Ideas to keep cats off new sofas? (smells, sleeping, litter)
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Boy, do I hate, loathe and despise that "spray a cat with water" thing which is supposed to contol cat behavior, and I wish everyone would stop doing it.
In the April 2013 "Cat Fancy" magazine (p. 13) Nicholas Dodman, director of the behavor clinic at Tufts University vet school is quoted: "Punishment teaches a cat nothing other than how to avoid that punishment. It also destroys the relationship an owner has with his cat."
So here's my simple solution to keep the cats off of my good couch:
I have a batch of cheapy aluminum pans and put them on top of the couch so that there's no room for the cats to sleep or get comfortable without pushing a pan off. If they do push off a pan it makes an awful clangy noise that scares them away. My cats just don't sleep on that couch, not even my one year old rowdy boy - there's lots of other better places for them to sleep (they currently love the dog bed.) When visitors come or I want to sit on the couch I just gather up the pans and take them into the kitchen. To deter scratching on that same couch I have double stick tape on the edges and nearby cardboard scratching pads, which they love. When I have visitors I just move the scrach pads into another room. Cheap, safe and effective.
Of course, that doesn't mean that the couch doesn't get cat hair on it from whatever happens to be floating around in the air. Still, I've had that couch for - oh my gosh! 12 years now! and it still looks new, even though I've moved it multiple times and always have lots of pets. That's probably because I hardly ever sit on the couch myself!
I did recently get new slipcovers and for some reason.....my cats don't like them. Hooray!!! They now ignore the sofa.
I bought a new sofa for the newly closed-in front porch. I also bought a heavy duty washable sofa cover for it. They would rather sleep, claw and play on the large cat-condo in the corner of the room. Occasionally I'll see one of them taking a nap on it.
A spray bottle filled with water works pretty well.
If the cat jumps on the sofa, give it a squirt or two. Some people use this method to train cats to stay off kitchen counters.
It is cheap, harmless, and easy.
But you NEVER know what those stinkers are doing when no one is around....
Personally, I am seeking some slip covers for my new furniture. That way the cats and I can hang out on the couch.
I feel it's not fair of those who wont allow their cats on the furniture yet wont supply them with the taller cat-trees from the pet stores. Cats will often lay on and sleep on the floors, but most like to get off the floor a good part of the time. There's one woman I know, who recently put all 3 of her cats to sleep, who wouldn't even leave a few windows available to them to look out. All but one blind and shade was tightly drawn. All 3 were de-clawed and obese. All had health issues. All were under 10 yrs old.
I also like the idea of slipcovers, but our bunch decided they make excellent tents, and the furniture frequently looked like it had a tumor. The cats would climb between the furniture and the cover (usually found a spot in the back of the cover), crawled up underneath and would either lay there like a lump, or scurry around playing until another one joined in the fun. I give up!!!
I laughed at this... I can picture this so well.
Two of my cats did the same thing, but for some reason, stopped on their own one day.
I feel it's not fair of those who wont allow their cats on the furniture yet wont supply them with the taller cat-trees from the pet stores. Cats will often lay on and sleep on the floors, but most like to get off the floor a good part of the time. There's one woman I know, who recently put all 3 of her cats to sleep, who wouldn't even leave a few windows available to them to look out. All but one blind and shad was tightly drawn. All 3 were de-clawed and obese. All had health issues. All were under 10 yrs old.
What in the heck was wrong with that woman??? Put them to sleep, for WHAT???? Cats need to be cats - especially for those of us who have strictly indoor cats. I think it is cruel to keep them from looking, watching, stalking, basically just enjoying the sunshine, fresh air, watching the birds and bugs and wildlife playing outside. I would no more deprive my cats of that than I would deprive them of food or water. It is THAT important to their mental health and well being. It sounds like the one with "issues" was her - keeping all the windows and blinds drawn shut. I sincerely hope that she does not EVER get another pet of any kind - she doesn't even deserve an ant farm. Don't even get me started on the de-clawed part of that.....
Boy, do I hate, loathe and despise that "spray a cat with water" thing which is supposed to contol cat behavior, and I wish everyone would stop doing it.
This is the only method that works to keep cats from bolting out RV doors and possibly getting lost or killed in traffic. I also used it to teach each new cat to stay off one sofa that was very expensive. No more than 2 squirts and they stayed away from it ever since..... water spray startles them. It doesn't HURT them in any way. They think the sofa did it, not a human. Oddly enough, they somehow communicated this to our latest cat, Callie. She avoids that sofa.
What in the heck was wrong with that woman??? Put them to sleep, for WHAT????
I know, I've been very upset over this and every time I think of it. One cat developed a painful bone/joint condition of some kind (perhaps related to being de-clawed) and would have had to be kept on painkillers. The second kitty started to urinate on anything left on the floor she said. When there was nothing on he floor, he'd pee on the carpets. I do know she kept the litterpans clean. The third cat developed stones in this bladder and the vet told her it would be $800 to remove them which is an outrage. This is not a complicated surgery. I suspect there is more involved since both her children are grown and gone and..... too much to go into on a Forum. Sometimes pets become an "inconvenience". Two were brothers and one was a kitten they won at a County Fair. All males.
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Cats need to be cats - especially for those of us who have strictly indoor cats. I think it is cruel to keep them from looking, watching, stalking, basically just enjoying the sunshine, fresh air, watching the birds and bugs and wildlife playing outside.
I agree but there are those who don't care about the cat's needs. They only care about themselves and their furniture and convenience. These cats had no toys, interactive or not, and not one cat tree in that large roomy house.
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I would no more deprive my cats of that than I would deprive them of food or water. It is THAT important to their mental health and well being. It sounds like the one with "issues" was her - keeping all the windows and blinds drawn shut. I sincerely hope that she does not EVER get another pet of any kind - she doesn't even deserve an ant farm. Don't even get me started on the de-clawed part of that.....
I agree 100%! I doubt they'll get any more pets. With the kids grown and gone they're both very much in to "other interests" and the cats I felt, were not part of that new life. Now I could be wrong, but that's what I strongly suspect. I see no reason for any of those cats to have been murdered - do you?
I bought bed sheets for my furniture.
Then the cat sat on the sheet. He likes it, it's cool in the summer.
Sometimes he "hides" under the sheets and there is a giant lump that
we aren't suppose to know is him.
But pretty much he really does like the sheets.
Easy to wash too.
SO yes, the cat does sit on my furniture, and there are bed sheets
on all the furniture, but hey, it works.
Honestly, unless you're there to watch them constantly, they'll just lay all over it when you're not home. Put a sheet or slipcover on it and take it off when company comes. I "trained" my cats to stay off of the counter by using a water bottle, but guess where they are when we walk in the door from being out all day? Cats are more patient than we are. They'll just wait until you leave and do what they want.
Oddly enough, they somehow communicated this to our latest cat, Callie. She avoids that sofa.
I can just imagine that conversation! LOL
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Occasionally I'll see one of them taking a nap on it.
I "trained" my cats to stay off of the counter by using a water bottle, but guess where they are when we walk in the door from being out all day? Cats are more patient than we are. They'll just wait until you leave and do what they want. 
