Ask MetaFilter posts tagged with cats

Why are there so many cats in Istanbul?

SilentSalamander — Thu, 03 Jul 2008 01:53:35 -0800

My wife and I are honeymooning in Istanbul. Why are there so many (apparently) stray cats wandering the city?

How can I keep stray cats away?

simplethings — Wed, 02 Jul 2008 12:52:13 -0800

How can I keep stray cats away? I've seen a few stray cats (5 at the most) using my front porch as a nightly hang out... If I plan to leave my house at night I'll open the front door and turn on the porch light and I'll see cats running away. When I come home in the evenings I'll see cats on the porch and they'll scatter once I pull into my drive way.
This wouldn't be a huge problem if I wasn't allergic and terrified of stealthy four legged animals (I've never owned a mammal larger than a hamster as a pet).

I've read the other keep-stray-cats-away-thread that suggested orange zest, a spray bottle, or trappings.
I have a few questions regarding these as well:
-I've read some information that said orange zest doesn't necessarily work for all cats and there are cats who actually enjoy it. True?
-Also--will orange zest attract other animals (we regularly see deer, raccoon, and coyote in our area) or bees or ants?
For the most part the cats jet at the first sign of me so a spray bottle doesn't seem like a useful solution. I've considered sneaking open my front door to spray them but I'm afraid they'll run into the house... or attack me.
I'm too afraid of the cats (and other wild animals) to do any trapping.
I've considered calling animal control or something equivalent but the cats aren't always in front of my house.

Other possibly useful notes: There used to be a family of frogs living in a hole beneath the porch and I think that might have been what originally brought the cats to us... but the frogs have been long gone and the cats still come.
Last summer I had a very active bee colony living underneath the bushes near the patio--I thought this would be a cat deterrent but often when the cats are fleeing they'll take a romp through those very bushes. Is this hive actually attracting cats?
The cats disappeared over winter but once the weather was warmer I started seeing them more often.
I live in a once rural, now quickly developing suburb very outside of Chicago.

Please help.

Aquarium Pump Cat Fountain Surprise

quarterframer — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 09:49:20 -0800

Er, I mean supplies. Need pump advice from someone who knows their fish tank equipment. I am going to build something like this homemade cat fountain over the weekend.

I am overwhelmed with the choices available for pumps. Wish list:

1) An off/on switch (if possible).
2) Will either have a good gentle flow for this purpose or will be adjustable (not looking to build a water park, just a good trickle will suffice).
3) Will be quiet (don't want a loud electric pump hummmm that will deter the cats).
4) Easy to clean.

Thanks in advance for recommendations of specific pump models.

Why I am doing this (in case you are wondering): Cats like moving water. All the purpose built fountains I can find have plastic basins made in China. We want to minimize the risk of bad plastic stuff leaching into the water. I am aware that the pump will be plastic. Just minimizing.

Am I sharing blood with my cat?

woodblock100 — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 01:59:14 -0800

We're well into the rainy season here in Tokyo, and that means mosquito season too! It seems to be quite a bad year for them here, at least it seems so in my area. Boots the Cat is being especially bothered by them, and I've even seen one probing at her nose as she sleeps. I'm of course getting bit too, and that makes me wonder - as Boots-chan and I are the only residents in this house, and it's quite possible that mosquitoes have been going 'back and forth' between us, am I 'sharing' blood with her? Is this something I should be concerned about?

Help me spoil my cat!

CrazyGabby — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 09:42:52 -0800

Catfilter: How do I reward positive behavior in a cat that doesn't like anything? My cat, Gabby, doesn't like cat treats. The only "people food" she really likes is cookie dough. She doesn't respond to catnip. She hates to be brushed. She will occasionally play with us but usually gets bored and wanders off. She doesn't like to be held and petted unless it's on her terms. She's a loving cat, but it just needs to be when and how she wants it. She's also rather skittish.

We recently got a new kitten, Zappa, and Gabs has been behaving very well with him. She hisses plenty, but hasn't attacked him, hasn't run away to hide, hasn't acted out in other ways, even let him use her litterbox (THAT one floored me). She's been more standoffish than usual with us, but I'm not surprised - she needs quiet and calm before she'll come up to you for some love. The kitten is an attention whore, so I think she's feeling a little neglected. I want to give her some sort of positive reinforcement for behaving so well, as well as make sure that she knows we love her and haven't replaced her...but how?

