How To Keep Your Cats Off Of Counters

Are you looking to keep your cats off of kitchen counters or tables? Many cat owners find it unsanitary to allow kitties on surfaces where they prepare or eat food. What I find funny is that I’m an OCD germaphobe but I do not mind our cats on the counters. In my mind they are cleaner than me because they bathe for hours each day, while my shower takes all of 7 minutes. 🙂

Nevertheless, we’ve heard from many people that they will need to return their kitties to the shelter if they continue jumping on the counters, so we’re going to give you some tips on how to keep your cats off of areas that you don’t want them on. These are tips that avoid scaring your cat with sudden loud noises or using spray bottles to frighten them. We don’t like those types of punishment, as it’s been shown to make cats fear their humans.

Disclaimer: regardless of how you “train” your cat to stay off the counters, just be aware that they will still jump on them when you’re not looking or away. Don’t believe me? Set up a camera in your home and watch the videos! Felines are smart cookies. 🙂

How to keep cats from jumping on counters:

1. Use a natural, citrus based cleaner or spray. We put orange, lemon and lime peels into our vinegar mix to clean our countertops. We do this to make the vinegar smell better, but our cats don’t like to jump on the counters right after I’ve cleaned them. Of course, once it’s dry they don’t care – and neither do we, but you can use something similar to train cats to stay off the counters.
2. Put aluminum foil around the edges of the counter or place the foil on top. Most cats, for whatever reason, are frightened of aluminum foil. You obviously don’t want to keep this going, but it is a way to deter them from wanting to jump on the counter and train them.
3. The best option is to actually train your cat through positive reinforcement. Clicker training is a fabulous way to teach your cats to do or not do something like jump on surfaces. There are several YouTube videos you can watch on how to clicker train cats, and it can also build the bond you have with your kitty!

If you must keep your kitties off of your counters or tables, let us know how these work for you. Or, you can be like us and let your cats tell YOU where you can be – and let them free roam as they please!

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