My house and my life literally has turned into what can I do to keep Jack from ruining something. Jack is 2, I got him when he was about 4 months old. He and my dog, who is about his size, are best friends and have been from the beginning. They play together like two puppies. Jack loves dog toys, chases balls down the stairs, they sleep together, eat together. And that is really the only reason Jack is still here.
He was the seriously the best cat I've ever had for a few months. And I do not know what happened, but his entire purpose now seems to be to destroy or do what he knows he shouldn't. He's smart, he knows it's wrong, because when I do happen to catch him in the act, he runs and hides before I even say anything. I have never hit him, I have spent hours researching and tried everything that I know of, everything I can to discourage this bad behavior and encourage good. I hope someone can give me some out of the box random idea to try.
He has every toy to keep him engaged. Robots that randomly turn on, that have feathers attached and roll across the floor. He loves them, chases them. They are on a timer for 10 minutes so he doesn't get bored, and come on once an hour. Then he has another toy that spins bright objects, like ribbons and feathers, around in a circle. Also a few minutes 1x an hour. He has an automatic laser pointer that shoots around the room for a few minutes, 1x an hour. He has cat trees and mounted cat beds. He has tall scratching posts, he has angled ones. Anything new I see him do that is naughty, I find something to put in its place or distract him, or that does something similar so he will leave my object alone.
As far as counters and cupboard tops, I have tried foil, lemon essential oil, vinegar sprays, double sided tape, and most recently I bought one of those deskpads for the floor that have pokey things on the bottom and they hurt. I bought several and cut them to the shape of my counter, turned them up so that he had to walk on the pokey things. I've tried the spray bottle, clapping, various loud noises, a squeeze horn. Everything works for a week or two, then it doesn't phase him anymore. I've removed anything that might fascinate him, but unfortunately, I got used to living in my home over the years and if I do leave something on the counter without thinking....well, you can imagine. He has carried off a 6 pound roast, all of my toothbrushes I keep replacing. Electric ones. Every washrag, every sponge, my favorite stuffed animal that I had on my dresser, the tv remote, Herbie's toys, a ziploc of spaghetti sauce. True story.
He climbs up my walls. Literally. I have repaired so many holes. He has destroyed my artwork that I saved for years to get. He has knocked my special collection of wine off of the very tops of cupboards, that I for the longest time couldn't figure out how he was getting to. I have completely changed my home to no longer something that shows the things I've worked for and love, but a dwelling that is designed, and constantly being changed, around with the sole purpose of trying to staunch his bad behavior. I've put away anything and everything he can destroy, knock over, run off with. The house is full of his toys, anything to keep him from being bored, perches so he can see, all he has to do is show me the slightest inclination that he wants to nest there or sleep here, and I try to make it happen.
I'm literally broke, after fixing what he breaks, replacing what he destroys, buying things to keep him from doing those things. And, I'm pretty broken mentally, too, spending waking hours trying to figure out how to change his behavior and sleeping hours dreaming about it. Although, he's one of those cats, too, that wakes me up all the time during the night.
He is so loving, he is so affectionate, he cuddles with Herbie the dog all the time. When I'm cooking, he gets on his hind legs and wraps his front legs around my hips and just purrs. He sits on the back of my chair when I'm working and softly paws at my loose hair.
And then 2 minutes later some demon is released and I am sitting in the middle of the floor just rocking back and forth.
