Cats and Christmas?

"Oh! What is this giant green thing...it's sparkly...I think I will chew it!" %26lt;-my cats thought process





Ok, I have a small apartment and two cats. One is a big lazy lump and the other one....well....my favorite phrase about him is "what is he into NOW!?"





I put up my Christmas tree this weekend, put it on a 2ft high sturdy table, duct taped the base to the table, and wired the top to the ceiling. I put it in their favorite window so they can look at the lights close without being IN the tree. They can tell that the fake tree branches are not strong enough to support them; I watched them test the branches and then give up.





I have not decorated it yet, and I have not bought anything to decorate it yet. I need help! I already know no tinsel and unbreakable ornaments; small lights are less breakable than large, and to keep the wires in the center of the tree to keep chew temptation down. What I am stuck on is garland. I can’t do ribbon or any of the tinsel like garland. I have also discovered that they like to attack fake flowers… and my Thanksgiving centerpiece suffered. They will obviously eat anything like threaded popcorn or nuts. I can not lock them in another room at any point (again, small place - the bedroom houses a hamster and fish). This is my first Christmas away from home and my first Christmas with Cats – any tips (tree or other) you can give me would be a huge help!

Cats and Christmas?
Ha!Ha!Ha! I'm laughing but not at you but because I know exactly what you're going through!! I have a small apt. and 2 cats myself that are just a handful!!! Okay, first thing I can think of to tell you is about the tree. I bought a 3ft. high tree that I am able to pick up by the base and set it in my spare bedroom when I leave my apt. It might be a pain, but it's worth it because my tree stays intact and I know it's safer for my kitties. Small lights won't make a difference; it'll just make it easier to fit in their mouthes. No holly, misteltoes, or pointsettas; they're poisonuos. No small decorations or anything with string. Getting a small enough tree to put in another room like I do is the best suggestion I can give you. This way your cats still have the run of the apt. too.
Reply:this is like any other thing you should teach your cats - "no". You might try a spray water bottle and spray them everytime they attack the tree accompanied by a firm "no" and sharp clap of your hands.


Do not have anything hanging below the bottom branches that will bait them.


You and they will be OK, millions of kitties kearn not to attack the Christmas tree. I hope they have a scrtahcing psot - this is a good substitute for their attention.


BTW, you may NOT want to put their Christmas presents under you tree - cats seem to know when it is their's espcecially if there is cat nip in it!! We keep our kitty gifts on top of the fridge till we are ready to gove them to them.


Enjoy and have a happy and safe Christmas
Reply:I have a couple of terrorist cats, too. I put my ornements on ribbons %26amp; I skip the garland (it didn't stay on the tree long). I usually put small plastic ornements on the bottom so they can swat at them %26amp; hopefully won't attack anything else. I usually have to straighten the tree skirt a couple of times a day.


the kitties think this is a great new toy you made just for them (you're their maid after all). with cats, the best thing is to try %26amp; distract them.
Reply:I don't know about garland I don't use it. What type of garland are you thinking about getting - the shiny stuff?


They might find it tempting to play with - but since it's so inexpensive you might try one box of it and see what happens. I was thinking about really wide ribbon though.


That might work and the fabric stores and seasonal departments in other stores have such a wide variety of it.


Perhaps you might consider getting that and spraying it with something like bitter apple or another kind of cat repellant just as an extra precaution. That was a really good idea about taping the base and wiring the top I think I will try it when I put up my tree this year. We have a new cat that has not experienced the Christmas tree yet.


LL
Reply:Dont worry, I put my tree on the table by the window this weekend, when I went outside for a second my cat had already knocked it down. Luckily its a smaller tree. I HIGHLY suggest getting non breakable ornaments. They even make nice ball decorations in a bunch of colors that are shatterproof, I saw them at walmart. If they knock of a ornanment and it breaks then can cut themselves.. So i just tell my cat NO and take him down everytime he goes to it, its been 3 days and he is getting better.. Good Luck, Merry Christmas!
Reply:We have the same problem -- new kitten that's still in that eat/hunt/sleep/break things phase. No brains in that tiny little skull yet.





