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yes definitely squirt bottle! it will not hurt her. i take it she has claws. if she didnt then you wouldnt have to worry about the screen but i know that de-clawing is not an option for many. good luck
it is so hard to discipline a cat compared to a dog.
I don't really know if you can train a cat. They are smarter then dogs, which leads them to question you often. My friend told me after 5 years she finally got her cat to stop clawing at the door and I said, or he just go old(he's 16).
ohhh and ours is declawed and instead of climbing screens, he pushes though them ...
Our cat is rather disciplined. He hardly does anything he shouldn't. He knows the most important words like NO, COME, DOWN and others, along with his name. We always praise him when he follows a command, I think he likes that. He also knows "Do you want some cottage cheese and cream?" - that always makes him run to me.
There are very few things he really isn't allowed to do, like going onto the dining table or the kitchen counters. He never destroys anything, he only scratches on his scratching posts, and he doesn't climb the drapes because we don't have any. But he's an indoor-outdoor cat, so he probably does all the nasty things outside.
Mine too. When mine are mis behaving, all I have to do is say their name forcefully, and either SAncho will bolt eyes wide and Piper will cower meowing her twitter like meow that usually means, "I"m sorry mom, I"m sorry I didn't mean it." It's hard to get mad at that cute little meow!
In addition to the quirt gun/spray bottle (which doesn't work on my water loving felines), you can also try shaking a tin can with pennies in it because cats don't like sudden loud noises. I've also used a non-toxic citrus or bitter apple spray on things kitties should leave alone since they hate the smell. By far, the best methods are ones that reinforce "NO" with something mildly unpleasant, followed by positive reinforcement for stopping. Most cats act out when they are bored or don't have a suitable structure to exercise on, so make sure they have a "YES" area to play on, claw at, climb all over and entertain themselves.... and reward them for using it
In addition to the quirt gun/spray bottle (which doesn't work on my water loving felines), you can also try shaking a tin can with pennies in it because cats don't like sudden loud noises. I've also used a non-toxic citrus or bitter apple spray on things kitties should leave alone since they hate the smell. By far, the best methods are ones that reinforce "NO" with something mildly unpleasant, followed by positive reinforcement for stopping. Most cats act out when they are bored or don't have a suitable structure to exercise on, so make sure they have a "YES" area to play on, claw at, climb all over and entertain themselves.... and reward them for using it
ooh, good suggestions. I forgot about the penny can. It can also be rocks or something. Yes areas and no areas are also a good suggestion. Our no area is usefully a closed closet for five minutes, then forgiving pets. A closed closet is quite the unhappy place since they like to roam and be where the party is.
We have a Maine Coon Cat that we tried years ago to disipline.....[we're smarter now]...every time we would chastise him in ANY way....he would leave a present in the middle our bed....not quite in the center but more towards the person that was dumb enough to disipline him.....We dont do that any more......and neither does he.....
I can't keep her from climbing window and door screens. Now she is heavy enough to tear them, so I've gotta do something.
When my cats tore up my sliding screen patio door I had the screen shop put "pet proof" screen in it. I didn't believe it would really last, but it's been several years now and there is not a mark on it, not even a pulled string.
It don't know what it's made of, it's not metal, but it really is cat proof.
My cat is now 9 months old and all of our screens are in good shape - she stopped climbing them! Here's how:
I did get a spray bottle and, at first, I squirted her from where she could not see me with the bottle in hand. After about 5 times, she was well aware of what was happening. But she also stopped trying to climb. She made some later attempts but, by then, I would just pick up the bottle and she would take off. Now she doesn't appear to be interested in the screens - and she seems much more content to be sitting in front of them than she was when I was constantly pulling her off of them. Everybody's much happier.
Thanks for the advice!
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