Feeding My Cats Homemade Raw Meat Diet - Good Idea?

billysumday — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 06:50:59 -0800

I want to make my own homemade, raw meat (chicken and rabbit) cat food. My girlfriend thinks it's a bad idea. Almost everything I can find on the interwebs suggest that feeding a cat a BARF (biologically appropriate raw food) diet is healthy for the cat. This wiki suggests that there is no scientific evidence pointing to a clear resolution - in the references section there are some vets arguing one way or the other, but nothing concrete. Has anyone been there, done that, or have any other advice? Following the advice and instructions of this vet, I'd like to grind up whole pieces of chicken, add the necessary supplements, and feed that mixture to my cats as a supplement to their dry food.

Girlfriend is pragmatic and a Ph.D. student in the sciences and is demanding solid research to support this idea. There is no solid research, so far as I can tell, but there are a lot of supplemental anecdotes by random people on the internet that swear by this diet. Also, online companies selling people raw food to feed to their cats.

I would love any suggestions people have of other, better recipes; advice on how to make homemade cat food; and ideas to convince the g/f to feed the kitties my super awesome Billysumday's special all-natural feline delite raw food diet.

I love my cat, but I mean... I don't LOVE my cat.

marylynn — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 21:53:03 -0800

Maybe I'm just a prude but if I wanted an animal to hump my leg every night, I would have got a dog. What is my cat doing? I have a ~4 year old, male cat who I've had for just over two years. He was neutered before I got him. He's generally very affectionate and playful and if you're sitting down he has to be sitting with you, preferably on you (the rescue shelter told me he'd never be a lap cat. Suckers). He particularly likes to sit on my legs while I'm laying on the couch reading or browsing online. He had previously done some kneading of his paws on my belly which was odd and mostly cute.

However, in the last two weeks he's become excessively happy with his kneading. I mean, I can't lay down without a cat making a boner on my lap. He starts the kneading and the back end starts shaking and before you know it - little red Christmas light. I have to toss him off which I hate to do because our couchtime cuddles were a lot of fun. And when I do it he sulks off and sits, kittyloaf style in the middle of the room. I don't think he knows what's going on.

I've considered a urinary tract infection but he's peeing normally - no straining and in normal amounts and just in the litterbox and drinking normally. And he only does this while I'm laying down - he sleeps with me and doesn't do it then (or, I'd like to think some dude pawing me while I'm trying to sleep would wake me up - it has with the human men I've had in there) nor does he hump any blankets or furniture.

Ideas? Should he go to the vet even though he seems perfectly fine in every other way? He faked a leg injury a couple of months back and I rushed him to the vet and he walked around there all "What? I'm fine. Fooled ya!" so I'm not really anxious for another unnecessary vet bill right now. Should I just get him a pretty pink stuffed animal cat and let him have at her, like a furry?!

Cross-Country Cat Transportation

baggers — Sat, 07 Jun 2008 13:19:59 -0800

My wife and I are moving across country from California to Massachusetts. And we want to bring our animal posse with us. Moving the dogs is not too bad (they are both small enough to fly), but we also have a number of cats, including some that aren't keen on big life changes. How do we get them across the country without them killing us or vice versa? We've contacted a couple of animal moving companies, but most seem to specialize in international moves, and were either expensive or didn't seem that interested in helping us because these are domestic moggies, not show cats. So , I was wondering if any one had any suggestions or experience in moving large quantities (probably 8-9) of critters across country without going mad in the process.

Kitty on the potty?

owhydididoit — Tue, 03 Jun 2008 07:11:43 -0800

I want to teach my cats to use the toilet instead of a litter box. Anybody done that and have tips? I've searched the web (?), but would like to hear from others about the experience before I take the plunge. I have a second bathroom and the litter box has always been near the toilet in there. The kittens are three and a half months old. I wouldn't mind teaching their mom, too, but she is almost two and very skittish, so I'd be happy just to get the little ones on the throne.

Should I get cats considering my/their living conditions?

