Support NeoGAF

[RobFox64tm]

By having a dog instead.

 

[desmax]

I do have 2 cats, and weirdly enough they never got on top of my consoles.

Anyway, cats love boxes, put one close to the console, and they should go to the box instead. Extra points if you make it comfortable (Put a blanket or something)

 

[BlackBuzzard]

Never had the problem my cat is well trained and mannered.

 

[phanphare]

raise a well behaved cat?

 

[Ziffles]

Just play with the damn cat already.

 

[Zaku]

Yeah my cat walks all over my electronics from laptops to standing in front of the TV from time to time. But he does not go around that Playstation and for a little advice I would say flick the cats nose, give him a little love slap off and tell him a word it knows when it does bad things. My cats no word is "f*ck off" best of luck because a bad cat can be the worst enemy you ever had living with you

My parents had a dog they yelled "Fuck off" at so much that he thought it was his name, and would come over to them and sit every time.

I may have assisted in this training process by rewarding him if he came to when I called "Fuck off".

 

[Marvel]

Let me deal with your cat OP.

 

[LonelyGreyWolf]

Serious time; cats CAN be trained. Grab the cats neck if he/she is in a place that you don't allow it. You can show the cat that doing something you don't allow is painful for her/him. Don't worry about the cat, the pain disappears as soon as you put the cat down again. Do note that if you're not paying attention to the cat, he or she may do it anyway just to get your attention. Back when I still lived with my parents I did this when our cat tried to get at my consoles or guitar or the like.

Also cats are still amazing. Every time I come over to my parents the cat is so happy. Cats are so cozy and cute, but don't let them rule you.

 

[BlackBuzzard]

My parents had a dog they yelled "Fuck off" at so much that he thought it was his name, and would come over to them and sit every time.

I may have assisted in this training process by rewarding him if he came to when I called "Fuck off".

Lol

 

[KiefbladeMaster]

Feed the cat to your ATM

 

[10k]

Hire this cat.

 

[Freshmaker]

My girlfriend moved in with me not too long ago, bringing her cat with her.

I don't like pets, but I try. I pet it. Until it happily scratched me, I brushed it. I fed it.

In fact, I just fed it today. 10 minutes later, the damn thing was standing on my brand new Xbox One, on a TV stand that I previously had to shove empty boxes into to keep her from casually crawling through the other consoles and all the cables in the back.

I am at my wit's end.

I can't flick water at her or use a spray bottle because it doesn't mix well with electronics. Is the only solution an enclosed stand, which might have ventilation issues or otherwise create problems with plugging in wired controllers?

Cats are attracted to warm things, like your Xbox. However, they hate sticky stuff so some double sided tape would discourage that as a napping spot.

Another option is to just make it uncomfortable. My mom discourage a cat from sittign on her DVR by putting a cooling rack on top of the thing. Still plenty of air flow, but the cat didn't like trying to lie down on the thing.

Something that looks like this: http://www.foodservicewarehouse.com...bhnRM36WwJxSlIlbBObM8n324AFmLK7TtEaAu2-8P8HAQ

A small animal standing on a plastic box (not damaging anything) has you at your wit's end? Wow, I hate to see how badly you take it when you are actually faced with some legitimate problems in life.

Yeah, I suppose a small animal clogging up your heat sink and causing your expensive electronics to melt isn't annoying at all to you.

 

[Lys Skygge]

Cats don't respond well to punishment (spraying with water, spanking, etc...). It just pisses them off.

I have two cats and I used to spray them with water whenever they did something bad...but every time I did they would piss on the counter or my desk. I did some research and apparently physically punishing a cat causes anxiety and they start to act out. I've changed my habits and now whenever my cat is sitting on my laptop or on my television stand I just kindly nudge them off and tell them no. My cats pretty much never do those things anymore.

 

[Dabanton]

I choose not to spray my cats with water as you'll make them nervous of you in future especially if their young cats.

They've both looked into the TV stand but can't get into it,they used to be able to get under it but I've moved some DVD storage boxes under there and it's stopped them. They now ignore that area.

 

[Zaku]

Cats don't respond well to punishment (spraying with water, spanking, etc...). It just pisses them off.

I have two cats and I used to spray them with water whenever they did something bad...but every time I did they would piss on the counter or my desk. I did some research and apparently physically punishing a cat causes anxiety and they start to act out. I've changed my habits and now whenever my cat is sitting on my laptop or on my television stand I just kindly nudge them off and tell them no. My cats pretty much never do those things anymore.

Positive reinforcement is better for any animal you're trying to train.

That or drugs. Just sprinkle some catnip on the couch. Little bugger won't go anywhere near your Xbox One, he'll be too busy tripping balls and licking the couch cushion.