Can some cats just be bad? Is it possible he can't be trained? I can't spend any more money on him. I can't do any more repairs, I can't buy any more toys, I can't modify my home any further. If I can't come up with something that works, I have to find him a new home and that is going to be traumatic for him and my dog. Just a bit ago he destroyed my streaming device, and that is after I methodically arranged all of the cords and tucked them all in hidden places so that the new path he wants to zoom through was free and clear. I can't repair it, so another $200 that has to be spent if I want to watch tv. That is what prompted me to find this site. I think all I might have left is my computer so I'm trying to be quiet while I type this so he doesn't make it his next target. (that's being snarky, I'm trying to be funny. I do still have some of my clothes left, too)
He was the seriously the best cat I've ever had for a few months. And I do not know what happened, but his entire purpose now seems to be to destroy or do what he knows he shouldn't. He's smart, he knows it's wrong, because when I do happen to catch him in the act, he runs and hides before I even say anything. I have never hit him, I have spent hours researching and tried everything that I know of, everything I can to discourage this bad behavior and encourage good. I hope someone can give me some out of the box random idea to try.
He has every toy to keep him engaged. Robots that randomly turn on, that have feathers attached and roll across the floor. He loves them, chases them. They are on a timer for 10 minutes so he doesn't get bored, and come on once an hour. Then he has another toy that spins bright objects, like ribbons and feathers, around in a circle. Also a few minutes 1x an hour. He has an automatic laser pointer that shoots around the room for a few minutes, 1x an hour. He has cat trees and mounted cat beds. He has tall scratching posts, he has angled ones. Anything new I see him do that is naughty, I find something to put in its place or distract him, or that does something similar so he will leave my object alone.
As far as counters and cupboard tops, I have tried foil, lemon essential oil, vinegar sprays, double sided tape, and most recently I bought one of those deskpads for the floor that have pokey things on the bottom and they hurt. I bought several and cut them to the shape of my counter, turned them up so that he had to walk on the pokey things. I've tried the spray bottle, clapping, various loud noises, a squeeze horn. Everything works for a week or two, then it doesn't phase him anymore. I've removed anything that might fascinate him, but unfortunately, I got used to living in my home over the years and if I do leave something on the counter without thinking....well, you can imagine. He has carried off a 6 pound roast, all of my toothbrushes I keep replacing. Electric ones. Every washrag, every sponge, my favorite stuffed animal that I had on my dresser, the tv remote, Herbie's toys, a ziploc of spaghetti sauce. True story.
He climbs up my walls. Literally. I have repaired so many holes. He has destroyed my artwork that I saved for years to get. He has knocked my special collection of wine off of the very tops of cupboards, that I for the longest time couldn't figure out how he was getting to. I have completely changed my home to no longer something that shows the things I've worked for and love, but a dwelling that is designed, and constantly being changed, around with the sole purpose of trying to staunch his bad behavior. I've put away anything and everything he can destroy, knock over, run off with. The house is full of his toys, anything to keep him from being bored, perches so he can see, all he has to do is show me the slightest inclination that he wants to nest there or sleep here, and I try to make it happen.
I'm literally broke, after fixing what he breaks, replacing what he destroys, buying things to keep him from doing those things. And, I'm pretty broken mentally, too, spending waking hours trying to figure out how to change his behavior and sleeping hours dreaming about it. Although, he's one of those cats, too, that wakes me up all the time during the night.
He is so loving, he is so affectionate, he cuddles with Herbie the dog all the time. When I'm cooking, he gets on his hind legs and wraps his front legs around my hips and just purrs. He sits on the back of my chair when I'm working and softly paws at my loose hair.
And then 2 minutes later some demon is released and I am sitting in the middle of the floor just rocking back and forth.
Can some cats just be bad? Is it possible he can't be trained? I can't spend any more money on him. I can't do any more repairs, I can't buy any more toys, I can't modify my home any further. If I can't come up with something that works, I have to find him a new home and that is going to be traumatic for him and my dog. Just a bit ago he destroyed my streaming device, and that is after I methodically arranged all of the cords and tucked them all in hidden places so that the new path he wants to zoom through was free and clear. I can't repair it, so another $200 that has to be spent if I want to watch tv. That is what prompted me to find this site. I think all I might have left is my computer so I'm trying to be quiet while I type this so he doesn't make it his next target. (that's being snarky, I'm trying to be funny. I do still have some of my clothes left, too)
