Residing with cats is a joyous way to live.
However, you really do have to learn how to be a good cat caretaker. Just as one must learn how to be a good parent, spouse, partner, friend….a good anything….one must inform oneself about how to be that which you wish to be.
When you visit my other blog post Living With Your Cat you will get even more information about taking care of your cat companion.
Cats are impulsive. They are very smart, but they do not always act in their own best interest. It is up to us to be their hero and do what we can to save them from themselves.
9 things you can do to keep your cat out of trouble:
1. Install latches on your kitchen cabinets
You may have already discovered that cats can open a kitchen cabinet. There are at least two bad things about them doing that:
- They could grab and rip open a bag of food and make a big mess. Even worse, they could get into a bag of something that might be harmful to them.
- They could become lost for a time. Cats cannot see in total darkness, so they could have difficulty finding their way back out, thus creating a stressful situation for themselves.
(Visit my blog post How You Can Read Your Cat’s Eyes for information about your cat’s ability to see in low light but not in no light.)
To hamper your cat’s ability to open those cabinet doors, you may wish to consider installing latches that will still allow you to open the cabinet but make it hard for your cat to do so.
Here is an example of a typical latch:
2. Use an office chair without roller wheels
Cats have a tendency to hang out with us when we are working in our home office. It is something they love to do. I hardly ever worked in the office without feline company.
Should your cat decide to come visit you and lay down next to the roller wheels on your chair, that could put them in jeopardy. If you were unaware of your cat’s presence and rolled your chair, a paw or a tail could be run over. Take care to look before you roll.
There are chairs that swivel but do not roll. Here is an example of one:
This chair is available on this Wayfair website page
3. Get a lounge chair and ottoman instead of a recliner
Recliners are very comfortable. However, just imagine you are relaxing in your recliner and your cat decides to lie down in the bottom of the recliner or underneath the foot rest. When you go to get up and lower the foot rest, your pet could be injured.
Cats are very good about doing something like this without being detected. All they see is a hideaway place where they can relax and take a nap. They have no idea it could be trouble for them.
It can be very difficult for you to see what is beneath the recliner that you are sitting in. You would probably need someone to look under there for you before you let down the foot rest.
Would you consider an alternative to the classic recliner?
Perhaps a chair with an ottoman as a foot rest would be comfortable:
This chair is available on this Wayfair website page
You may also want to consider having plenty of cat beds in the house to hopefully redirect your kitty away from napping places that could get them in trouble. For help finding cat beds that your pet might like to have and would also be easy to keep clean, visit my blog post How to Choose a Cat Bed.
4. Keep Your Kitty Indoors
I have cared for indoor-outdoor cats and have become convinced that being an indoor-only cat is best for them. I understand that many cats like to be let out for a while, then be let back in. However, even when they are only outside for a short period of time, there is still potential for your kitty to encounter trouble, some of which can be serious trouble.
I have had indoor cats that often tried to sneak out as I was entering or leaving the house. I often wished that our house had what is called an “air lock entry”, where you have a main entrance door that opens into a small enclosed space, with an auxiliary door that opens to the main part of the house.
If you were leaving, you would first open the auxiliary door and enter the “air lock” space, closing the auxiliary door behind you. After assuring that there are not kitties in the “air lock” space, you can then exit through the main entrance door without fear of a cat escaping.
I am not suggesting you build a new house or remodel your current residence in order to have an indoor cat. I just thought you might find this “air lock” concept interesting.
Here is a floor plan from The House Plan Company that features an Air Lock Entry:
You may also want to discourage your cat’s impulse to go outside by enriching their indoor environment. One way to do that is by having lots of toys for them. See my blog post How to Choose Cat Toys for advice about this playful but important topic.
5. Look back and down when closing a door
Let’s say you are going through a sliding glass door on your way to your screened porch. You are sliding the door closed and unbeknownst to you, your cat has decided to follow you out there. If you close the door on your cat, that could be trouble.
No matter whether it is a swing door, a sliding door, or a bifold door, always look while closing to make sure there is not a kitty in the doorway.
6. Check your washer-dryer for cats
I have never closed a cat in a washer or dryer, but I have had to pull a cat out of one or the other on several occasions. I can testify that they will get into those machines if you don’t watch out.
A front-loading washer or dryer is very tempting to a kitty, but don’t think they won’t hesitate to jump up on a top-loading washer and dive right in. They will do it.
Of course it is a good idea to leave the washer and dryer doors closed when not it use. It is also a good idea to be very watchful when loading or emptying either, and to double-check before closing the door.
7. Decorate with cat-safe house plants
Cats are what is known as hypercarnivores. They are most definitely meat eaters. However, they will occasionally indulge in a little salad.
Cats will chew on houseplants. There are hypotheses as to why:
- to help them digest their food
- for roughage to help them pass a hairball
- they like to chew on stuff….cardboard boxes, laptop covers, etc
Unfortunately there are many house plants that are are big trouble for cats. For a list of some of those, visit this website of the ASPCA.
8. Don’t leave hot food or a hot stove unattended
Two things cats love to do are jump up on things and snack on food. Hot food left on a hot range or on a table presents them with temptations they should resist but unfortunately may not. A burned paw or mouth could be the result.
When cooking or serving hot food, either monitor your kitty’s whereabouts, or confine the cat to an area that will keep them away from the hot stuff.
Serving them a meal of their food in another room while you are cooking might divert their attention. And their instinctive need to leap up onto your counter might be constrained by having a cat tree for them to get up on. My blog post How to Choose a Cat Tree will help you find a good one.
9. Secure your cleaning supplies
I can tell you from personal experience that many cats are attracted to the smell of bleach. Our cats never had a problem because I always made sure that even though they might smell it through a closed door, they could not get at it. We do not want them interacting with bleach.
Additionally, their fondness for the smell of bleach could lead them to the place where you store other cleaning supplies, and that’s no good either.
Most chemicals are bad for cats. Even “ecologically safe” products could be a problem for them. For advice on how to keep your cat safe from cleaning products, go to this website of The Humane Society.