How to stop my cat from jumping on my desk

[WhatchaCallKitty]

My cat is extremely sweet, but she often jumps on my desk and makes noise when I am sleeping, and wakes me up.

How do I stop her from doing that?

I thought of buying a small squirt gun, but my computer would get wet, so it doesn't work.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi. See if you can come up with some ideas from this TCS article.

How To Keep Cats Off Counters And Tables - TheCatSite

Ever wonder what you can do to keep cats off counters and tables? We have some expert advice in this comprehensive article.

thecatsite.com

 

[LTS3]

Spraying water never works to deter cats.

5 Reasons To Never Spray Water On Your Cat

5 Reasons To Never Spray Water On Your CatSome cat owners believe squirting water from a handheld bottle can be an effective and harmless way to teach a cat to avoid certain behaviors. The truth is that using the water bottle as a tool for...

thecatsite.com

If there are items on your desk that may be enticing your cat and that you don't want her to damage, put them away when not in use.

If your cat is only doing this at night, try these tips:

How To Stop My Cat From Waking Me Up At Night (Step-By-Step Plan) - TheCatSite

Discover how to stop your cat from waking you up at night with our comprehensive step-by-step plan. This guide provides practical strategies to align your sleep patterns with your cat's, ensuring peaceful nights for everyone.

thecatsite.com

 

[PushPurrCatPaws]

My cat is extremely sweet, but she often jumps on my desk and makes noise when I am sleeping, and wakes me up.

How do I stop her from doing that?

I thought of buying a small squirt gun, but my computer would get wet, so it doesn't work.

Is your desk in your bedroom? Do you have a dedicated cat bed or cat sleeping area(s) in that same room? Maybe your cat is looking for a place to settle down and sleep, a place up off of the floor, yet still near you.

I often call our kitty The Cat of Nine Beds (instead of cat with nine lives, although there is that, too!). She has beds all over the place. It's my experience that when my kitty is messing around on my desk at night, she's seeking either playthings or playtime (so putting items away in boxes or folders helps), or else she wants to settle into one of her beds. We have several of those little donut beds that can be moved around as sleeping needs arise.

You can also use a bed that is raised up and is more of a permanent desk fixture on top of your desk, so that you have desktop space or work space right underneath the bed... we use this sometimes:

TRIXIE Pet Products Baza Cat Tree

The Baza Cat Hammock will provide endless opportunities for cats to play and scratch or just...

thecatsite.com

I saw this in the Reviews section, too (a bit more aesthetic!)-

The Hepper Pod Cat Bed

The Hepper Pod Bed will make your CATS HAPPY and your HOME HIP! The Pod Bed is designed for...

thecatsite.com

I have a 7 foot long desk, though. That might be relevant.

 

[WhatchaCallKitty]

Is your desk in your bedroom? Do you have a dedicated cat bed or cat sleeping area(s) in that same room? Maybe your cat is looking for a place to settle down and sleep, a place up off of the floor, yet still near you.

I often call our kitty The Cat of Nine Beds (instead of cat with nine lives, although there is that, too!). She has beds all over the place. It's my experience that when my kitty is messing around on my desk at night, she's seeking either playthings or playtime (so putting items away in boxes or folders helps), or else she wants to settle into one of her beds. We have several of those little donut beds that can be moved around as sleeping needs arise.

You can also use a bed that is raised up and is more of a permanent desk fixture on top of your desk, so that you have desktop space or work space right underneath the bed... we use this sometimes:

TRIXIE Pet Products Baza Cat Tree

The Baza Cat Hammock will provide endless opportunities for cats to play and scratch or just...

thecatsite.com

I saw this in the Reviews section, too (a bit more aesthetic!)-

The Hepper Pod Cat Bed

The Hepper Pod Bed will make your CATS HAPPY and your HOME HIP! The Pod Bed is designed for...

thecatsite.com

I have a 7 foot long desk, though. That might be relevant.

Yes, the desk is right beside my bed and she fiddles with the pens, notepads, and other little things that I don't really want to remove from the desk.

Thanks for your info. Unfortunately I can't afford to buy those things, otherwise I'm sure they would help because when I had a cat tree for a bit, they used to climb on it and sleep there instead.

 

[SirenSong]

Do you have a drawer you could put those things in or get a cheap plastic drawer set so your cat doesn't have anything to fiddle with? I always found that my cats will fiddle with stuff while they're deciding how they want to settle down for the night. As soon as I create a special spot for them, often just adjusting the blanket or picking them up and putting them on the bed, they decide to settle. I get not being able to afford special cat beds and all that, but putting your stuff somewhere the cat can't get at it is a pretty straightforward, simple, cheap solution ...

 

[Caspers Human]

The first rule of getting cats to stop doing things you don't want them to do is to provide something better for them to do.

For example, if a cat jumps up on the kitchen counter, get a stool for them to sit on and put it near the counter so that they can go up there and "supervise" while you work. Treats and praise are in order when the cat uses the stool instead of the counter, of course.

So... What can you give the cat that's better than jumping up on your desk? Is there another place, nearby, like a window sill?

The second line of action is deterrence. Sticky tape often works. So do automatic cat repellent spray cans like "SSSCAT Spray." SSSCAT® Spray Pet Deterrent.

Every time your cat goes in view of the electric eye, the device lets loose a spray of harmless canned air to scare the cat away.

We've never needed to use one but I have read that they work well.

If you don't want to spend the money on a cat repellent sprayer, you can try to make some things that work in a similar way.

The easiest thing is to get some duct tape and make about a dozen tape "donuts" sticky side out and stick them on the surface where you don't want the cat to go. If she goes there, her feet will get stuck on the tape and she'll be like, "Ick! Ick! Ick!" :O
After a couple-few repeats of that she won't go up on the desk so much.

If you want to try a little craft project, you can make a little scare device of your own...

Cut off a piece of coat hanger wire about a half-foot long and bend it into a letter "U."
Next, get a large metal washer and tie on a couple of heavy rubber bands.
Attach the other ends of the rubber bands to the top legs of the "U" and wind up the washer like an airplane propeller.
Wind it up, really tight and stuff it inside an envelope so that the washer is prevented from spinning.
Put this on the surface where you don't want the cat to go.

When the cat goes up on the desk, she'll likely disturb the envelope-contraption and set the washer spinning.
It will make a loud, "B-B-R-R-R!!!" sound as it spins against the inside of the paper envelope!

Set this contraption up so that it's just on the edge of being set off and it should send the cat a-running any time she goes on the desk.

After a couple-few repeats of this she won't want to go near the desk again.

The only down side is that you have to reset the trap every time the cat sets it off. However, it is a free or low-cost way to make a cat deterrent device.

Combine that with the duct tape stickies and you should have your cat trained to stay away from your desk in a short time.

 

[ArchyCat]

Don't squirt your cat! At best, it will just make her angry. At worst, she will identify you with the squirt and end up hating you!