opinion this is not a good thing to do and partly because sitting around the dining table, we'll be squirting each other as well!! I know there's the option of simply shutting them out of the room while we eat, but unless we shut them somewhere such as the bathroom upstairs, where they can't do any damage, they know what's going on and yowl and scratch the carpet at the doorway. And it's a pain having to round up the kittens and shut them up somewhere, when you're trying to round up the kids to come for their meal.

Our 18 month old male, Raffles, just watches looking aghast at their behaviour - and he was a stray from the RSPCA, but somewhere picked up perfect manners. When we first brought them home we thought it was just kitten behaviour and they would calm down and grow out of it. We thought that although they were bred in a house, perhaps they hadn't experienced family meal times. There's no sign of them growing out of it and it's worse because they're a lot bigger now. I'd be really grateful for any suggestions.

Oh, everyone's neutered by the way (except us!) just in case anyone thinks it might be relevant.

You mean this is possible, Jan?

We had similar problems with our two when they first came from the shelter, although this was because (apparently) their previous owner used to allow them to take food from her plate at the table. All I can say is that it took a long time, more than six months, and even after they had learned not to use the table while we were eating, they would forget occasionally. When you remove them from the table you could try saying 'get down' every time; eventually they will get to know what that means! The other thing I used to do was to save a bit of the food, and if by some miracle no paws touched the table while we were eating, they would get their treat (in their bowls, after we had finished). I can remember Milly, during this training year, running towards the table, suddenly realising that it was wrong, and pulling up short. She then spent the rest of that mealtime being conspicuously good, and got her treat!
I ought to warn you, we got a new table not long after the cats had learned their not-on-the-table manners, and as far as they were concerned it was a case of 'new table, new rules' and we had to start all over again! But it didn't take so long the second time.
Stick at it, it may take a long time, but you can do this!

Sue

We allow ours to sit in our laps while we eat and if they make an attempt to climb on top of the table, we stop them before they get there. Repeat this about 10,000 times and they will figure it out eventually.

Seriously though - it depends on their approach to the table. If they jump up from the floor, we grab them and place them in our laps. If they are in their laps, we watch for them to start putting their paw up and push it off the table, then make them lay down in our laps. Scarlett is our worst offender, and is now very good at simply hopping up in our laps and settling down thru dinner. It took a lot of time and patience to get her to do this.

We also never feed them tidbits from our meals. They have their canned treat at 7PM each night and sometimes other treats throughout the day. If you give them food off your plate, they will come begging at dinnertime. If you feel the need to give them table scraps, finish your dinner, do the dishes, and come back with the treats at least 1/2 hour after you finish your meal. Never relate your eating to them getting snacks.

Good luck! They sound like wonderful boys!!

My first question is: how old are your children?

First off, I would stop giving table scraps period. No matter what, these cats only get canned and dry food, and clean fresh water. Nothing off the table goes in their bowls. You are setting a bad precedent for these kittens. You are telling them not to get on the table, but you are feeding them the food that sits on these tables, even if in their bowls, they don't know the difference. They are scent driven, and they are after food. So you have a confused pair of kittens at the moment.

Next, I would round them up and put them in a room while you enjoy dinner. Take a CD player into the bathroom with them, play classical music, dim the light bulbs in the room, throw in special toys they only get during this time (keep the toys away from them except during this period of time). Make sure they have good canned food, water and litter and make sure the litter pan doesn't sit close to the food and water. If they scratch at the door, depending on how big your bathroom is, park your vaccum cleaner in front of the door on the inside like a quiet sentry. Run the plug under the door and have the vaccum cleaner on. At the first scratch, plug in the machine just for one second. Nothing long ended, just one second, enough to startle them, then let the machine rest and go eat your meals.

Don't allow these kittens on the dining room table at all- not even when meals are over. It is quite possible that they are getting on there at night, so to stop them, is you get a computer mat- the plastic type and put it on your table before you go to bed. You want to flip it upside down, so the rubber points are pointing up. They are just being normal kittens and sledding across your table while you sleep. It is great fun. Also be sure that they have a cat condo or a cat ramp they can get up on and play on and be secure there.

Bakker is 6 months and the rescue I got him from-she had a island in the kitchen and all the cats were jumping up there-sticking heads in coffee cups, 'playing with cigarette butts, and whatever else was on the island. Bakker for the most part has been pretty good. Once in a while he will sit on my lap while eating. But if my husband forgets to push the chair in close to the table Bakker will jump on the chair and attempt to go on the table. I say NO real loud, pick him off the chair and put him on the ground. Its seems to be working but I have to be consistent. The others are good-except my senior boy OX will be sunning himself. I figure if he is close to 17 yrs so its allowed. Most of the time I slap my hand on table, say no and give them "the look". and it works very well!! Hope this helps.

Originally Posted by Jan

I don't understand why we are setting a bad precedent or why we are confusing our kittens.

We don't feed table scraps. My original post says that we NEVER feed titbits from the table and I always feed my cats their own food before we eat so that they are not still hungry when we are eating. The kittens only get their food, in their bowls, full stop.

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How old are your kids? Are you CERTAIN that the children aren't indulging the cats behind your back?

My children are 11 and 8 and they are definitely not feeding them. They are as fed up of it as we are.

Cats are scent driven. If you feed table scraps, and that same food appears on the table, what is to tell these kittens that the familiar scent is now off limits to them? They smell the smell it triggers a response in them that says food, and they jump for the scent. That's what I meant. It sends a confused response to the kittens. You need to set up your boundaries and make them clear for the kittens. At mealtimes, they get time out in another room. It only takes a few times before they catch on. We eat our meals at the table, all of our cats nine in total are usually in the room, but not on the table or in our laps or in our faces. They know that the table is off limits and mom gets tough on them (I hiss at them) the first time they jump for the table. I don't spray water at them, I simply hiss and put them down. Being strays it is tough at first because they identify many food smells with food they have dug out of bins in order to survive, but they respect the boundaries set and we have peaceful meals.

Originally Posted by Jan

My children are 11 and 8 and they are definitely not feeding them. They are as fed up of it as we are.

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I think the idea of putting one of those prickly rubber mats upside down on the dining table when you aren't using it is the only thing that strikes me as potentially effective. The cats will make a direct connection between their actions (getting on the table) and consequences (prickled paws). After a few weeks they most likely will lose interest in the table altogether.

I can't keep my cats off the table either. Of course, I rarely use it for dining. It's mostly just a catchall for my purse, the mail, and of course, my crew.
Good luck!

Dev

We still deal with this problem from time to time and it is a tricky one. We have found that a firm "No, Get Down" works the best. And 9 times out of 10 they get down but it wasn't always that easy. If I tell them once, I tell them a million times a night but you have to stick with it. We don't even let them in our laps b/c we just can't get them still. They think while they are up there, they are that much closer to a snack. So that didn't work for us.

By the way, that bit from Hissy about the vacume and the prickly thing on the table is Brilliant to me! I'll have to remember that. I hope you have good luck with this and you and your family are able to enjoy dinnertime again.