Anyone have a recommendation for a no-chew spray? My cat does not typically chew on cords, but LOVES to chew on the christmas tree. She ended up chewing through a cord last year (luckily it was unplugged at the time) and I have to buy a new tree, so want to be prepared. I can't use a scat mat, my dog is terrified of them.
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Best no chew deterrent?
- Thread starter kaitie09
- Start Date
I would buy a cord cover for your Christmas tree cord. They are inexpensive and long lasting. I would also make sure you have something’s, like a cardboard box, that your cat is allowed to chew.
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #3
She's chewing on the actual lights attached to the branches. She doesn't bother the floor cord.
Then I would either remove the lights altogether or put them only on the part of the tree she can’t reach. Maybe a liquid would work but it isn’t worth the risk that it doesn’t and as a result she gets a deadly shock.
Tobasco Sauce.
Put a few drops on a napkin or paper towel and rub it on the area where pets have been seen to chew. It doesn't take much.
No, it's not nice but it won't hurt the cat and it will give him a mouthful of "Yuck!" In fact, just the smell will, probably, be enough to repel a cat. (Cats usually smell things before they chew on them.)
Which would you rather have? Giving your cat a "hot mouth" or staging a real-life reenactment of that scene from the movie, "Christmas Vacation?"
My family has used Tobasco Sauce to keep all manner of pets from chewing on things that they shouldn't, ever since I was a kid but, if you don't want to use Tobasco, there are all sorts of products that you can buy that are specially designed for the purpose.
You could use almost anything that tastes and smells "icky" to a cat... Peppermint oil and oil of cloves are two things that come to mind.
Some things like clove oil can be toxic to cats but, in your case, you'd be using such a small amount that the risk would be minimal and the benefit of repelling the cat from something dangerous would outweigh any potential toxicity issues.
If you don't like the idea of using Tobasco or cloves, etc., get one of those pet repellent sprays. You can easily pick some up at your local pet store.
Put a few drops on a napkin or paper towel and rub it on the area where pets have been seen to chew. It doesn't take much.
No, it's not nice but it won't hurt the cat and it will give him a mouthful of "Yuck!" In fact, just the smell will, probably, be enough to repel a cat. (Cats usually smell things before they chew on them.)
Which would you rather have? Giving your cat a "hot mouth" or staging a real-life reenactment of that scene from the movie, "Christmas Vacation?"
My family has used Tobasco Sauce to keep all manner of pets from chewing on things that they shouldn't, ever since I was a kid but, if you don't want to use Tobasco, there are all sorts of products that you can buy that are specially designed for the purpose.
You could use almost anything that tastes and smells "icky" to a cat... Peppermint oil and oil of cloves are two things that come to mind.
Some things like clove oil can be toxic to cats but, in your case, you'd be using such a small amount that the risk would be minimal and the benefit of repelling the cat from something dangerous would outweigh any potential toxicity issues.
If you don't like the idea of using Tobasco or cloves, etc., get one of those pet repellent sprays. You can easily pick some up at your local pet store.
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I agree. Please do whatever you need to do regarding tree decor, to ensure your kitty will not die. If you can’t get them to a place that kitty can’t reach and can’t find a deterrent, one might consider, are the lights really that important?
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I would try to keep it up high enough the cat cant get at it or leave it unplugged when you dont need it on. I had a 8 year old cat that chewed on everything including the window ac cord while it plugged in! outdoor christmas lights may have a thicker cord that cant be chewed as easily and can also be used indoors. maybe try a different style of lights that arent as easy to chew they do make some outdoor type that you could use inside that may be less attractive to the cat
One light alternative I just thought of was battery operated lights. They are low voltage and not likely
to cause a shock. I have a number of strings of them that I use at Christmas time and the batteries pretty much last the whole season
to cause a shock. I have a number of strings of them that I use at Christmas time and the batteries pretty much last the whole season
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In my experience, it is more likely that the lights on your tree will just go out or youll smell something burnt smell than anything harming your cat. My cat chewed everything while things were plugged in and it never harmed her in any way just a lot of things would suddenly stop working and I would go look at the cord and it would be chewed in half
You're probably right. The amount of electricity going through a string of modern Christmas lights isn't likely to cause anything like that scene in that movie to happen, for real. Many Christmas lights are made with LEDs instead of light bulbs and work on low-voltage DC or even batteries instead of working on house current. With low-voltage LED Christmas lights, the risk of harm would be minimal.
However, it's too hard to tell what kind of lights are on a given Christmas tree. They could be anything from antique, 120v light bulbs to the latest LEDs. It's just easier to advise keeping the cat out of harm's way, by whatever method, than to go through all the questions and answers of trying to determine whether a given string of lights is safe or not.
However, it's too hard to tell what kind of lights are on a given Christmas tree. They could be anything from antique, 120v light bulbs to the latest LEDs. It's just easier to advise keeping the cat out of harm's way, by whatever method, than to go through all the questions and answers of trying to determine whether a given string of lights is safe or not.
Too much work setting it up then worrying about your cat.
As kids, when we had our first Christmas with our new dog, Tyrone, he thought we had installed indoor plumbing, just for him!