ClarissaWAM — Mon, 26 May 2008 12:39:54 -0800

Cat lovers! Please tell me whether it is reasonable for me to get (a) cat(s) with the layout / options I have, or whether I should just abandon the idea for now. I have recently bought a fairly small (~40sqm) top floor flat in a converted Victorian house (UK). I really really miss having cats, but I would also never get pets if I can't offer them acceptable living conditions. So I need your impartial advice. Here's the deal:

* I work 7hrs/day and am mostly home when I do not work (I live 5mins from work). I do travel, but usually only for long week-ends, and I have people willing to look after the cat(s) during those times.
* I have a lounge and a bedroom so 2 cats could get away from each other, but not that far away (they would still hear/smell each other).
* they would have access to the roofs of the whole block. Our family cat used to love the roofs, but she had unlimited access to ground-floor-outdoors too. (I have known cats with roof-access-only, but roofs aren't exactly a "going wild & running around" environment, so I dunno.)
* there is the possibility of letting them out the front door, but coming back in would be reliant on someone opening the door for them. Could I condition them to know I will be back from work at [time]? (ground-floor-people may be willing to open door if they hear miaowing but no guarantee, esp. over many years where tenants will change)
* lastly, assuming I fulfil cat-conditions, should I get one or two cats?

Thanks for any input. Please do tell me I'm insane/cruel/selfish if you think so and I shall get guinea pigs instead. (for them the flat will seem huge!)

Once you go backyard, you never go back

granted — Sun, 25 May 2008 17:46:54 -0800

Is there any neighborhood or general area in San Francisco that allows a carless commute to the Mission, and where an indoor-outdoor cat could be reasonably safe? I live in Oakland right now, but I'm sick of my hour-long daily commute and hope to move to the city in July. But! Here in the suburban-ish East Bay, my kitty can climb in and out my window at his leisure and spend the days and nights frolicking his little heart out. My street is quiet enough, and the backyards are big enough, that most of the cats here are indoor-outdoor and I don't worry that he'll be hit by a car or eaten by a cougar. I feel a twinge of distress when I imagine the plaintive whimpers and mournful looks he'll aim at me when he's confined to an apartment - and the property damage from his subsequent tantrums.

Is there any neighborhood in San Francisco where indoor-outdoor cats aren't dead meat? The catch is that I work in the Mission (Cesar Chavez) and don't have a car, so places like the Sunset and the Presidio are out, because the whole point is to shorten my commute. I generally get around by bike, but steep hills pwn me.

I realize the little bastard severely limits my options anyway (check "allows cats" on craigslist and 90% of the listings vanish) but I just loooove him so much and want him to be happy. As an aside, he was an indoor-only cat for his first four years when I lived in Chicago. But he's definitely less insane now.

Time to separate cats?

bicyclefish — Tue, 20 May 2008 10:25:02 -0800

CatFilter: After two years of uneasy but peaceful cohabitation, the larger of two cats showed up with scratch-marks on his nose one week, and then an unexplained, gaping hole in his back. Do we need to give one of them up? My girlfriend has two cats. One is large, declawed at the front, and mostly passive. The second is small, fully-clawed, unpleasant and ornery. They've been together for two years without major incident, though the small one does seem to enjoy tormenting the larger one by arbitrarily chasing him from time to time. They alternate between cuddling together and moments of skirmishing, in a claws-retracted kind of way.

That is, until last week, when the big one emerged with bloody scratch-marks on his nose.

Then, the other day, he turned up with a mysterious gash in his back, between his shoulderblades. It was about the size of a Canadian dollar coin (like a very large quarter) and bloodless, but you could see bright pink flesh. (Doofus that he is, he seemed only mildly irritated by it.)

As I type, the cat is at the vet's, getting sewn up. There's no indication as to whether the wound was inflicted by the other cat, or by catching himself while crawling under a fence or somesuch. (He has access to an outdoor upstairs patio, so there are no other cats on the scene.)

So, does this mean it's time to find him a new home, despite the years of relative peace? Is this the kind of thing that only gets worse? Do cats forgive and forget? The prospect of losing a pet is very difficult, and it's hard to get our bearings. Any thoughts?

What's the best way to get dogs and cats to live together harmoniously?

geeky — Thu, 15 May 2008 10:36:36 -0800

What's the best way to get dogs and cats to live together harmoniously? My husband and I love animals. Now that we have a house and a yard, we're planning to start adopting some furry companions soon. We'd like to get 1 or 2 dogs and 2 cats. (Right now we don't have any pets.)

What's the best way to go about getting pets that will live happily together? Should we adopt dogs first or cats first? Both at the same time? Does the age of the pets matter? Mostly likely, all will be young (1 year old or less) when we adopt them.

Any other tips for getting dogs and cats to live together happily are welcome!

My cat has suddenly started hiccuping.

