You can keep cats away from certain areas in your home like the bedroom, kitchen, and the baby’s room by using a pet deterrent spray. You can also place natural deterrents like orange peels, lavender, and citrus which emit scents that cats do not like. Other deterrents you can try are by placing the double-stick tape, tin foil, and chicken wire or mesh as these have unpleasant textures that cats avoid.
How to keep cats away from certain areas
Your pet cat, being the curious feline that she is, loves to go and roam in various areas of your home. However, certain areas are not meant as “cat lounge areas”. These include the kitchen, your bedroom, your baby’s room, and your flower or vegetable garden. The thing is, cats can be stubborn and you have to be firm with keeping them away from the restricted areas for good.
There are many options you can try to keep your cat away from certain areas in your home. You can deter them with scents that they find unpleasant like citrus, lavender, grapefruit, rosemary, cinnamon, and mint. You can also keep them away by using water or pet deterrent sprays and with the use of loud noises. Finally, you can keep cats away from certain areas by placing things that have an unpleasant texture like tin foil, double stick tape,
How to keep cats away from the kitchen counter
Another area where your cat likes to hang around is the kitchen counter because it’s elevated compared to other areas in your home. Domestic cats descended from tree-dwelling cat ancestors which explains why they still act instinctively and love to jump on countertops, furniture, and the top of the refrigerator.
Here are some effective ways to keep your cats away from the kitchen counter permanently:
- Place some double stick tape or tin foil on the edges of the kitchen counter since cats don’t like its texture against their feet.
- If you see her about to jump into the counter, distract her with a loud noise or by calling her name loudly.
- Try to spray some lavender, rosemary, or citrus essential oil on the countertop since cats hate their strong smell.
- Entice her with her own climbing spaces such as a cat tree, cat perch, or some cat shelving in a certain nook of your home
How to keep cats away from your bedroom and other rooms
Most of us want to get a good night’s sleep without interference. However, this will not be possible if your cat is burrowing in your blanket and waking you during the wee hours of the night. Cats are known as crepuscular animals which means they’re at their most active during dusk and dawn. Keeping the door shut is an obvious choice, but cats usually will not give up so easily. They may keep on pestering you by scratching the door and meowing loudly.
Here are some other ways to keep your cat away from your bedroom permanently:
- Feed your cat with treats before you sleep which may keep her from disturbing you during the wee hours of the morning.
- Schedule some playtime with your kitty at least a few minutes before you go to bed so she burns excess energy and hopefully sleeps through the night.
- Always keep the bedroom door shut.
- Use a motion-activated pet deterrent spray like PetSafe SSSCAT Spray Pet Deterrent near the doorway.
How to keep cats away from the garden
If your pet cat has outdoor access at certain times of the day it’s most likely that she’ll like to hang around your flower or vegetable garden. This seems to be harmless though as your cat may just be doing some little exploration. However, she can do some real damage if she starts munching on your plants, digging on your garden plots, or worse, if she urinates or poops among your favorite plants.
Here are some practical measures to deter and keep your cat away from the garden:
- Install a motion-activated sprinkler system to keep your cat away since cats hate getting wet.
- Sprinkle coffee grounds, cayenne pepper, or ground tobacco around the garden area to keep your cat away since cats hate its strong smell.
- Plant herbs like Coleus Canina, lavender, and rosemary within the garden perimeter since cats hate its strong, fragrant scent.
- Put motion-sensitive bells or wind chimes in your garden because cats hate sudden and loud noises.
- Place a chicken wire fence around your garden and secure newly-planted garden plots with chicken wire mesh since cats don’t like the feel of the wire against their feet.
- Try an outdoor cat repellent spray like Nature’s Mace Cat Repellent by simply spraying in the garden area and even around plants.
- Use Systemic Animal Repellent Tablets to deter cats from munching or eating your plants. The tablets are buried next to growing plants and absorbed in the root system for about a year. It puts an end to unwanted munching because the capsaicin content affects the taste. However, this is only feasible for flowers and ornamentals but not for vegetables and other edible plants for human consumption. .
Smells that cats hate
Keep your cats away from every imaginable area of your home with these smells that felines hate because of their strong smell that’s way too much for their super-sensitive noses:
- fruits like lemon, grapefruit, lime, citrus, orange, and banana
- flowers and plants like lavender, geranium, eucalyptus, and Coleus Canina
- herbs like rosemary, thyme, rue, mint, and wintergreen
- spices like pepper, cinnamon, and curry
- scents of trees like pine and cedar
Commercial pet deterrents that keep cats away from certain areas
Aside from pet deterrent sprays for your home and garden, there are also other types of pet deterrents that you can try to effectively keep cats away from certain areas of your home. These are the following:
Wikomo Ultrasonic Repeller Solar-Powered Animal Repeller
This animal repellent uses a motion sensor and emits an ultrasonic sound along with a flashing light when it detects movement. It’s a humane alternative to keeping your pet cat away from certain areas of your home.
PetSafe Indoor Radio Fence for Cats and Dogs
This electronic device works along with the PetSafe receiver collar placed around your cat’s neck. It works by sending a tone and stimulation to the cat’s collar to keep her away if it detects your cat within a ten feet parameter.
Conclusion
Your pet cat can be stubborn and will usually prefer to hang around certain areas that are not the usual cat zones like the kitchen counter and your bedroom. However, you do not have to get stressed because there are various ways to keep her away from these areas. Just make sure that your pet cat’s safety is still the utmost priority. It’s always best to also use humane ways without inflicting any harm on your pet cat.