 

[JordanN]

Should have got a PS4. Cats fucking hate PS4s.

 

[Raticus79]

Restricting physical access is the easiest fix in the short term. I have a narrower, compact shelf which doesn't give them much room to wedge in there.

We have a tall cat house next to the TV which is about 5 feet high. They prefer to go up there most of the time. They want to be in an important area and keep an eye on things.

Cats that are annoying and get in your face actually want attention and are enjoying the action that comes out of it. One of them will walk in front of the TV from time to time, just because they're bored / feeling social and they know something happens when they do that.

Classical conditioning definitely works, but I'd stick with the positive side as mentioned above. Too much negative creates a vacuum where they just do what they want anyway because they can't figure out what they're supposed to do.

It's been shown that cats can recognize words, they just aren't wired to care in the same way as dogs - no "eager to please the alpha" instinct in place like you get with dogs. Relatively easy to get them to recognize their name and come for food, not so easy to get them to recognize a command to stop doing something.

If you run into any problems with it biting cords, bitter spray is effective. Might be a good idea to spray your cords in advance just in case they get the idea to try biting them later - I had one sabotage a pretty expensive photo printer once.

 

[Vigilant Gambit]

How about just buying chickenwire and making 30cm bigger enclosure than the console around it? Thats the only solution I Can think of thats better than enclosing, it keeps cat away, 30cm shouldbe far enought that the heat does not attract, it still stays ventilated and accessible for cables and the best part, youre GF realy understands youre problem when its permanent eyesore for her, so it turns from youre problem to her problem

This might work.

Provide a empty box, cats love them, you will see the cat will be prefer the box over the Xbox One

She's had an empty box for months. The lid is poked full of holes from her claws, which is why I don't want her sitting on my expensive stuff. Those claws will damage it. Not to mention the fur getting into the console, which has an air vent on the very surface she sits on.

I took the lid off the box, put it on its side, and put it in a corner. Hopefully she takes to it.

PS4 comes with cat repellent. Ugh, X1 doesn't have this basic feature? You picked the wrong console my friend.

I've had a PS4 since January. The cat has not bothered with it at all, not even when it was in the same spot the Xbone was in.

Don't make it an attractive place to sit. Parker used to crawl into my TV stand's only un-full shelf, but now it's full of games and he can't get in anymore.

A shelf being full apparently doesn't dissuade this cat as long as there is space for her to physically occupy. I had to stick empty boxes in those spaces to make it physically impossible for her to be there.

Make a pssst noise at them when they get near it and when they go on it pick them up by the scruff of the neck and make the same noise. Put them down and sternly look at them, do not yell though. Literally death stare at it. My kittens did this with my TV stand, often wanting to attack things on screen, and all I have to do now is go pssst when they jump up and they immediately get down.

Don't ever spray them with a water bottle if they can see it comes from you, that's when they start acting out towards you. People don't know how to raise cats and then complain when they are assholes later in their life. ):

This is interesting, but I'd prefer a solution that works even when I'm not home.

I'll give you a serious answer. My cats do the same thing. They'll find anything that's warm and sleep on it. I had to make tiny risers and set my Xbox One on top of them to make the area around it small enough that my cats couldn't get to it. My wife used double-sided tape on our cable box and that kept the cats off of that, but I don't really want to put tape all over my Xbox.

Edit: KJ869 beat me to it. I think reducing the space around the Xbox is your best option.

I'm not sure risers would work. My TV stand has 3 shelves. The bottom two is where I keep my games and my PS3. The supports for the shelves serve as bookends for the games. The other consoles are on the top shelf, and the TV is above that, on a swivel mount.

The cat was sitting on the Xbone in front of the TV. Risers wouldn't create less space above it.

Draw a circle on the floor with duct tape. Trust me.

I tried that. Both drawing a circle around it, and drawing a circle, then putting the cat inside it.

It just looked at me before casually walking over the tape.

A small animal standing on a plastic box (not damaging anything) has you at your wit's end? Wow, I hate to see how badly you take it when you are actually faced with some legitimate problems in life.

I've been unemployed for 2 months, which is a pretty fucking legitimate life problem. This is a very minor annoyance in comparison, but I'm at my wit's end because it's things like this which make the proposition of being with this cat in the long term a difficult one. I essentially have to resolve this if there is to be a future between myself and the cat's owner.

This is the lid of the cat's box. I don't want any of my consoles to be subjected to those claws.

Cat owner here.

I keep my two cats away from my consoles by having them on a shelf too high and too crowded for them to jump up to even if they could make it.

My consoles are like 5 feet off the ground with no furniture anywhere near the shelf. No cats on the thing at all. It's not really difficult.