Soulbee — Mon, 05 May 2008 12:09:14 -0800

My 6.5 year old cat has developed a hiccup problem. I've never before witnessed her hiccuping but in the last 2-3 weeks I've seen it multiple times. I know you are not my vet. She seems entirely unperturbed by the hiccups. She makes no noise when she hiccups. I have noticed no difference in behavior, eating habits, litterbox habits, or anything else.
She does have an affinity for any sort of plant of the live or dead variety, EXCEPT of course things I actually offer her, such as cat grass. I try very hard to keep live or dead plant matter out of the house or otherwise out of her reach for this reason, because the eating usually turns into some mild puking. It has been suggested she craves the ruffage because she's a longhaired kitty, but I feed her good, balanced food and give her an furball supplement.
She has a fairly serious catnip addiction but I limit her intake.
She has heretoforth been very healthy EXCEPT for allergies -- in the spring and fall she gets a little bit sneezy and wheezy. I have allergy pills for her but the fallout of trying to give them to her far outweighs any benefit.
I will gladly take her to the vet if it is recommended necessary, but there's a problem. She's a doll and a sweetheart with me, but HATES being restrained or examined. HATES to the extent that the 3 vets in the area that we've patronized will no longer see her unless she's been sedated first. It's a big pain that involves the aforementioned pill-giving and is basically an all day ordeal that leaves her upset and anxious for up to a week afterwards. So, what do you think about cat hiccups that have suddenly occurred? I googled and found plenty of info saying that cats who hiccup in general are fine, but those sources all seemed geared to cats that have ALWAYS hiccuped, not had sudden onset of semi-regular hiccups later in life.

Squirrels are crunchy

Kioki-Silver — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 16:03:44 -0800

If I feed my cat more often will he stop bringing home his own snacks from the wild? So I’m sitting at my computer reading email, watching junk on youtube, whatever. I hear my cat jump into the cardboard box we have set up for him. I hear him scratching around, I think he’s playing with one of his toys, then I hear CRUNCH! I turn to look and my cat, no, my 10 year old, 15lb neutered and declawed cat, is crunching into the skull of an adult gray squirrel. Nature is disgusting. But my question is, my cat is big, he’s fat even. I know he gets enough to eat. We feed him a can of wet food a day plus we make sure his other bowl always has some kibble in it. He’s not hunting because he needs food, but he begs from us whenever we have food, and he seems like he always wants something more to eat besides his kibble. If I were to feed him as often as he wanted would he stop stalking the local fauna?

I’m sure the real answer is to just not let him go outside, but that’s impossible. If my cat wants to go outside he’s been known to break through window screens and jump. Right now we have it set up so he can get in and out through the back door. That’s how he got his snack inside in the first place. This set up works well for us because the cat can come and go as he pleases and we’re not worried about him being locked out of the house if we’re upstairs or not home. So is there something I can do to curb his behavior or is this just natural hunting instinct?

Cats Vs Wood Floors: Cats Win

Anonymous — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 08:50:46 -0800

I'm trying to help a friend clean up a bad situation with cats and wood floors; I'm looking for suggestions (Icky cat-related stuff inside) I'm trying to help a friend clean up a bad situation with cats and wood floors; we are cleaning up in a house where the cats have been using the floor at a litter tray. I have the following questions;

- What's the quickest way to clean up dried-up cat crap? The floors are sealed, but getting down and scrubbing them is taking too long.

- Of the areas we've cleared so far, there are dark stains in the seal or the wood (we aren't sure which) in some areas. Is there any way to clean these, or are the floors damaged for good?

- Other areas of the floor are just plain dirty. Is there a machine we can buy/hire that will make cleaning these easier than a mop and bucket?

- Any other suggestions for quickly cleaning up wood floors? We are against a tight deadline.

My kitty has a Real Bear

pointystick — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 11:21:54 -0800

I can't believe I'm asking this filter: I think my cat has an intimate relationship with his lovie. Is this normal? I have a 2 year old male cat. I have had him 1 year; the humane society neutered him when I adopted him. In an unrelated incident a few months later, I got a plush polar bear (a Klappar Isbjorn) from Ikea, thinking it would be a good tv pillow. Kitty decided he was fond of it and started kneading and sucking on it, much like a kitten would on its mother. I surrendered the bear. A few months later, the sucking stopped but the kneading continued, and now he is definitely humping the bear. My usually not-very-purry kitty purrs loudly during and afterwards goes and licks himself (on the floor, by my bed). My questions:
1)Is this normal for a neutered animal? I had always thought the humping instinct in neutered animals was a dominance thing.
2)Is there any reason I should discourage this? Seems to me it's between him and the bear.
3)Should I obtain a back up bear?- this one is getting kind of, um, flat.

