Need A Good Deterrent Spray To Keep My Cat From Eating Things He Shouldn't!

[tracy1213]

Hi guys,

I have a one year old cat who eats everything off the floor that he shouldn't.....dust, hair, pieces of carpet etc.....but I'm trying to find a good deterrent spray to at least spray on certain things like chair legs and wires and things like that. I have used grannick bitter apple spray before but that seems to work until the spray dries and then he goes back to chewing again. Would love to know if anyone found a deterrent spray that works really well or even some advice on what to do about a cat that will eat anything. I don't really know how to keep him from eating hair and dust....I'm trying to vacuum constantly but he pulls up pieces of carpet when he scratches so don't know how I can keep him completely safe from this behavior. He has toys everywhere and another cat he loves to play with so I don't think boredom is the issue. Thanks everyone!

 

[Mamanyt1953]

You might try orange oil. Most cats detest it, although I'm not sure it would do any better once dry. Worth a shot, though.

 

[Ardina]

Grannick bitter apple works for me only as long as I completely soak the object. Works great for cloth and other soft things that absorb it. Unfortunately, it doesn't work on wood, so I figured out a workaround (ugly, unfortunately, but it works) - cover the wood with cardboard, and then soak the cardboard in the spray. Let us know if you find something that works better!

 

[tracy1213]

You might try orange oil. Most cats detest it, although I'm not sure it would do any better once dry. Worth a shot, though.

You might try orange oil. Most cats detest it, although I'm not sure it would do any better once dry. Worth a shot, though.

Ok I will look into it....do you know if it's toxic if my cat still decides to lick or chew the area after I sprayed it? Thanks!

 

[Caspers Human]

When I was a kid we used Tabasco Sauce to keep pets from chewing electrical cords.

 

[tracy1213]

When I was a kid we used Tabasco Sauce to keep pets from chewing electrical cords.

Yeah, I imagine that would really work well! =) Thanks!!

 

[Caspers Human]

It worked for us.
However, we did have one dog (a black Labrador) that actually LIKED Tabasco Sauce!

He would lick Tabasco Sauce right off a spoon!
He'd run to his water bucket and drink about 9,000 gallons of water then run right back, wanting more!
He was one of the goofiest dogs I ever saw!

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Ok I will look into it....do you know if it's toxic if my cat still decides to lick or chew the area after I sprayed it? Thanks!

Ya know, it is safe at low doses, but with your cat actually going after stuff that had been sprayed with bitter apple, you might not want to use this. I'm concerned that even if he were only getting minute amounts at any one time, it could accumulate in his system!

SORRY, and STRIKE THE ORANGE OIL!!!

 

[tracy1213]

Ya know, it is safe at low doses, but with your cat actually going after stuff that had been sprayed with bitter apple, you might not want to use this. I'm concerned that even if he were only getting minute amounts at any one time, it could accumulate in his system!

SORRY, and STRIKE THE ORANGE OIL!!!

I'll have to keep looking! maybe just plain old lemon juice? though that might not work great either! =)

 

[tracy1213]

It worked for us.
However, we did have one dog (a black Labrador) that actually LIKED Tabasco Sauce!

He would lick Tabasco Sauce right off a spoon!
He'd run to his water bucket and drink about 9,000 gallons of water then run right back, wanting more!
He was one of the goofiest dogs I ever saw!

Will have to try, though it might be putting tobasco sauce all over things in the house such as fake flower arrangements and wires....I imagine that would get messy and smelly! and knowing my cat he probably would end up liking it! =) i'll keep looking...thanks for the suggestion!

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Keep us posted!

 

[danteshuman]

If you give your cat appropriate things to chew on, does he leave the other things alone? They make kitten chew toys & you can use those small raw hide bones cut to a smaller size (I did it in thirds when I have teething kittens.)

 

[Caspers Human]

Will have to try, though it might be putting tobasco sauce all over things in the house such as fake flower arrangements and wires....I imagine that would get messy and smelly! and knowing my cat he probably would end up liking it! =) i'll keep looking...thanks for the suggestion!

Just thinking on my feet, here...but what about soap?

Dawn dish soap tastes pretty icky. (You don’t have to ask me how I know that! )
It isn’t toxic in the amounts that we’re talking about in this case.

The worst thing that could happen is that bubbles might come out of the cat’s butt.

 

[danteshuman]

Nope, nope ,nope, soap is a BAD idea that can make your cat throw up. How do I know? One of my cats got into some dawn once and had to go to the vet. He had to be on kitty kind of pepto bismol for a few days.

PetCoach - Ask a Vet Online for Free, 24/7
I think my (approximate) 7 month old cat might have ingested

 

[Caspers Human]

How much did the cat swallow?

 

[danteshuman]

I'm not sure. At the time I had laid some down on the ground to repel ants. I think he stepped in it and licked his paw clean. I was overly concerned after seeing the paw print smudge and him throw up a couple of times. So I dragged him to the vet just in case. Since it can make your pet sick I would use something else. Especially since the chewing on things may not be able to be prevented, just redirected. I would buy plastic wire covers & something to cover the chair legs. I would also buy things for my cat to gnaw on.

 

[Caspers Human]

Yes, even if a human gets that much soap in their system they can get the runs, too.
I don't think that using a cloth to wipe a small amount of soap onto an article would be enough to cause that.

However, I agree that engagement and distraction is a better first-line solution than aversion.
The main reason is because aversion does not actually take away the threat. Engagement teaches an animal that there are better, more fun things to do besides chew cords and things.

Until you find that "fun thing" that animals like to do, they will always be looking for something fun to do.

It's up to the human to teach their pets what they can do to have fun.

 

[sabian]

I know spray bottles of water are "taboo" but, wouldn't it be worth a try before spraying down your house with tabasco sauce and orange oil? I've used it before and it worked great. I have heard that some cats actually like it so it doesn't always work. How can spraying water on a cat be worse than getting him to ingest tabasco sauce? Maybe try using a double sided tape or packing tape on some things. danteshuman idea of chew toys is a good idea too.