I frequently use wired controllers, so that wouldn't be a good solution for me. Maybe if I got new shelves and used USB extenders...

Cats are attracted to warm things, like your Xbox. However, they hate sticky stuff so some double sided tape would discourage that as a napping spot.

Another option is to just make it uncomfortable. My mom discourage a cat from sittign on her DVR by putting a cooling rack on top of the thing. Still plenty of air flow, but the cat didn't like trying to lie down on the thing.

Something that looks like this: http://www.foodservicewarehouse.com...bhnRM36WwJxSlIlbBObM8n324AFmLK7TtEaAu2-8P8HAQ


Yeah, I suppose a small animal clogging up your heat sink and causing your expensive electronics to melt isn't annoying at all to you.

Hey, that's something I might be able to do right now. I have a metal rack that I removed from my microwave when I first moved into this apartment. For now, I took the Xbone and put it in the bedroom (where the cat isn't allowed) out of sheer frustration. There isn't even a TV or monitor in there to play it on. This idea might just get me to take it back out today.

 

[GifGafIsTheBestGaf]

buy a dog

 

[megalowho]

Provide a empty box, cats love them, you will see the cat will be prefer the box over the Xbox One

This is actually pretty good advice. Cats can't resist cardboard boxes. Also make sure the claws are kept neatly trimmed.

 

[fluffydelusions]

Set a trap

 

[Bl@de]

Never had that problem. When our cat sees me she runs away in blind terror, knowing that death is upon her. That's because

Spoiler

she is a total nutjob who doesn't like men

. But how could one achieve such a fear .... Hmmm ...

 

[BibiMaghoo]

You don't.

And you should not be spraying water at a cat for standing on your stuff. That is fucking cruel.

 

[Sterling M]

What's your shelving setup?

I moved in with my girlfriend, who already had a cat, and we've adopted a kitten. I have one of these Ikea shelves (turned horizontally) as my TV stand/game and console storage unit. The PS4 shares space in one of the cubbyholes with my 360, which gives both consoles enough ventilation, but are just tight enough to discourage cats from getting in and trying to soak up the fahrenheit.

 

[akidnamededdy]

Get a new girlfriend who has a dog.

Best answer ITT. New girlfriend AND an animal that doesn't stink up part of your living space with a box of its own shit.

 

[MvmntInGrn]

You don't.

And you should not be spraying water at a cat for standing on your stuff. That is fucking cruel.

What? its not like water burns them.

EDIT: I moved my consoles (except the XB1) to a nearby table that was just small enough to stand them all vertically. They don't jump up there because they don't fit. So give them a place to sit (box) or make it so they don't fit. It cat fits they sits.

I don't agree with water because the cat will just not sit on it while your around. You'll come home one day to find it sitting on your console and it will just promptly jump off (its been there for 6 hours...).

 

[FeiRR]

There are special liquids to keep cats away from things but basically any strong citrus (lemon, orange, etc.) scent works. Buy one of those oily scents for baths or air refreshers and carefully place some drops in the corners of your console (not inside, of course). Should work well. Another thing would be putting your console vertically but I know you can't do that with X1.

Cats like warm surfaces. One of mine sleeps on the sat box half the winter. I keep my PS4 vertical but not because of cats. They never wanted to sit there. When I had a PS3, one of them used to switch it on with her nose. I had to answer a lot of messages when I got back home, like 'Why are you idling and not playing BF, bastard?'.

 

[Colbert]

She's had an empty box for months. The lid is poked full of holes from her claws, which is why I don't want her sitting on my expensive stuff. Those claws will damage it. Not to mention the fur getting into the console, which has an air vent on the very surface she sits on.

I took the lid off the box, put it on its side, and put it in a corner. Hopefully she takes to it.

You need to change the box all 4 weeks because it must smell new and fresh. The picture you showed looked like a very old card box. Cats are very picky when it comes to boxes. I repeat boxes should be new and should have a fresh smell on it. You can increase your chance in rubbing catnip into the box.

 

[Linkyn]

That'll happen. The cat probably likes sitting on the vent because of the heat flow. Best thing is to present it with a more ridiculous spot to lie down.

 

[Colbert]

Set a trap

 

[Cornbread78]

Yeah that's all well and good until a publisher disables the cat repellent, good job Sony

OK, I'll give you props on this one.... excellant.....



Oh and OP, the XB1 gives them a heated blanket to sleep on, of course they are gonna hit that $hit up..

 

[Family Fry]

Some cats don't like citrus scents, so maybe get a strong scented candle (doesn't have to be lot) or oil, sit if you can beside your console. Somewhere close enough for it to get a whiff and not go back, worth a try.