A week's worth of cat questions

any portmanteau in a storm — Sun, 06 Apr 2008 19:07:06 -0800

We've had our cats for a year-and-a-half now. Things have been great. Things have also been very stable for the cats and that is about to change majorly in a couple of months. With that in mind help answer some of my (many) cat questions. OK, we're moving back home with our 2 2-year-old cats. First off, this requires us being in an airplane for 2-3 hours. Are the cats better off going in soft carriers in the cabin or a hard carrier in the hold? Some recommendations for specific carriers would be great.

I'd imagine that having to live in a new house will be stressful for them. What behaviours can I expect and what can I do to make them more comfortable with their new surroundings?

Hair is going to be a bigger issue at home. I've read about the furminator (not least on askme) but my wife is skeptical. Does it do the job and is it worth the money?

Can we train our cats to use the toilet? If so, any tips? This might just be wishful thinking on our part.

Otherwise they have been fine with a shared litterbox (just a standard plastic litterbox) using clumping litter but there is dust and litter tracked around the area (even with a tracking pad). Are we better off changing to crystals/corn/sawdust/etc and getting a fancy litterbox?

Up to now they've lived in an apartment, only going out when we've taken them to the vet. At home there'll be a backyard. I'd like to let them experience the outside world, am I crazy for this? We live on a busy side-street. Should I let them outside at all? Only when supervised and on a harness? Give them free reign?

What else am I missing here?

Don't cry for me, Mookie Monster! What's up with my cat's right eye?

porn in the woods — Thu, 03 Apr 2008 18:43:56 -0800

You Are Not My Vet Filter: My 10-year-old Siamese has had a weeping right eye for the past few weeks. He's otherwise frisky and healthy as ever, but I find myself cleaning his right eye three or four times a day. I'm stymied; has anyone experienced a "single-eye" weeping issue? There's no sneezing or appearance of illness. What's a good treatment?

Puppy fever - is there a cure?

TochterAusElysium — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 10:55:47 -0800

Hive mind, I have a dilemma. I love dogs and have since I was tiny. I long to own a dog the way some women long to have a baby (ick). I haven't had a dog companion since I was a kid, but I now have just about the best lifestyle I think I'm going to have: we own a home, will have a fenced-in yard (as soon as I can get the contractors to finish the fence; soon, I hope), and have plenty of love to lavish on a pup. But I want to provide the very best possible home, so I'm having some trouble with this decision. First, we have two cats that we love, and like most folks without kids, they are our fur babies. I very much don't want them to be too distressed about a new pet; I understand there will be adjustment, but both kitties are in their middle age, and I just want them to be happy for the rest of their lives. I really don't want to wait until they're gone to get a dog, though. Can dogs and cats live happily together? My reading says yes, usually. There have been some previous AskMes to this effect, so if anyone has gone through this already and can offer advice, I'd be grateful.

Secondly, I worry that with our work schedules, we'd be leaving a dog alone for too long. We both work the usual 8-5, though we don't get home until 6:00 on average. However, I am committed to walking a dog every day, in any weather. Also, we have a dog door that lets out into the soon-to-be-fenced yard. We're pretty active in the warmer parts of the year; we live near a long bike trail, and walk and ride our bikes most sunny weekends. We're hoping that having a dog will encourage us to get even more exercise.

So, sorry for the length, but I guess this is a general advice question. What breeds should we consider? I'm expecting to find a young-ish rescue pup, from puppy age up to maybe 2 years old. I don't want a hyper dog like a Jack Russell, for our sanity and the cats'...a big couch potato that likes a daily romp would be better. Should we avoid very young puppies? Or would it be better to get a baby that will learn that the cats are to be respected? Or, would we be best with a somewhat older dog that's been cat-tested?

Physical Discomfort Threshold For Pets

Rykey — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 14:22:19 -0800

What is the "baseline" level of physical comfort for a housepet? When I say I feel "good" physically, I refer to the absence of pain or discomfort I experience at that moment: no headache, upset stomach, congested nasal passages, fatigue, itchy feet, dry skin, etc. But what about dogs, cats, and bunnies?

