my cat is destroying my mail,etc…. help!!!
we have a fairly new cat which my son got for christmas. she was fine until about three weeks ago when she began chewing on papers that were left on the table.
a friend said to get a spray bottle and spray her when she does it. we do that, but it doesn’t work. now she’s started pulling papers off of trhe bookshelf and shredding them.
we’re at our wits end. what should we do??
gloria barro
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I am most likely to see paper shredding activity in my house when I’ve let the litter boxes get a little too soiled, and the cats decide to create a fresh one of their own. Make sure to keep your little box immaculately clean so your cat is not inclined to shred paper on which to eliminate.
Some cats, however, just like to shred things. The most obvious solution, of course, is to keep loose papers out of her reach. Then make sure she has plenty of appealing toys to keep her attention focused elsewhere. I will list some of the most popular kitty distractions below:
1) catnip toys – I buy loose catnip in jars at K-Mart, then cut squares about 6-8″ square out of old blue jeans, pour a good sized pile of catnip into the center, gather up the sides, and wrap a wide rubber band tightly around the top of the catnip pile. The cats love it!
2) feather wands – you can buy these premade or make them yourself by wrapping a length of cord around one end of a flexible wand or stick and the other end of the cord around some long feathers.
3) cat-sized cardboard boxes and large paper grocery bags – cats love to play in both of these, and they’re FREE! Just toss them onto the floor and let your girl have fun. The bags may also give your cat something to help satisfy her urge to chew paper.
4) window birdfeeders – get a couple of those small birdfeeders that attach to windows with suction cups. As soon as birds find the feeders, your girl will probably forget all about papers in lieu of watching the bird activity at the windows.
5) fish tank – lots of cats enjoy the “kitty tv” provided by fish in a tank
6) scratching posts – different cats prefer different materials and alignments. Some like horizontal cardboard scratchers; some like vertical sisal posts; some like carpet; some like a chunk of firewood with the bark left on.
If you give her all of these irresistible distractions and she is still drawn to your papers, put a few pennies into an empty pop can and shake it loudly when you catch her being inappropriately destructive. If you have good aim, you can also keep a soft kitchen sponge handy to toss at her when she’s being naughty.
One last thought, since this is a new behavior for her, it might be a good idea to have her checked out by your vet. If her teeth or gums are bothering her, there might be something about paper shredding that she finds soothing.
Good luck,
Tempest
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If she’s shredding them, the toys and the scratching posts are your solution. But, if she’s chewing them, most likely it’s because she likes the crunchy noise it makes. I used to have a cat that adored chewing on cellophane so we had to be real careful about not leaving anything made of cellophane out there or he would eat it (it’s not good for them). I’ve also heard of a cat that ate aluminum foil (she died from it). Your cat might be one of them. Just because she never did it before it does not mean that she won’t continue doing it. I have to admit that I do not use or recommend any disciplinary methods that scare cats (such as spraying water on them or making sudden noises)… I guess I just like their quirky personalities too much to try to curtail them. I do try to keep their antics down to a manageable level (I have 12 cats) by using noises: I go shhhhhhh when they do something ‘bad’ and, if they don’t obey, I walk up to them, make eye contact, and make a hard jjjjjjjjj noise (kind of like the first sound in happy but real hard – like a cat when he’s real angry). It works like a charm for me. But, I doubt it will work with the chewing because she’ll continue to do it when you are not there so I think your best bet is to keep those papers out of her reach.
Good luck!
Bibi
