OUCH!!

[MyJezebel]

Jezebel has decided that a great way to get our attention while we are standing up is to jump on our legs and hang on by firmly implanting her claws into our skin. She will do this if we are wearing pants - which not only hurts but leaves little holes in them - and has even done this to my husband when he's been bare legged in shorts (really painful). We promptly remove her from our legs (after murmuring a few expletives), sternly tell her "no" and then put her down on the floor. This has not changed her behavior one bit. Has anyone else had this issue? If so, what did you do to correct it? Any advice would be greatly appreciated because we really need to put a stop to this.

 

[Candys]

Yup - Dinka does that. He wants to see what I am doing. It is usually when I am in the kitchen. Soooooo - what I do is keep a glass of water near me. When he jumps up on me I dip my fingers in the water and flick the water on him. He releases immediately. He just wants to be up on the counter so he can watch me. He is not being naughty on purpose.

 

[MyJezebel]

Yes, the kitchen is where she gets me the most too. I had considered trying to sprinkle water on her, but was afraid that it could cause a set back with bath time. I've just gotten her to the point where she will tolerate the water and don't want to give her any reason to dislike getting wet by using it as a punishment or deterrent.

 

[Fester]

I use canned air for this sort of thing...It works best if you can catch them just before the undesired behavior -- as smart as they are, sometimes they don't catch on. For a while, my Pharaoh would jump up on the table, crouch down it the 'I've been bad' pose, then jump down. It took a couple of rounds to make him realize that getting on the table in the first place was the problem.

 

[klreese]

i was going to rec a spray bottle.. but also thought about the bath time thing ... that could definitely cause a problem.
you could try maybe a noise with "no" like clapping your hands or something... it's "suppose" to work.
although i'm not much help... my bronxe jumps from floor to my shoulders- often times getting my back and crawling up! UGH!! talk about painful- little bugger!! i'm a push over momma!

 

[MyJezebel]

Oooh, I'm liking the canned air idea! Definitely going to try it. Since my back is usually turned when she does it, I'm going to have to be super stealthy in order to beat her to the punch. Sure I'll look like a crazy woman walking around the house with a can of air in my hands at all times, but so what.

 

[TotenEngel]

Smeagol also does this, he is a shoulder cat and will jump up to around waist height and then climb from there!
He actually tried it on the estate agent who came to value our house today! (I'm just praying it wasn't an expensive suit he had on!)
He gets put on the floor quickly with a sharp 'NO' (after the rude words!) and gets ignored for a few minutes afterwards
If I see him coming its a sharp no and a quick move away...
He is doing it less often, but I might also try the canned air trick lol

 

[Fester]

I like to think I'm a little smarter than my cats...
I set them up to be disciplined. I don't particularly like it, but the end result is kitties that everyone says are really well behaved.

Here's an example: Pharaoh liked to stretch and dig in claws when I'm making coffee, so I set the canned air next to the coffee pot and surreptitiously watched him while I was making coffee. Right as he was getting ready to drive pitons in, quick blast of air.

Now he walks up, thinks about it, then nonchalantly rubs against my leg, as that was what he intended to do all along


Edit -- I use the canned air to make a startling noise, not to blast kitty with -- I don't think the air blast could hurt them, but the noise itself seems to be an adequate deterrent

 

[TotenEngel]

I hear you Fester! I love my cats to pieces but there are a few things I am very strict about! (some of these are for their good as much as mine eg we have a touch operated hob!)
Generally, I try and get them into good habits as soon as possible to avoid trouble later on lol

 

[MyJezebel]

I hear you guys. Jezebel is definitely the queen of the house and while I'll let some of the littler things go (attacking my shoe laces while I'm tying my sneakers for instance) she needs to know what won't be tolerated (like the leg hanging). I'll let you know how it all works out.

 

[TotenEngel]

hehe, Smeagol is also a shoelace fan! The funniest thing was the other day when he dragged my husbands size 10 trainers into the living room! They are easily as big as he is

 

[Fester]

we have a touch operated hob!

there you go, making me consult the oracle (google) to figure out what that is

Since I'm pretty sure you don't have a touch operated Satan, A touch range, or stove would be a danger to the kitties.

The accessory known as a 'fanny-pack' makes the British giggle when you call it that.

 

[TotenEngel]

it does beep when there's things on it that there shouldnt be which (sometimes!) scares them off, but I do turn it off at the mains overnight, but this is why I dont allow any of the kitties up n the kitchen surfaces!


And yes, I had a giggle over fanny pack even then!

 

[ktate88]

Niles apparently did this to his breeders before he came to me. I knew that would not be tolerated! Well indirectly we stopped it-- put SoftPaws on his nails to get him used to them as a kitten. The first time he tried it after the look on his face was priceless!!! The softpaws stayed on for about 2 weeks and afterward he hasn't tried it

I use a water bottle with a tad bit of vinegar so it smells. Now when he does something I just have to get the bottle and he stops or goes away. I would think canned air would give a similar effect.

Bottle works great with dogs too...

 

[MissMySphynxBoys]

I love the canned air tip.