How To Stop Cats From Eating Plants

I love my cats. I also love my plants.

Cats need to eat greens, for hairball management, extra vitamins and fibre. They prefer grass, but if they're stuck indoors they may turn to house plants instead. House plants with long slender grass-like leaves. House plants like mine! (sigh)

Since some plants are poisonous to cats, and since the plants no longer look as nice once they've been chewed on, I thought a quick review of cat deterring strategies would be useful.

• Water bottle squirts! Having direct personal experience with this one (think "keeping my cats away from new leather couches") I know this would work for plants as well.
• Offering planted cat grass for them to have instead.
• Placing the plant on some plastic carpet runner with the pointy side up (ouch! aw, that's just mean ;)
• Surrounding the plant with tin foil - cats hate the noise and feel (again I can vouch for this one, having had success with it myself).
• Spray the leaves with vinegar (although some plants might not like this either).
• Try creating a homemade spray with ingredients such as lemon juice (not hot pepper sauce though because this can burn the cat's eyes).
• (Have you noticed that I haven't included "put your plant out of reach"? That's because my cat is an agile Manx who can climb and jump A.N.Y.W.H.E.R.E.) However, relocating plants might be a useful tip that would work for someone else.

So far, this time around, my cat has focused on one plant in particular, left all the others alone, and not had any ill effects from the plant she's been eating. I'm ok with that for now, but I'm glad to have some strategies in case the situation worsens in the future...


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