My friend had a wooden tv unit and his cat used to lay near tv and on his console, he told me once he started using a lemon based polish regularly his cat never sat on again.

 

[Vigilant Gambit]

What's your shelving setup?

I moved in with my girlfriend, who already had a cat, and we've adopted a kitten. I have one of these Ikea shelves (turned horizontally) as my TV stand/game and console storage unit. The PS4 shares space in one of the cubbyholes with my 360, which gives both consoles enough ventilation, but are just tight enough to discourage cats from getting in and trying to soak up the fahrenheit.

I'm not sure I'd trust my 40" on top of that horizontally, but vertically, it would fit our books and games, and possibly free up room to put the Xbone on a lower shelf with less cat room. Hmm...

You need to change the box all 4 weeks because it must smell new and fresh. The picture you showed looked like a very old card box. Cats are very picky when it comes to boxes. I repeat boxes should be new and should have a fresh smell on it. You can increase your chance in rubbing catnip into the box.

That box is 2 months old.

 

[Mobius and pet octopus]

They may respond to a can filled with some coins shaken at it.

 

[JonCha]

It happens. It's what cats do. I wouldn't get too stressed about it. I guess I'm more relaxed to cats - if my cat comes in I'll sometimes just let her sit on me.

 

[flatearthpandas]

Should have got a PS4. Cats fucking hate PS4s.

My cat walks on my PS4.
Only when the dog chases her over to the entertainment center though.

As others have said, just make sure it has more interesting places to go/sleep and move it whenever it does go over there.

 

[Vigilant Gambit]

That'll happen. The cat probably likes sitting on the vent because of the heat flow. Best thing is to present it with a more ridiculous spot to lie down.

The console had been off for 12 hours. I didn't notice any heat when I picked it up.

 

[Colbert]

That box is 2 months old.

Too old.

 

[-Horizon-]

Let me deal with your cat OP.

Must
Resist
Avatar
Quote

 

[Shmuppers]

What an adorable problem to have. You might have to somehow elevate all that wiring, or make it look otherwise disinteresting to a cat.

 

[KlytusImBored]

I found my girl's cat standing on my 360 one day. I took a canister of air to spray out the dust while it was hovering around, and it's never gone near it since.

This is my solution whenever our cat is being obnoxious. Give the pressurized air canister a spray and watch that cat fly.

EDIT: To be clear, don't spray the cat directly. The noise will be enough. There are also motion sensitive gadgets that will do this when the cat gets close.

 

[Dylan Sexbang]

Shoebox. My cat is asleep in a shoe box right now, but I also don't mind him on my electronics cause he's a fucking cat.

Or put orange peels on your console, cats don't like citrus.

 

[Cornbread78]

Must
Resist
Avatar
Quote

Oh damn. yeah, hit that cat, boom.

 

[weekev]

2 words...laser pen.

When the cat sits on the box shine a laser pen on the floor next to it. Its scientific fact that cats cannot resist the urge to chase that little red light. Shine it out of the door, close said door and repeat.

 

[Linkyn]

That cat looks boss as fuck.

 

[Cthulhu_Steev]

Put a dog in the disc drive.

 

[Shylock]

Based on your picture, I don't blame the cat for jumping up there, that's a nice, flat, elevated perch for them to look down into the room, and that's what they like.

So if you can't put it somewhere else, at least remove the flat part of the portion. Just put your controllers, or minifigs (I used to use mini-muggs), or anything that isn't going to give the cat a flat spot to lay down on.

Or go with something like this:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0006G4V5I/?tag=neogaf0e-20

 

[Nzyme32]

My girlfriend moved in with me not too long ago, bringing her cat with her.

I don't like pets, but I try. I pet it. Until it happily scratched me, I brushed it. I fed it.

In fact, I just fed it today. 10 minutes later, the damn thing was standing on my brand new Xbox One, on a TV stand that I previously had to shove empty boxes into to keep her from casually crawling through the other consoles and all the cables in the back.

I am at my wit's end.

I can't flick water at her or use a spray bottle because it doesn't mix well with electronics. Is the only solution an enclosed stand, which might have ventilation issues or otherwise create problems with plugging in wired controllers?

It's warm and the size that is appropriate for a cat to feel it can own. You could probably fix the situation if you have a small laptop. Have it warm up and leave it upside down on the floor. The cat will call it it's own soon after, especially if you try to stop him/her

 

[veloxStrix]

show him how blurry games look at 900p.

/dead

 

[Kyuur]

Suck it up and realize that the cat is your boss. It will sit where it pleases. It will wreck your shit as it seems fit. Embrace it and you will be far less stressed in the future.