They'll find a way to bring down any tree or decorations or anything else that looks attractive. My suggestion is either resign yourself to uprighting the tree or ornamants a lot, or stick to window decals this year.





You could garland with popcorn which, while it may be eaten, at least won't hurt them.





Okay, strike that. The vet says popcorn is bad for cats.





You could decorate with kitty treats strung around the tree.
Reply:Thats a hard one. I have cats and I don't put trees up, I work in a veterinart hospital so I get the pleasure of seeing all the scary things. A few sugestions don't turn on the lights that will just attract them even more, sorry. You can put something arounthe tree that would have to step on to get to the tree, like a plastic carpet runner, those ones that have the little pokie things on the under side, put that wrong side up so when the step on it to get to the tree they don't like the way it feels so they don't go up there. or the old spray bottle works. I wouldn't let them go by the tree at all. The pine needles alone are dangerous. I also would't use any garland or tinsel at all, also hang the ornaments with the string that comes on them, no hooks. Also no popcorn can cause pancreatitis.
Reply:They have fake snow that comes in spray cans. It actually looks really pretty. Perhaps you could spray your tree with snow for added decoration instead of garland. Sounds like your cats are something else though, hopefully they wouldn't decide that spray snow is yummy. I think its worth a shot!
Reply:yes be very aware of use both electric lightbulp and a live candle lights the cable is so thin that the cats easely can thew it over ( if you do remember the national lampoon christmas movie with chevy chase ) but else if you not will feel a little lonely with only the animals, then i´m sure that you might get a cozy couple of days with good meal ps i did seen your notice about that you have the money cheats for fish tycoon i will love to get it very much have it nice and a pleansent christmas sincerly Flemming from denmark in europe
Reply:Dude....trust me. Water bottle. when you see those little buggers even walking toward that tree, squirt them. Pretty soon they'll associate the tree play with having to lick water off their bums. It's the only feasible way of teaching them. ALSO! I bought this stuff called "Bitter Break" it comes in several different names, but it's the same thing...it's a non-toxic sour-bitter spray you can spray on the bottom branches, the lower ornaments, and the trunk. It will taste horrible to your sweeties and they'll remember to stay away. It'll taste horrible to you too, so be careful about your hands. Works on electrical wires too (although wipe it on the wires instead of spraying). Probably wasn't a good idea to put the tree near their favorite place to sit, either, that was just tempting them more.





Also: some more things I did. Good to get a fake tree, as the real trees are toxic and the smell is too tempting. NO TINSEL. They're not smart enough to avoid eating it, and it can kill them. Hang nothing on the last branch (dangling is bad), and use the little metal hooks on the ornaments so you can literally wrap the ornament around the treebranch and it won't come off.





Other than that, just be patient and consistent with them. It's only been three days and my kitten is already starting to lose interest in our tree. Good luck!
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Reply:One thing you didn't bring up is the presents under the tree. My experience with my cats is that they LOVE the ribbon on packages. This is not good, unless you like sick cats and finding multi-colored cat puke with ribbon fragments festooning your house. You really want to keep the ribbon away from the kitties. I would advise you to put presents out only at the last minute and make sure you clean up wrappings ASAP.





You may have to accept that the cats will be attracted to the tree and just deal with the consequences. It sounds like you understand most of the safety issues. It goes without saying that any time you are away from your apartment, make sure the tree is unplugged in case it gets knocked over.





It's my experience that cat ownership means making some sacrifices. For us, that's meant that there are some ornaments we just don't put on the tree because of the risk of having them broken. While you can't put tinsel or ribbon garland up on your tree, there are lots of beaded and plastic icicle garlands that you can put up and that are safe around your kitties.





Good luck and enjoy your Kitty Christmas. Remember the first rule of cat ownership: chaos rules! Enjoy. ;-))