Ways to Keep Cats off the Countertop

Avoid Temptation

• Your cat is attracted to anything it can eat or play with, so if you defrost your meat or keep butter on the countertop, leave dirty dishes, have pens, pencils, pieces of paper, rubber bands, small knickknacks -- anything your cat might want to bat around up there -- your cat is going to jump up on the counter to get it. Keep these things off your countertops to prevent your feline from learning that the counter holds a bevy of goodies to eat and play with.

Make Noise

• Cats are incredibly sensitive animals that do not like unpleasant noises. You can use several ways to create noise that gently startles your cat and makes it think that the countertop is making the noise each time it jumps up on it. Hide in a place where you can see your cat, but it can't see you; it's critical the cat does not see you, or it will become afraid of you when it hears the noise. Just as your cat jumps up on the counter, pop a balloon or take a small can filled with coins or rocks and shake it a few times. Commercial products are also available that make noises when a cat trips the sensor. Your cat will associate the unfavorable noise with jumping up on the counter and should stay off.

Negative Sensation

• Sometimes the best way to deter the determined feline from jumping up on your countertop is to place booby-traps on it that make being up there an unpleasant sensation. Animal behaviorist Pam Johnson-Bennett suggests taking a plastic carpet runner and taping it nub-side-up with double-sided tape. When your cat jumps up on the countertop, it will not like the sensation of the nubs on its paws and associate the countertop as something it doesn't want to be on. You can also place cookie sheets filled with water or plastic wrap on the countertop.

Provide Alternatives

• Prevention is the best training method, so provide alternatives for your cat's natural instinct to jump and climb that it likes better than your counters. Make sure your cat has cat trees and kitty condos to climb on. Placing these by a window where it can bird watch and enjoy the sun makes this a far more desirable place to be than the countertop. Kitty shelves and beds are also available that attach directly to your windowsill for your cat's enjoyment. Play with your cat regularly to keep its energy under control, and always feed it on the floor so it associates food with an area other than your countertop.