Help! kitten wont stay off table..

[Raiee2010]

Need help , i also have another post my kitten is 16 weeks old, and has decided that he needs to jump on our kitchen table, people say just to spray him but he likes water... i know odd but he really does.. and theres nothing on the table and its clean so i dont understand why or how to make him stop doing it? any ideas?

[sugarcatmom]

Does it really matter if he's on the table? I personally let my cats go on the table (it loses it's appeal after a while if they never find anything interesting on it), but if you're dead set against it, then you have to make it an undesirable place to go. Put sticky tape or aluminum pie plates or tinfoil on it while you aren't using it, or get something called Sscat, which is a motion-detecting device that emits a blast of canned air when anyone goes in it's range. Also make sure you cat has other high places he can go instead. Cats love to be up off the ground, so if his only option is the table, he's going to keep going up there. Get a tall cat condo or a space on a bookshelf for him, or some window perches.

[pattymac]

Probably not much help on this one. I feed my boys on the table, so the dog doesn`t eat their food!

He does need somewhere he can go up high. Window perches are a great idea. The only place my boys and girl aren`t allowed to go is outside! Oh and the stove is pretty much off limits too. I know they get on the counters but oh well, they`re cats. The dog doesn`t get up there so that`s the only thing I worry about!

[Love4himies]

My cats certainly know they are not allowed up on the table or the counter, so when they hear me or DH coming they jump down as quickly as possible because they know it is too late for us to do anything about it .

What I have done to work around what they are going to do regardless of what we want because cats are height animals, is not to put any food directly on the counter or table. It is aways on a cutting board or plate .

[14+kitties]

If kitties being on the table bother you then I guess you wouldn't like my home. When I come downstairs in the morning I normally never have less than five of them lined up on it watching me and waiting for their morning treats. Once that bag comes out two more will join in. I don't see the huge deal about it. I clean my table well if I have company coming for a meal. They know if there is a tablecloth on it they stay down. No biggie.
I'n not a huge fan of the spraying with water. Most of mine just look at me as if to say Whaaa?? Most times for me if I want one of mine to stop doing what they are doing a sharp clap works just as well.

[Longblades]

What worked for me was an all mighty whack with my big wooden spoon. On the table, silly, not the kitten. Startles the living daylights out of them. Also broke two spoons.

I find as their muscle strength increases it's usual for them to want to explore areas they couldn't previously reach and there is a spate of table and counter jumping.

Spoon whacking works surprisingly well, even in my absence, though I do sometimes hear a suspicious thump as someone jumps down from a forbidden surface. Then I use cirus potpourri and orange peels. Most cats don't like citrus so bowls of it spread out where he is not to go might work to keep him away. It works for me and smells nice too.

Yeah, lots of kittens like water.

[MyBirdIsEvil]

The thing is that while you're absent the cat is probably going to get up there anyway if there's nothing discouraging him from doing so.
Things like scaring them off the table through loud noises only tell them they shouldn't be up there when they hear a certain noise or when you're around.

So they need to have a reason not to be up there or discouragement that is not related to you being there. The sticky tape and things like that teach the cat that they will not like getting up there in general, not just when they hear a noise or when you're around. Not to say noise can't work, just that if you're the one causing it, it's WAY to intermittent to deter most cats consistently. It has to be something consistent that happens every single time. Something that automatically makes a loud noise and gets them off EVERY time they get up there (like something triggered by them stepping on a pad, or a motion sensor), might work, but on the other hand animals will often get used to noises when they realize it's not dangerous. That's why you might see a coyote or something knock a garbage can over and run away upon hearing it crash to the ground every time for awhile, but after a certain amount of times they knock it over and don't even flinch. Something like sticky tape is simply distasteful to them, not just scary, so they try to avoid it.

I have also trained cats with the "off" command much like dogs by giving them treats for obeying it. When I say off I sit them on the floor and give them a tasty treat. If I see them about to jump on something that's a no-no I get their attention and give them a treat. Similarly you can train them to get ON certain items like a cat tree in the same way. And you give them a treat every time you see them sitting on that item. Eventually they will go on the items they're supposed to in hopes for a treat and pretty much avoid stuff like counters.
Of course it will depend on how much time you have around your cat and how your cat feels about you, how treat oriented they are, etc., but for me it has worked well.

Also, cats like to be up high, it's just part of their nature. So they really need other high up places to sit like cat trees, also. The more the better, so that the table doesn't seem like a very special place to be.
You may also want to try putting something high up nearby. My cats like to watch me when I'm sitting down eating or doing stuff nearby, and they prefer to be at eye level. So if the kitchen table is the only thing there that's where they'll be.

[scottyxx]

Mine always used to jump on the counter top and even the stove!

Needless to say they needed training, what I did was use a spray bottle of water right into their face and that helped a lot!

I also tried whenever I saw them, I would grab them tap them on the nose and say "NO" in a stern loud voice. Then pick them up move them to the ground and give them a tickle.

This worked for me, not every time they do something bad, like claw the carpet, or scratch the door, I just yell "NO" and they freeze in their tracks. Sometimes they will be naughty and wait until I am not paying attention and will start again so in that case, I need to say "No" and walk towards them, and they scamper.