Expert: Brandy - 2/25/2007

Question
thank for your help.  they do seem to hate the water, most of the time.  if you squirt them or try to bathe them, they get upset.  however, if i have just gotten out of the shower, they love playing in the wet tub, even it if means getting their toes wet.  but when it comes to the squirt bottle, often times i just have to hold up the bottle for them to see and they run.  so i dont know, i'll try anything else, if you have some ideas.  ;o)
we have a suger glider in a cage (kind of like a bird cage) he looks kinda like a squirl.  i can understand the kitties being interested in him, but if left unwatched they will climb on his case or try to open the doors to get in.  they could possibly nock over the cage and let the squirl out or if they stick their paws in too far, they may get bit.  we dont let them on the table with the squirl, but they often dont listen to that and we get out the squirt bottle.  they get on tables and counter tops, they are very bad when we eat dinner, very pushy to get our food.  they sometimes beat up on each other too much and play too rough so we have to seperate them.  the little girl sometimes crys out when she gets bit by the male too hard.  sometimes they play so crazy that they are literaly bouncing off the walls.  i encourage them to play and know they need it, but sometimes they get a little too crazy.  they love to drink out of our glasses, one time accidently getting my mothers wine, instead of just water.  they run in oposite directions to get into things.  they constantly run behind the tv and i dont want them by all the wires.  back there its really hard to squirt them, so its sometimes hard to get them out.  they like to sit on our game consoles, i think because its warm, but they are a little to big for that.  sometimes they reset our games lol.  they play with the cords behind the computer.  recently the male started jumping on the fish tank.  he used to only watch from the front.  the fish love it, they come right over and he wacks them through the glass.  but he's been jumping on top too now.  he jumps right down when we tell him or squirt him, but its hard to trust them being alone for even a few min when they get into stuff so much.  at christmas they chewed the tree lights a few times and many times on the tree branches.  only a few presents got opened lol.  we love our little monsters, but montsers they are.

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The text above is a follow-up to ...

-----Question-----
i have two sphynx cats, almost 1 yr old.  we've had them about 4 mo.  we have a blue female and pink male.  they are fun and loving kitties.  lately, they have been nothing but trouble.  we have a water bottle that we squirt them with when they get into things, but its been worse lately.  they will run away from the water, then 2 min later they're back at it again.  they're getting into more things than ever before.  they get lots of attention, have tons of toys and things to keep them entertained.  most of the day, every day, there is someone home to play with them and keep them company.  i dont know what to do or how to get them to behave better.
-----Answer-----
I'm not an expert on Sphynxes (you can go onto the Yahoo webgroups for cat breed specific forums, where breeders and owners can help you with specifics), but my first reaction would be that the kittens (since they're barely out of kittenhood) think you're playing with them, even with the water. One of my cats will join me in the tub, so the water bottle training thing never worked....

Could you be more specific regarding what they are doing? Since there are two of them, I'm assuming they seem to be joining forces to slowly drive the household insane (the real goal of most cats, BTW.....)

Let me know more, and perhaps we can figure out how to outsmart those nekkid little ones....

Answer
Well, I can assume it's never quiet in your house....I read your reply to my husband, who thinks that the cats are normal (but then again, his favorite cat, EvilCatChild, gets away with the same stuff, too). Letters like yours remind me why I decided to take a break from cat show and breeding, since I was literally on alert 24/7 with even one litter of Maine Coon kittens (which at 3 months could easily outweigh your cats). And while I love my cats and feel that they are smarter than my dogs (which are more obedient, which I feel isn't always the same as smart), they can also think on their feet (despite what some cat behaviorists say), and like their god, Garfield, think of you merely as their pet placed on this world for their amusement and can-opening abilities.

You definitely have your hands full with these two. Where to start...Sugar gliders. I'm not too familiar with them and when I checked online about them I immediately thought 'Oh, how CUTE - I want one!" Then the Common Sense part of me smacked me in the head and reminded me that with 7 animals (8, if you count a sort-of-housebroken husband), I have too much to do already. The only things I can suggest is for you  to continue to not leave the Terrible Two and the sugar glider unattended. I'm sure that both cat and glider can do some serious damage to each other if claws or teeth are involved. And since some cats have an uncanny knack to learn to open cage doors, I would invest in a simple small lock. Really. It would at least keep the cats from tempting fate and getting into the cage with the glider.

Next, counters...this is a nightmare for me, too. When it was just me and 2 cats, the cats knew not to climb on counters since I would quickly scoop them off with a stern 'OFF!'. But I had to be consistent, and all that consistency went out the window when Hubby entered my life and made living in the house Heaven for the cats. The cats will still jump off the counters when they see me, but I still can't stand them on it.  There are mats you can purchase which give off a sound, like a beep or hiss when its sensors go off; it's worth a shot, but it might take some time. Some people swear by double-sided sticky tape (like the type you can get in fabric stores), placed at strategic spots, and which some cats dislike the sensation. This might work better in that you don't need to be in the same room as the cats when they are misbehaving, and no, the shock will not harm the cats. Online pet catalogs like Fosters and Smith and NE Serum sell these, sometimes giving discounts if you buy in bulk.

The jumping on tables and getting in your food like a pair of ill-behaved children at restaurants calls for more drastic measures.

Crate them. In a separate room, whenever you sit down to eat. Invest in a dog crate (not a pet carrier), place a small litterbox in it, one or two hammocks attached to the sides, and with two small bowls you can (firmly) attach to the side, and CONSISTENTLY put them in there before every meal. (Try to) Ignore the yelling, caterwauling, thumps and thuds as they try to escape (again, a small lock will do wonders), and eat in peace. Some cat people will think that this is harsh, but I am far from mean to my herd, and after a while (a long while in some cases) they get used to their downtime, and if they also get fed before they go in the crate, they should be less apt to commandeer your meals (and wine).

This also works when they're jumping on your last nerve, and don't be too surprised if they use the crate for naptimes.

As for the electrical stuff; spray some Bitter Apple, or even smear a little bit of super-hot Tabasco sauce on the electrical cords so the male won't use them to chew on. I wouldn't suggest spraying water at them while behind the TV; you could end up frying the wiring and the cat will think its funny. There are some pet pads which are lined in the inside with some kind of aluminum sheeting which reflects the pet's body heat, found at almost all pet supply stores, which you can substitute for the game consoles; just plunk the offending cat on the bedding next to you as he monitors your game playing.

As for the fish tank, I'm tempted to suggest to leave the cover off one day until the cat jumps on top of the tank only to swim with the fishes and before you scoop him out make sure you take pictures to tease him with, but if I did suggest that in seriousness, some people will accuse me of being mean. Which I'm not. Really. But he'll soon hesitate to jump on the top of the tank. Unless you have the tank stocked with expensive fish, too.

Christmas trees...I got you beat. We started out with one Christmas tree with lots of delicate baubles until EvilCatChild was born. Now we use two; one in the living room with less-expensive or non-breakable decorations, and one in the bedroom with the few remaining glass balls. We use Bitter Apple a lot on the tree in the living room since I'm not a fan of the smell of warm Tabasco sauce on Christmas lights...

Whew, I'm pooped. I just realized that my cats aren't the well-behaved paragons of cathood that I thought, but that instead I've learned to beat them to the punch.

It's obvious you love your cats, just like I love mine, but we need to realize that they need to learn boundaries, and that they are capable to learn, too, if done consistently and without being mean.

Good luck...let me know how things turn out.