As somewhat heartier creatures than us in certain ways (they can eat raw or past-expiration-date meat, etc.), do housepets tolerate more physical discomfort, without recognizing it as such? Do they suffer from pain or discomfort that would register for humans as "not feeling well," even when they appear to be happy and in good health?

I'm not talking about a simple higher threshold for pain, or a lack of a way to express mild discomfort. Obviously, a dog scratches at an itch that it recognizes as "itchy enough to tend to."

I guess what I mean is, do we know whether animals take some measure of pain or discomfort for granted because they don't know any better? Are they only ever healthy and happy, based on the criteria I mention above, in a relative sense? Is Fido's definition of "itchy enough to tend to" way itchier than ours would be?

Yes, I'm throwing away my weekly question. I have the day off, it's a blizzard outside, and I'm just in that kind of pointlessly inquisitive mood :)

No more Mr. Kitty Creosote! But why?

suki — Sat, 15 Mar 2008 08:34:52 -0800

Why have my cats STOPPED puking? Gross cat vomit related details inside. In mid February I adopted two cats from a local shelter. The shelter is about as posh as a cat shelter could be, so the cats had all their shots and tests, and each came with a fairly complete medical history. They also came with two big bags of Science Diet, which is what they were fed in the shelter.

They adjusted well, except for the fact that they puked - a lot. Luna is a 1 year old long haired coon cat female, and she made the classic hairball noises when throwing up, though didn't produce much vomit.

Tex is a big 5 year old boy. He was more of what I called a "stealth puker." It pretty much came out of nowhere, with no warning whatsoever. And it was large quantities of mostly undigested food.

They both also liked to nibble on plants and sometimes I would find part of a leaf in the vomit.

There were about 5 incidences a day and I was just getting ready to call the vet, when they ran out of Science Diet. I bought an emergency bag of 9 Lives at the local store, and now the vomiting has stopped completely. And from what I can tell, they're no longer interested in the plants.

I really would like to give these cats good food, and I have heard horror stories about the cheaper brands. But I'm wondering what it is about Science Diet that made them so sick. And why the low-end stuff doesn't seem to bother them at all? And whether the fact that they don't vomit up 9 Lives offsets the fact that I'm feeding them food that is not very good for them.

Help me help my mean cat!

unknowncommand — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 16:01:45 -0800

What is the best way to deal with a "mean cat" as far as vet visits and administering medication? My cat is absolutely insane about physical contact outside of her control. In the past, I have told the vets this, but they are hesitant to sedate her, and say, "Oh well, let's just see how it goes." It ends up being an absolute nightmare. She goes "fight or flight," and in the past she shredded a vet tech's arms.

Does anyone have experience with sedating cats before vet visits? Is there a health reason to avoid this? Of course there is also the issue of it being impossible for me to administer any sort of sedating agent (pills, liquids), even if she is scruffed and even if more than one person is involved. Which brings up the question of how pet owners give medication to their "difficult" pets. Any experiences with this?

Scat, cat - get off the mat!

taz — Tue, 26 Feb 2008 03:01:40 -0800

How can I make my "welcome mats" unwelcoming to cats? I'm getting ready to replace all my outside door mats (three) because they're yucky and covered in cat hair from my neighbor's cats who like to hang out on them. The current ones have been very hard to clean from cat hair, and would need constant, labor-intensive attention to keep them presentable. But I'm afraid the new ones (stiff coconut fibre, something like this) are going to be just as bad, or possibly even worse.

But I just can't bring myself to buy those ugly black rubber door mats. Is there some way I can discourage the kitty mat love? Most of the Google info on natural cat repellents focus on keeping cats out of plants and gardens. Have any of you dealt successfully with this kind of problem?

I'm going to be on the lookout for repellent spray, but so far I haven't found any (I don't live in the U.S. or U.K., and some things are not as easy to find as they are there) - and I'm picking up my mats today, so even if I am able to find a packaged repellent, I need some strategy in the interim.

I need catproof earbuds

jenfu — Sun, 24 Feb 2008 19:28:03 -0800

Does anyone have any suggestions for catproof earbuds? My cat seems to find the tender plastic to be extremely succulent. She's eaten more than ten pairs. My boyfriend needs small earbuds because he can't sleep without listening to music and I'm hoping that some strong alternative to common earbuds exists. Last night she actually snuck up and ate them while he was asleep instead of waiting to find them since we've become clever about hiding them when not in use.