Cats love all those items that dangle, such as cords, rubber bands, ropes, ribbons and, especially, cables. For your cat it is the best distraction to be able to play and make mischief with them. Your cat is sure to be a specialist chewing cables. He has messed up computer cables, headphone cables, and connectors of all kinds. You, on the other hand, no longer know how to stop this behavior, which you also know not only that it can injure and even kill your pet, but that it could cause a fire in your home.
In this article on our site about tips to prevent your cat from chewing wires, we will give you some home tips that you can take to out to eradicate this habit in your pet.
Why do cats bite wires?
Although it seems that your cat has an obsession with the cables in the house, the taste is not only for this element. What's going on? When cats start teething they chew on anything that comes into their sight and even more so if it hangs and swings from somewhere, because it also becomes a game.
Most cats outgrow this problem behavior by their second year. However, if it is not completely eliminated at this stage of life, it can become an obsessive habit. You have to keep the kitten and the home safe. Chewing on a plugged-in electrical cord can burn your cat's tongue, break her teeth, electrocute her and cause internal damage and even death (depending on the intensity).
If your cat is an adult and continues this behavior despite teething being far behind, it may have to do with the boredom factorCats, although home, need a lot of activity and play. If your cat goes crazy with the cables and not only plays with them in a delicate way but also chews and breaks them, you could help correct it and divert its attention by distracting it with toys that simulate fun and challenge, supporting it with interaction with its human family. For example, simple boxes, sheets, fabrics and fabric animals, cats love. For more information, don't miss our article on the funniest toys for cats.
Better stay away from the wires
Surely, you have all the ingredients at home to make the following magic potions that will get your cat away from the wires, simple and powerful. If not, you can buy them at any store or supermarket. To find out how to prevent your cat from chewing on wires, take note of the following recipe:
Mix 1 tablespoon of Vaseline with 2 teaspoons of well-acid lemon juice and 1 tablespoon of ground red pepper
Spread this mixture over all exposed electrical wires in your home. Although cats are attracted to smells, they hate the taste of a sour lemon and the sting of a sharp pepper (warm-blooded animals avoid them). The petroleum jelly acts as an adherent for the mixture to the cable and helps keep it compact.
Although visually not very pleasing, while you are in the process of eliminating this behavior in your cat, wrap the wires in aluminum foil, double-sided tape (the gray-silver ones), or with the plastic called "bubble wrap" that is used for packaging and that, generally, cats do not like because of the sound and the effect that they cause when the balls burst.
Cable and cat proof home
As always, on our site, we recommend prevention. And although we know that, in practically every home in the world, electrical cables tend to hang down, it is very important to do everything possible so that this does not happen, especially if you have animals and children. Make sure your home is safe for your pet and family.
First, put away all video game console controls, try using wireless headphones, and block off spaces in your home where your cat may be interested. Second, any cords should be tightly wrapped and hidden behind furniture. You can lean on the typical metal ties of bread bags to make the cables shorter and prevent long extensions from hanging (that draws them a lot of attention). Avoid the snake and pendulum effects at all costs; You can avoid these temptations by using a little duct tape to get the wires out of the way and stick them to the wall.
Follow all of our advice to prevent your cat from chewing the wires and you will see how, little by little, he will put aside this practice that can cause so much damage, both to the animal and to the home.
