How to cat proof my cats from my child?

I don't know about a cat proof cat, but how about a screen door? I used one for a while to keep all the animals out of the bedroom but allowed for easy viewing in and out of door.

deb

My brother ended up installing a nice wooden framed screen door on the door to his daughter's room in order to keep his cats out of the room. It looked nice and was effective.

When my cats would go into a room/area of the house that I didn't want them to, I'd shoot them with a squirt gun. It's enough to intimidate them and let them know that they're somewhere they shouldn't be, but not enough to hurt them. Good luck!

Hi E.,

Although I do not have a cat, my brother had one and he used a wooden screen door. He just changed the door and it worked perfectly!!! Not only, did it keep the cats out, but they could also hear the baby with the door shut. Hope this helps.

I heard about a gate that is the size of your door to keep cats out. A friend has one and finds it very successful and says it's easy to maneuver and use. Her cat has finally learned and doesn't even try to get into the the "cat free zone" anymore. --M.

We had this problem before our first child was born. Every time I would go in the room they would be inside the crib, not good! Honestly the thing that worked better than anything was having a spray bottle with water in it to spray them with every time they go in the room (I know, sounds cruel, but it does work). Better a wet cat than a suffocated baby. Anyways, it did take some time but they still stay out of the room for the most part, most cats are pretty smart, and they "get" it eventually. Good luck!

You know, when our cat was alive she wanted nothing to do with the baby or his room! But with younger cats I can see where they would be really curious. He's now about ready to transistion to a toddler bed but there's a big concern about him just getting up and running out the back door or something. The advice we've received that may be helpful to you is to stack two baby gates on top of each other.

In your case The First Years All Clear Swing Gate (http://www.amazon.com/First-Years-Clear-Swing-Gate/dp/B00...) on the bottom and a regular baby gate on top. We used the All Clear for the top of the stairs because there are no holes to help baby (or the cats) climb over the gate :-)

Someone once suggested replacing baby's room door with a screen door.

We also have a cat (and a dog) and my husband built a "screen door" on the outside of her room, painted it white, put a latch on the outside and it is great for keeping the pets out. We actually just took it off her room (she's now 2 1/2) and moved it to my son's room as he is a young baby! Hope this helps!

I am not sure they make an adequate gate for your vertical jumper. We had a problem with our dog going into the kitchen when we weren't home and digging in the garbage or getting bread off the counter. It was such a pain to have to move the garbage into the garage before I left the house. We tried teaching her and it would seem to get better but she always slipped and went back to it. So we decided to wire the kitchen island and she wears a collar that will give her a mild shock if she gets to close to the off limits area. It seems harsh but it only takes one time getting a little shock for them to "get it". So if you can't find a gate then maybe a collar would be something to consider. Most of them have a vibrating warning that lets them know they are getting close to area before it shocks them. They have them for cats as well as dogs. Good luck

I don't know how well the gates would work. When the cats smell the milk they are going to want it. My mom used to put pepper in the rooms she did not want the cats to go into. Plus she would carry around a spray bottle with pepper mixed with water. A couple times being sprayed with that the cats left her plants alone and stayed out of the kitchen and her sewng room. Good luck.

There is exactly such a gate available from Drs. Foster & Smith catalogue (print or online)! It's tall and metal, with an open, airy style--but not open enough for a cat to jump through. It features a one-touch access door for people to walk through with ease and a kitty door at the bottom which can stay latched indefinitely.

Good luck!
E.

Hi,
A friend of mine put an actual wooden screen door (painted white it looks kinda of shabby chique) on the doorway to the hallway to their bedrooms to keep the cats out of those areas. Her cats are older and don't seem to mess with the screen. I, on the other hand have five quite active cats that would probably shred the screen to get into the rooms with us. They think the entire house is their domain! :) Good luck!!

There not going to harm the baby.. They know he is and what he means to you.

I had friends who put a screen door up. good luck

I didn't really care if the cats were in my baby's room. I just wanted them to know that the crib was 100% off limits. I bought this thing called a "tattle tale". It is a sensor that detects vibration/movement and sets off an alarm. The alarm scares kity away. Be careful though.....when cats notice a change to their environment, they get upset and retaliate. My girl cat started peeing on my bed when I brought baby home from the hospital. Thank goodness it only happened twice, and then it stopped. She is fine now, but just be warned, cats can be very sensitive to changes in their environment.

Good luck! :) Unfortunately the only suggestion is to keep the door shut. Also there is stuff you can spray that is natural and the cats don't like the smell, maybe spray it around the parameters of the doorways to inhibit them from wanting to be around the door. You can get stuff like this at Petsmart. Seems with cats, or at least ours, if we don't want them in a room they go, hee hee.

a spray bottle with water works wonders but you have to be consistent spray them every time they go in there and after a while theyll stop

When our son was first born I was terrified that the cat would go into his room at night but like other posters she stayed away from the room all together!
If it makes you feel safer we had a plan in place incase she did want to cuddle.. Take the door off the room and put up a simple screen door and up a cheap latch on it. It will let you and everyone peek in and the cat cant get in. If your room doors were hung properly the screen door should hing on with little to no issues!

Good luck!

We had two cats when our son was born. At night when he was sleeping in his crib, we had the door shut with the monitor on, and we checked on him constantly. This kept the cats out at night time. Plus during the day, one of our cats liked to jump in his crib when our son wasn't in it and sleep. She was told NO, and I took her out. She sometimes got in there, but with cats, they are very "Curious" animals, and you can't really restrict them too much. That feeds on their curiosity. Cats are a blessing to have part of a family. And they're a lot of work. We have three now. Our newest addition came last July. She's very curious and likes to get into everything. And when we have another baby, we will restrict them from the baby's room at nighttime. And of course nap time too.
Cats climb...even without their front claws, so for the most part you can't escape from them being curious.
If at all possible, you can install a screen door, but that will make racket if the cats try and climb it, and you wouldn't want that. Plus you would have to take the whole door frame and install another one to fit the screen door. But that's the only other thing I can think of. When you see your cats in the baby's crib, or room, CLAP your hands loudly, because that will startle them, and say NO! And tell them to get out. Eventually they will be in there less and less, but it won't keep them out completely.
Best wishes to you and your family. :-)

I think the Sky Mall Magazines that they give you on the airplanes has a online store. I am pretty sure I remember seeing some good pet gates in those magazines.

Hello!

Not sure about the gate question, I think that shutting the door may be the only reliable solution. Otherwise I thought a crib tent might help at least during the day where you are in and out of the room. I have not used one of these, but they look like it would not allow a cat to enter the crib and eventually it should loose its appeal.

Just a thought..

D.