My cats did this too. I took a paper plate, cut a hole in the middle to fit around my plant and a slit to get it on. It lays on top of the dirt and the cats don't ever bother it.
I also use pebbles in my houseplants, it keeps my cat from digging plus it looks good too. NO mothballs, they are bad to breathe the fumes for you & the kitty.
I used to have cats that did that. I took some large rocks & placed them on top of the soil. You don't have to cover every inch, just enough so they have no room to dig. Make sure they are big enough that the cats can't move them. There is enough air space for the plant & the cat can't find room to dig. This worked great. Bricks would work, but the rocks were real nice looking & did the job well.
Our cats don't dig, but a friend of ours has cats that do. She put aluminum foil loosely over the top of the soil and around the plant. This not only keeps the cats out, but helps keep the soil moist.
DO NOT USE any kind of pepper or mothballs! Mothballs are poison to animals. Pepper burns their eyes so badly that they will actually scratch their eyes right out to get rid of the pain. Use citrus scents. Cats don't like the smell of citrus...oranges and lemons, or cover the dirt up with crumpled foil, a paper plate with double sided sticky tape on it, or coffee grounds. I cut the top off a 2 litre bottle, wrapped it around the plant stem, and the cats can't get at the soil. You use the top with the pouring hole. Slit it up one side and put it around the stem with the spout up and the cut part over the soil...like a tent!
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Request: Cat Digging in House Plants (10/27/2009)
Need help. I have a kitten and she won't stay out of my house plants. Every morning I find a pile of dirt laying beside the pots where she has been digging.
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Request: Cat Digging in House Plants
Archived on 10/27/2009
Need help. I have a kitten and she won't stay out of my house plants. Every morning I find a pile of dirt laying beside the pots where she has been digging. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.
Becky
Feedback:
chicken wire
To keep cats out of flower pots put small pebbles or a small piece of fine chicken wire on top of the dirt.
Becky asked what could be done to keep her kitten out of her house plants. I haven't used this in the house since my cats don't dig in the dirt of my house plants, but it worked for me outside. There I placed moth balls around my plants. It also keeps the rabbits away. She could maybe try using a tiny amount of moth crystals placed on a piece of foil so the moth crystals or mothballs don't get into the dirt. I know they are smelly, but it just might work. Dee (12/01/2000)
Wrap the pot from the bottom up over the dirt to the stalk of the plant with netting. Tie loosely enough that it won't hurt the plant. Because kittens are so curious and also eat things they shouldn't make sure that any poisonous plants are up out of her reach.
My cat did the same thing. I was told to buy a small bottle of either lemon oil or eucalyptus oil and mix a few drops of either one with water in a spray bottle. I spray around my plants or any part of the house I don't want "destroyed" (i.e. carpet by the front door...). Cats don't like the smell of citrus or eucalyptus. Meow!
I found an electric fence gadget at a hardware store and plugged it in by my front yard, several times late at night I heard the cats "scream". After a week or so I didn't have any problems and am happy to say that there were no deaths. I highly recommend them. My neighbor just bought one. (03/28/2004)
By Mark
RE: Kitties in the Plants
Lay some bananas on top of the soil this should help or use a spray bottle and spray him. It works for me. (02/06/2005)
Thank you everyone for your numerous and helpful suggestions on keeping cats out of my garden. I shall try some of these and see what happens. Also, I bought some black fabric type covering to put over my garden soil to help keep the weeds out. Maybe that'll help deter the cats, too. Sure hope so. I know my neighbors don't want to come over to clean up the cat dodo.
Thanks again and God bless.
Mary M.
twstr (04/22/2006)
By Mary
RE: Kitties in the Plants
For indoor kitties, provide them with their own, a cat nip pot or something, so that they stay out of the others and get the fiber and "fix" they need. Just keep chives away: my mother's cat fixed on it, and he loved to snuggle and fart in my face. Tuna and chives. (04/22/2006)
I just read in several other web sites that moth balls are toxic to cats, so that would not be the best method. I am going to try the pepper idea, as my kitten has now gotten used to being sprayed with water. (09/24/2007)
By Connie
RE: Kitties in the Plants
My husband brought home 3 homeless kittens in the dead of this cold winter, so they were inside with us, and wanting to use the planter for their bathroom business. This is how I drove them away from it: Put a small dish in the dirt, and place a paper towel soaked in ammonia in the dish - refresh when necessary. They won't even come close to the plant. (05/20/2008)
