Many adult cats and almost all baby kittens love to gnaw the wires that are only available in the house. Take, for example, television, telephone and computer wires or garlands – all of them can suffer from the sharp teeth of pets. Are such games dangerous? Absolutely! Not only can household appliances fail, but the pet itself can easily suffer from an electric shock or suffocation if the wire is wrapped around the neck, that is, such pampering can lead to a fatal outcome. In this article, we will figure out how to wean a cat from gnawing wires.
Reasons for cats love for home wires
First, let’s find out why the cat bites the wires, why they are so attractive to the animal. There are several reasons for such bad behavior:
- Change of teeth in kittens. When molars grow instead of baby teeth in the mouth of a small kitten, the gums itch a lot. And the wires are the best teether toy.
- Diseases of the oral cavity in adult animals. It happens that a cat bites the wires with periodontal disease, gingivitis or stomatitis. With cool wires, it scratches and cools aching gums. And some animals also chew on wires to clean off plaque.
- Boredom. Many pets, left alone, begin to do bad things: they gnaw flowers in pots, they dump the earth out of the pots, climb curtains and carpets, pee anywhere and gnaw wires.
- An attempt to attract attention. Sometimes biting wires is just a desire to attract the attention of the owner, who, for example, is excessively enthusiastic about a computer game or watching a movie.
- The game. Very often, a kitten bites the wires if he does not have a variety of toys. The wire, especially the one that moves, appears to the usatik as a living being that beckons to itself.
- Lack of vitamins and minerals in the body (for example, copper, aluminum). And some animals try to compensate for this disadvantage by gnawing the wires.
How to wean a cat from gnawing wires
So, a kitten, a cat is gnawing on the wires. What should the owner do in such a situation? Let’s say right away that the most wrong decision is the use of physical force against an animal. Cats are touchy and vindictive creatures, so they can hardly be weaned from the addiction with the help of beatings (by the way, they can begin to take revenge). It is better to pay attention to such methods:
- You can save home wires from cats with the help of cable channels. These are closed profiles fixed on the wall, inside which you need to enclose the wire.
- Simple protection of wires from cats – the use of double-sided tape. It will be extremely unpleasant for an animal to gnaw, say, a sticky cord from a TV.
- Wires can be wrapped with foil, its taste is unlikely to please the animal, and the crunch can scare off a small kitten.
- If possible, you should try using tape to fix the wires on the wall at a height (from 50 cm or less, if there is a kitten at home), so that the pet can not get them.
- Sometimes cats “come off” on unused extension cords. Such items that are used from time to time, it is always better to hide them where the animal can not get them (for example, on the top shelf of the cabinet).
- You can cope with the problem with the help of purchased means – the so-called Anti chew sprays. Such drugs are safe for the sense of smell of animals, do not leave traces after application and do not cause inconvenience to people.
- All areas where there are wires can be sprinkled with citrus oil (grapefruit, lemon, orange, etc.). Cats can not stand such aromas. However, the procedure will have to be repeated periodically as the smell weakens. Instead of oils, where there are wires, you can spread out citrus crusts, but they will also have to be changed.
- Smear the wires so that the cat does not gnaw, you can use aloe juice. It is bitter and tasteless, animals will not like it. But you will have to lubricate the wires regularly. If there is no aloe, then you can use garlic or onion juice instead, but it will not be easy for the owner himself (not everyone will like to inhale such smells). You can also use odorous mustard, but it is better to refuse the use of acetic acid or chlorine.
- Whenever a pet tries to chew on his favorite wiring, you can use a cylinder with compressed air, which is used for cleaning office equipment from dust. Almost all animals are afraid of such puffs, the connection “wire bite – noise from a canister”is triggered quickly enough in their head.
- It is impossible to beat a pet, but it is possible to influence it psychologically. As soon as the cat comes to the wires and starts biting them, you need to either clap your hands loudly, or sternly pronounce his name, or knock your hand on the table. As a rule, cats are intelligent companions, so such noise effects can be effective (but not painful and not offensive, unlike beating on a soft woolen barrel).
- As we said above, many kittens and adult cats perceive wires as toys. So why not provide the pet’s corner with various toys, including those where there are long, strong ropes.
- Cats with whom the owners spend a lot of time rarely do stupid things. This does not mean lying on the couch together, but active games between a person and his pet.
What to do if the pet was electrocuted
It is not easy to teach a cat to gnaw wires, especially if this bad habit is present in the animal in old age. It happens that if the owner is at home, the cat restrains himself, but still continues to indulge when he is alone (alone at home or alone in the room).
What if the cat has all the signs of an electric shock (pallor or even cyanosis of the mucous membranes, arrhythmia and slowing of the pulse, convulsions, weakness, breathing problems, the appearance of minor injuries on the skin, loss of consciousness)? If the owner was lucky, and he noticed an electric injury in his purr in time, you need to act like this:
- Drop the panic. It is impossible to shout and grab the cat in your hands without rubber gloves immediately (this is fraught with an electric shock).
- If possible, you need to pull the faulty wire out of the socket, using something non-metallic for this (a wooden mop, a broom, you can pull it out with your hand, but in a rubber glove). If you can’t pull out the wire, you need to at least drop it from the animal.
- Then the cat needs to be raised in the pelvic area so that the lower paws are above the level of the head. Another option is to lift the cat by the hind legs and twist it a little. This should be done to provoke blood flow to the brain.
- If about 15 seconds have passed, and the animal has not regained consciousness, you will have to do artificial respiration, exhaling air from the mouth to the nose of the pet 12-15 times a minute (each exhalation for about 5 seconds). The pet should be laid on a flat surface on the right side. It is important to make sure that the pet exhales air. Simultaneously with artificial respiration, it is advisable to massage the heart by pressing on the chest, as if lifting the ribs to the neck. You need to do about 100 pressures per minute. If there is a family member at home, you need to ask him to call a veterinarian urgently to the house. A specialist will be able to resuscitate the animal better and faster.
- If the pet has regained consciousness, it needs to be calmed down, and then give it a drink of some water. A burn from an electric shock can be lubricated with any wound healing ointment or gel. It is absolutely necessary to make sure that the cat will not approach the faulty wire again.
How to wean a cat from gnawing wires