Cats and dogs both make great pets, but they can certainly be a handful, especially if you’re having trouble training them. Cats and dogs have a tendency to climb on furniture, especially your couches. This is one of the most difficult tasks to tackle whether you own dogs, cats, or both. However, it is possible to keep cats and dogs off your furniture once and for all. Here’s how to keep cats and dogs off your furniture:
- Say no. To begin training cats and dogs to keep off your furniture, simply say “No” in a loud, firm voice whenever you spot them climbing. Then take them off the piece of furniture. Don’t yell when trying to keep cats and dogs off your furniture; they don’t understand what yelling means.
- Use a spray bottle or squirt gun. If simply saying “No” is not effective, try squirting your pets with water every time your cat or dog tries to climb on the furniture. This is most effective with cats, though it also works for many dogs. Squirting them with water gets their attention in an effective way, and is also a direct consequence for their actions.
- Spray the furniture with pet-repellent products. If you’re having trouble keeping cats and dogs off your furniture, consider cat or dog repellent. Put it anywhere in your home where you don’t want your pets to be. There are natural types of pet-repellent products, for those looking for the safest option.
- Use aluminum foil. Both cats and dogs hate aluminum foil. This is a particularly effective strategy if you’re going away from home and won’t be able to keep cats and dogs off your furniture yourself. By covering the legs of your furniture with foil, your pets will stop climbing up, and should leave your furniture alone. Cats will not dig their claws into foil. You can also crumple up balls of foil and set it on the flat surfaces of your furniture. Some pets hate the sound of the foil, while others might think that the ball of foil is a toy. Double sided tape is another material that will keep pets from climbing on your furniture.
- Be consistent. No matter what method you are using to keep dogs and cats off your furniture, always be consistent. Don’t ignore cats or dogs on your furniture at any time, or they will get confused about what is allowed. Enlist the whole family’s help in training your pets.
- Provide an alternative. Some pets lounge on your furniture because they have none of their own. A cat tree or a dog bed can give them a place of their own and keep cats and dogs off your furniture.
If your cats or dogs think that the most comfortable spot in the house is on your favorite chair, you are not alone. Though it is much easier to keep cats and dogs off your furniture if you start off by training them not to climb up, it is possible to train them to leave furniture alone later in their life, such as after you replace the furniture. Behaviors like this are reversible, though it takes effort on your part, and may require trying out several different strategies before you’re able to keep cats and dogs off your furniture.