How to keep my kitten from jumping on the dining table during meals?

Kittens this age can be challenging to live with! You can try spraying your mom's plant with Bitter Apple spray - this is a bitter-tasting substance that often works well to deter chewing on plants, electrical cords, and other inappropriate items in the house. I also think it's a great idea to get some cat-friendly plants for your room and other areas in the house, if possible, since she seems to enjoy chewing on them. The most appropriate things she has to chew on, the less likely she will be to seek out your mom's plant. For the kitchen table, I would suggest placing double-sided sticky tape on it whenever you're not using it to eat on - most cats don't like the feel of this on their paws, so she will learn on her own to avoid the table if it's always uncomfortable to walk on. Once she is no longer trying to get on it at all anymore, you can slowly fade out using the tape.

Cats LOVE to jump up on things and get to higher areas. If you don't already have a "cat tree," I would highly recommend you invest in one if you are truly going to try to keep your cats off your furniture. Give her something she CAN be on; spray with catnip spray or sprinkle with catnip. Most of them include scratching posts as well, which you should have a few of throughout your home to prevent her from scratching your carpet or furniture. [Nature's Miracle Pet Block]() or similar product may curb the jumping. I am not certain its safe to use on wood, though. Another thing you can do to deter cats from jumping up onto surfaces is to place aluminum foil on them, they don't like the noise or feel when they jump onto foil. You can also try [Sticky Paws](https://www.petco.com/shop/en/petcostore/product/sticky-paws-on-a-roll-for-cats) which are double sided sticky sheets--they don't like the feel of these either. I hope that helps you! Thanks for asking PetCoach!

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. If you want to train your cat not to jump on the counter, you can try the following method. Obtain a spray bottle and fill it with water. Whenever Salem jumps up onto the counter, lightly spritz him in the face and say "off!" to show that this is an unacceptable behavior. I've had some clients use noise deterrants before where a motion sensing noise device is placed on the counter and whenever the cat triggers the motion sensor, a loud noise goes off. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further.

You could cover the counters with textures that cats don't like. For example, aluminum foil, placemats or cardboard covered with double-faced sticky tape. Many cats don’t like those surfaces, so the hope is for the cat to jump down once he/she touches the surface. Leave the mats on the counter at all times when not in use and, hopefully, she will stay off. After a few weeks without signs of her on the counters, remove a small section at a time and see if she will stay off.

Hi, thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! I am so sorry that Bingley is being so bad! First for your sanity, at night I would confine him so he isn't keeping you up at night. Put him in the basement (with food, water and litter boxes) or a separate room. That will keep him from getting in to things and allow you to sleep. The good news is that he will grow out of this behavior, he is very young still. As for getting up on the counters, etc: cats like high places. First provide alternatives, get a couple of cat trees or other things to enrich his environment. Make sure all food is put away and the facet doesn't drip so he isn't attracted to the counters. Then you have to make the counters unpleasant: cover the counters with textures cats hate — aluminum foil is one example; cardboard covered with double-faced masking tape or shelf liner is another. No, you won’t have your counters covered forever, but you will need to keep them covered while your cat learns to use the new perches. For the more determined cat, you can look at harmless automatic devices that discourage counter cruising by making sounds cats dislike when they trigger a pressure pad or electronic eye by jumping up. I hope this helps and have a great day!

You have a few different options to help keep this behavior from happening. You could give Pilot a special chew treat, such as a bully stick or a Kong stuffed with peanut butter, to keep him busy while you're eating. You could also use a baby gate to block him out of the dining room while you're eating, or put him in his crate if he is crate-trained. If you want a training solution for this problem, you can teach him to lay quietly on a designated mat or dog bed during dinner time - to do this, you would need to reward him very frequently at first for staying on his mat, so that this is more rewarding for him than trying to jump on the table while you're eating. Over time, you will be able to reward him less and less frequently, until eventually he can stay quietly on his mat during the entire meal for a single reward at the end.

It can be really difficult to keep cats off the counter. You should continue to put them on the floor when you catch them. You could look into something like a Scat Mat, although it does give a small electric shock. There are also some motion sensor forced air canisters that might work. If your cats are particularly anxious or fearful you should be cautious with any type of negative reinforcement since it could frighten them and cause behavioral issues.