How do you prevent cats from jumping on counters?

The idea of a cat going from the litter box to your kitchen counter or any counter for that matter isn’t the most pleasant of ones. How do you prevent cats from jumping on counters?

The first and foremost issue to address is whether or not you want your cats completely off your counters or just sometimes. If your answer is sometimes, then you will not have success with training them to stay off the counters. It must be an all or nothing situation or your cat will continue to get on the counter.

However, you can say yes to certain counters and no to others. If someone is present when the cat is around and trying to jump on the counters, you can always fill a spray bottle with water and squirt the cat with water when she or he is trying to jump on the counters or attempting to jump on the counter.

This will teach the cat that they will get a “spray” every time they get in that area. Cats hate being sprayed with water, so this should work wonders. However, what do you do if no one is around when the cat is jumping on the counters? You can try putting double-sided sticky tape on the surface; putting upside down carpet runners or blocking off the counters with tall objects, but the convenience of these ideas is pretty unrealistic. A great solution is to spray your counter at night with a vinegar solution, as kitties hate vinegar. The “stench” alone will keep them from wanting to get their paws involved in such a “stink”.

Another solution is to sprinkle a small amount of pepper or curry powder on the counters at night. When your cat jumps up on the counter, the kitty will disturb the powder or the pepper and it will get up your cat’s nose, making her or him sneeze, not to mention hate the smell! The pepper and powder are always easy to vacuum up in the morning.

ScatMats are another solution. ScatMats are mats with a slight electric current. The electric current in the mat doesn’t hurt the cat and when they step on it, it gives them a little buzz, which is generally sufficient to make them avoid stepping on it.