Cat breaking things, how to stop! I

[The Chickadoodles]

My cat broke many things, knocking off things, and recently, he jumped on a vase and broke it. My family said they will throw him out if he breaks one more thing and when I found ways like putting double sided tape and using deterrents, they don't want to do any of that. When he breaks things, nobody is there and I'm not usually nearby to scold him since my family doesn't scold him when he breaks something. What do I do now...

 

[azygous]

You can't tell a cat anything. They are impervious to criticism. Discipline? Hah? Just try it, and see what happens. The cat will either ignore you flamboyantly or will get even with you.

A naughty cat, and most cats are capable of lots of naughtiness, can't be trusted if you turn your back. The solution is to give them the opportunity to enjoy the outdoor fresh air and sun when you are not going to be around.

 

[Bunnylady]

Is your cat an "inside only" cat, or an "inside/outside" cat? Putting a long-time "inside only" cat outside is cruel. It would be similar to taking a family member, and suddenly dumping them alone in the middle of Beijing, or Prague, or some other place where absolutely nothing is familiar and they don't even speak the language. If you have a decent number of predators in the area (as we do) or an even moderately busy road nearby, it's a death sentence.

Cats live their lives in 3 dimensions, and they jump up on things. They just do. "Blaming" a cat for breaking things is foolish - kind of like when dealing with a toddler, the blame is really on you for putting that breakable thing where the child could get at it. With human babies, they talk about child-proofing a house; if you are going to have a cat, you need to think about cat-proofing. While some cats can be discouraged with sticky tape and mousetraps, generally speaking, with cats, all rules are off when you aren't there to enforce them. Basically, cat-proofing means putting anything you don't want the cat to have access to where the cat can't get at it - whether that means in a cabinet, or in a room to which the door is always closed, or maybe in a different house. This really isn't about training the cat, it's about training the humans to make the cat's environment safe and enjoyable for everyone - cats included.

 

[OlympicChick]

They make a sticky stuff called "museum putty" (that is kind of like a cross between play-doh and silly putty), that people use to fix to the base of items that they don't want an earthquake to damage, or fall over from other stuff happening. I use it for some things that are top heavy and I KNOW my cats would tip over if they could.

 

[~KH~]

You need to have places that your cat is allowed to jump up on and go, to see outside and have stimulation. My cats have always been indoor only and I have tall cat trees, cat cubby areas, boxes, scratching posts, toys, etc. for them. I don't know how old your cat is, but young cats in particular can be very busy and want to get into stuff. When my cats were little, I'd get them boxes of different shapes, cut holes in them for them to stick their paws out or peek out, or just hide and sleep in. I've found ping pong balls are a favorite toy of my current cat, and she loves the perch above the door in the entryway where she can see what's going on in the world. If you can find toys that your cat likes and spend 10 minutes a couple times a day, playing, you'll probably tire him out quite a bit and he may sleep. My cat has a couple spazz out times a day and spends the rest of the day mostly asleep.

 

[WhoDatChick]

You need to have places that your cat is allowed to jump up on and go, to see outside and have stimulation. My cats have always been indoor only and I have tall cat trees, cat cubby areas, boxes, scratching posts, toys, etc. for them. I don't know how old your cat is, but young cats in particular can be very busy and want to get into stuff. When my cats were little, I'd get them boxes of different shapes, cut holes in them for them to stick their paws out or peek out, or just hide and sleep in. I've found ping pong balls are a favorite toy of my current cat, and she loves the perch above the door in the entryway where she can see what's going on in the world. If you can find toys that your cat likes and spend 10 minutes a couple times a day, playing, you'll probably tire him out quite a bit and he may sleep. My cat has a couple spazz out times a day and spends the rest of the day mostly asleep.
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Oh my! I love your Ragdoll

 

[RiverOtter]

Lock the cat in your room when you're not there to supervise.