How to Stop a Kitten From Biting Wires

A new baby kitty cat is so cute, fuzzy and full of energy. Your new pet's antics are always entertaining and can bring a big smile to even the hardest of hearts. Simply picking up your kitten and cuddling with it can make you forget about the problems you encounter in your day-to-day life. Until......the teething begins. Kittens will chew on nearly anything. They’ll chew on your furniture, your dog’s rawhide bone, the kid’s toys -- or even the kids. But the worst thing is when they chew on electrical wires. This can not only kill your pet but could cause a fire that could destroy your home and put you, your family and your pets in harm’s way. How to stop a kitten from biting wires?

It's Time to Cat-Proof Your House

Those that have kids know that even before a baby is born, the house needs to be baby-proofed. Well, babies are babies regardless of the species. You need to make sure that your home is safe for your pets as well as for your family.

Any wires should be wrapped tightly and hidden behind furniture. You can use bread ties to make the cords as short as possible. If you don’t have bread ties or wire ties, use some tape to get them out of the way. This will help to avert any temptations for your cat to chew on the cords. Be sure to insert child-proof outlet plugs into any unused electrical outlets to keep itsy bitsy kitty claws away from dangerous situations.

Exposed Electrical Cords

Let’s be honest here, nearly all of us have electrical cords hanging around that simply can’t be hidden behind a piece of furniture. That’s just the reality of life. I’ve never heard of anyone complaining that they have way too many electrical outlets in their home. It just doesn’t happen.

So what do you do to stop that precocious kitten from re-enacting the kitty bursts into flames scene from National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation? Nobody wants to witness this in real life:

http://youtu.be/PJW3Jpqjx5s Solution:

A little bit of kitchen magic will completely eliminate the problem in no time. All you need to do is pick up some petroleum jelly, lemon juice and red pepper at your favorite grocery store. Mix up 1 tablespoon of petroleum jelly with 2 teaspoons of lemon juice and 1 tablespoon of ground red pepper or red pepper flakes. Slather the mixture all over any electrical wires that are exposed in your home.

Now, when your kitten makes an attempt at having a teething session on the wires, she will have a big-time rude awakening. Felines hate sour lemon juice, although the scent is appealing to them. Once they get that sour taste, they bolt. Naturally, red pepper is the enemy of most warm-blooded animals. The petroleum jelly is the base that will stick to the wires and hold the DIY cat repellent together.

The Magical Recipe

In fact, this concoction will stop kittens from chewing on almost anything in your home. I had a kitten who thought it was great fun to bat at and chew on my Finding Nemoshower curtain. OK, I get the cat and fish animosity, but come on! It’s hard finding a great Nemoshower curtain. I coated the base of the curtain with my magic cat repellent recipe and guess what: The kitten never played with it again.

Please let us know how my kitty repellant works for you, or what other uses you've found for it. We just might contact you and write a story about it. Photos: Vagabond Shutterbug/Flickr