This post is all about how to cat proof your house.
Cats are a lot of fun, but they also know how to get into trouble.
Believe it or not, there are a lot of potential hazards that you may have in your home that you don’t know are actually harming your cat.
In this post, I’ll go over all the measures you can take as a cat owner to create a safe environment for your cat, as well as ways you can protect your furniture and teach good habits to your cat.
In this post, I will share with you how to cat proof your house with these insanely good methods that actually work.
Hazards To Avoid
1. Secure or discard poisonous plants
You might be surprised to learn that there are LOTS of plants that are poisonous to your cat.
This certainly was news to me.
I remember I was so excited to buy a Peace Lily for my bedroom. I heard they are great for providing oxygen and an ideal sleep environment.
As I was waiting in the checkout line, I randomly had the thought, “maybe I should look this up to make sure it’s not poisonous to cats”.
I’m glad I did because they are indeed toxic for cats.
Even some essential oils are bad for your cat. So anytime you want to bring a new plant or essential oil into your home, be sure to research if it is safe for cats or not before you do.
Here’s a list of common household plants that are toxic to cats:
- Aloe Vera
- Snake Plant
- English Ivy
- Pothos
- Cutleaf Philodendron
- Jade Plants
- Dieffenbachia
Flowers that are toxic to cats:
- Lilies
- Peace Lilies
- Daffodils
- Tulips
- Hyacinth
- Oleander
- Poinsettia
- Chrysanthemum
There’s more than this, so always research a plant before bringing it into your home.
2. Be mindful where you place breakable objects
We’re trying to teach our cats not to jump up on our furniture, but sometimes it just happens.
Be mindful where you place your breakable decor pieces, dishes and anything made of glass or porcelain in your home. Consider keeping them behind cabinet doors.
Certainly don’t place them close to the edge of a table or shelf where your cat might accidentally knock it over.
3. Secure wobbly furniture
Cats love exploring and climbing on furniture.
If you have a bookshelf or any type of furniture that can easily be knocked over if your cat jumps on it, consider anchoring it to the wall to prevent any big accidents that could hurt your cat or destroy your home.
4. Keep chemicals and cleaners out of reach
Just like with kids, you want to protect your cat from ingesting harmful chemicals. Always secure chemicals in a safe place behind cabinets or somewhere your cat can’t get to.
5. Don’t leave sharp or other hazardous objects lying around
Cats are curious creatures, and they love getting into things. Never leave sharp items or choking hazards out unattended.
Here are some hazardous objects to be mindful of:
- Knives
- Scissors
- Thumbtacks
- Pins
- Needles
- Beads and other small objects
- Rubber bands
- Ribbon
- Plastic bags (cats love to eat them)
- Electrical cords and wires
- Medication
- Hot iron
Just be mindful of different hazards around your house and try to avoid them as much as possible.
6. Don’t leave candles unattended
Protect your cat from open flames by not leaving them unattended with candles or an open fire. Their tails and whiskers are especially prone to catching fire.
7. Keep cabinet and appliance doors shut
Cats are curious and love getting into small spaces. We might not realize our cats have crawled in the kitchen cabinets or inside the laundry machine.
If you did leave any cabinet or appliance open unattended, always check to make sure your cat hasn’t gotten inside before starting the machine or locking the door shut. Your cat just might be inside.
Cat Training
8. Cat proof your furniture
So how do you prevent your cat from scratching your furniture? I have found two methods that work great for training my cat not to scratch my furniture.
The first one is to buy double sided sticky tape specifically designed for training cats. I use this one from Amazon.
Cat’s do not like the feeling of sticky tape on their paws. So while it may be a bit of an eye sore for a while, it’s just temporary. Place the tape around the areas of your sofa, bed or any other place they like to scratch. You will notice how much of a buzz kill it is for your cat and after a while, they won’t even bother trying anymore.
That’s when you know it’s safe to take the tape off.
Now that you’ve trained your cat not to scratch your sofa, you must provide them an alternative.
Cat’s need to scratch things, it’s in their DNA. So I like to place scratching posts close to those furniture pieces they loved scratching so much.
Specifically, I get these flat scratch pads for my cat. She LOVES them and uses them a lot more than the typical scratching post.
9. Cat proof your tables and counters
If you also have problems with your cat jumping up on the kitchen counter, dining room table, or any other tall surface they’re not supposed to be on, this tip is for you.
Similar to the last point, I use the double sided sticky tape to teach my cat not to jump on the counters too.
It is a bit of an inconvenience because who wants tape on their counters…but it’s only temporary and it works GREAT!
Run the sticky tape along the parts of the counter your cat usually jumps up onto. Your cat will jump up and immediate realize it does not like that at all and jump back down.
After a while, your cat will learn that it’s not a good experience when they jump up on the counter, and they will just stop doing it.
Once you reach that point and realize your cat isn’t trying to jump up on the counter or table anymore, go ahead and remove the tape.
I’ve found it takes a few days to a week before it’s time to take the tape down.
This post was about how to cat proof your house.
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