How can i keep our three cats (2 coons and one wegian) off of certain chairs that they love to sleep on?? i have tried two different sprays that are 'guaranteed' to work, but they hop up 15 minutes after i spray and settle in!!! There is one chair that i especially want them to stay off of - an oversized superstuffed comfy reading chair with ottoman and sometimes two of them are in the chair and the other on the ottomon and they scat when i enter the room!

-- Anonymous, October 30, 1999

Answers

I am afraid the idea of wanting to have cats and yet also wanting to keep them off furniture is too funny! I am afraid you have to sacrifice some things if you want to share your life with furry beings like cats! Save your money on the spray deterrents.....they don't work at all and are just poisonous to your environment. However, there are a few things you can try. Firstly, most cats HATE aluminum foil. Some people put aluminum foil onto a chair seat to discourage their cats from jumping up. The cat may jump up and then hate the feel and sound of the foil. Another thing some do is to buy double-sided tape across a surface. Cats generally do not like to have their paws sticking onto something. I have also seen people tape balloons onto chairs. Cats don't like these "strange creatures" and will stay away, or, if they DO jump onto them, they will be freaked out by the explosions! I am not crazy about the idea of terrifying cats but if you are desperate, this might be one final idea. Once the cats have been effectively discouraged from an area, they will tend not to return. However, you may well have to do these things a few things to reinforce their memories! If nothing works, maybe your only solution is to move your favorite items into a non-cat zone or to cover the chairs with a nice throw rug which they can sit on but which you can remove when company comes(!) Good luck!

-- Anonymous, October 31, 1999