I have a couple cats and they have not bothered me with my train set. My kitten at first would hide behind stuff and lightly tap my amtrak superliners as they flew by her. Not a big problem never knocked them off the track, I think she justs liked the feeling of the cars running across her paws. That’s not my big problem, a month ago a lied gravel for me car shop area probably a square foot of it. Well I came down today to find all the cars in that area where knocked over and a nice present left for me by one of my cats. Even though we always have used the cedar litter the cat broke apart the gravel and used it as a litter box. Is there something I can do to keep my cats from doing this again? short of banning them from the layout room which is justs a corner of the basement.
I’d check my local (best stocked) pet store for some kind of “cat repellant” like they sometimes use around shrubs, etc for the same problem. I’m pretty sure somebody makes the stuff. I have a goldfish myself - less trouble.
Randy
You might try cat repellents but they aren’t always efficient,specially if you try to keep your cat from doing whatever he really enjoys doing.I used to have a cat which enjoyed the kitchen window a lot(probably loved the view) and cat repellent was of no success as it did it anyway.
You’re dealing with the animal’s inherent nature here and may have to decide your preference…the cat…or…the layout,unless you find a way to separate them or else,living with occasional mishaps.
I own cat repellent, never had to use on my layout though, This stuff works well and without hurting the cat.
Try a few moth balls. But not so many as to be overpowering.
When our cats were young we had to train them not to jump up on the dinning room table or the kitchen counter - they used to run everywhere all around the house.
We had to figure out a way of training them not to jump up there because we didn’t want them getting into food or sitting where we prepare the food.
We didn’t want to hurt the cats or yell at them, so all we did was get a hand pump spray bottle (like you would use on your hair) and filled it with water.
Everytime the cats would jump on the table or counter we just gave them a few squirts with the water bottle and said “no” in a decisive manner.
Cats hate being sprayed with water for some reason and they learned very very quickly. After a few times when they would still jump on the counter for some reason all we had to do was look at them and say “no” and they would understand what we meant (spray bottle was on the way!).
This worked very well, but you have to be very quick and not let them ever get away with it, or they figure out that it is only wrong when you are around. When we did this out cats were also only small little kittens, so I don’t know if this will work as well with matured cats, something to think about anyway.
We still have our two cats (they are well over 10 years old now). Both of them are great house cats, they love attention and are always fun to have around, and they haven’t been up on the tables since they were young little kittens so the training much have worked.
Here’s my input:
I have 2 cats, one is 5 yrs and the other is 2 yrs. The older one was easy to train (no pun intended) with a squirt bottle ( described above) just squirt her and say no and eventually she got the hint.
Now, the younger one is still learning. He knows he’s not suppose to be on the layout, yet he still gets on there when I’m not around. Even worse if I see him on there and have the bottle with me he’ll run across the layout in an attempt to get off the layout before I get to him (usually damaging something along the way). SO, I don’t do that instead I just kindly pick him up and put him on the floor THEN SQUIRT HIM AND SAY NO.
BUT
ONCE, when he was a kitten, he decided that the gravel lot next to a park was a litter box. Well, obviously it was him because my older cat was trained by then, so I knew it would not be her. So, I picked him up and rubbed his nose in his own poop on the layout at the same time telling him “NO”. It has never happened again since.
Hope this helps, just remember, they don’t know any better, and you don’t want your cat being afraid of you forever so don’t be brutal about rubbing his or her nose in it. Granted they will probably be a little scared of you for a bit but they understand it LOUD AND CLEAR.
Remeber kittens remember bad experiences so when they relate a bad experience with something they usually stay away from it.
Happy modeling
Orange rinds are a good cat repellant. My mom used to put orange peels in her potted plants because the cats would do the same thing in the dirt of the plants. She just layed a few peels on the dirt, and the cats stayed clear. Worth a shot, especially if you like oranges.
A sprinkling of pepper can work as a cat repellant too, and comes in various strengths for whatever works for your cat.
One suggestion that I saw on this forum years ago – cover the area where the cat was naughty with loose newspapers. Underneath the papers, put mouse traps. The papers will presumably prevent kitty from getting hurt by the mouse trap but when they go in the area and the traps are sprung, the cat will presumably be spooked by the noise and run away – that at least is the theory. Theory and cats can be an unpredictable mix …
I do not mean to depress you … but we had a cat who one day got naughty on a small piece of rug in a bathroom. I cleaned up the mess but evidently the odor was still there and the cat did it again a few weeks later. No amount of cleaning could keep that smell from the rug I guess – I could not smell anything but the cat could, and to the cat it smelled like “litter box.” We had to toss the rug. Good luck.
Dave Nelson
Stupid question, but is there a door to the basement? The simplest thing to do is to never let them down there. Otherwise, you could cover your layout with some sort of tarp. Not only will it keep the cats from jumping onto the layout, but it’ll keep the dust off the layout.
You might want to invest in a spray bottle or squirt gun too. A few shots of water whenever they’re on the layout should do the trick eventually.
Thanks for all the great advice. Luckily I had laid down enough of the paving sand so that it didn’t sink through to anything underneath.
There is a door to the basement so I figured I’ll keep the door closed when I’m not done there and when I do go down there I’ll leave it open and try each one of the ideas you gave me until I find the one at keeps my cats away. I would like to keep the door closed all the time but because it’s summer and we don’t have central air the basement is the coolest place in the house so the cats spend a lot of time on the cool basement floor.
The squirt bottle and the organic ones I think I’ll try first. I’d like to keep it as organic as I can. I like the orange rind one because it’s sits on top of the layout which would be the one least likely to damage anything. Thanks again.
Andy
I’d take the cats…put them in a burlap bag with a brick in it and toss them into the nearest river if they crapped on my layout…(guess that’s why i only own a dog) an animal that uses the facilities in the house has got to go!..Chuck
I’d go with a “Supersoaker” squirt gun. The cats will probably learn faster and you can have some fun teaching them… [:D]
You can also try balloons. Cats hate when balloons pop and they hate the general static-ness of them too. If there was a piece of furniture we didn’t want cats on, we placed a balloon on it (filled with air - not helium). I used to put balloons around the edges of the layout where they would most likely jump on it. It worked quite well keeping the cats off. Now, 25 years later, I love Chinese food more than ever so I don’t mind cats, er, uh, scallops…
At least when a cat goes in the yard they bury it for you. Unlike a dog that you’ve gotta go and clean up after before high-noon. [xx(]
Two more suggestions.
I believe there exist enzyme cleaners which will remove the chemicals left by the cat (that we cannot smell). Try a pet market for them.
Also try placing aluminum foil over the gravel areas. Cats apparently do not like the feel of foil under their paws. We used this before our first child was born to keep the cat from jumping into the crib.
Time to either ban them from the layout room alltogether, or find them a new home. Any pet that gets destructive to home and projects,will become very bothersome in the future!
I have enjoyed reading this thread, since I have a Cat Problem too. In the past I have covered a 4x8 layout with a plastic drop cloth to deter the cat. That did the trick. Present layout is linear, and the cat thinks it’s a shelf for her. Since she is confined to the basement, it’s better for me to figure out a way to keep her in cat space (not outer space, although I’m tempted). Appreciate the new ideas here, and will try them out.
Thanks
Peter
I’d sprinkle catnip on the layout…wait that probably wouldn’t work…
I use the spray bottle method for my two cats that live mostly in my room. Also with my 5x10 layout they have cat furnature and lots of blankets. I kept finding them jumping off the layout table when I walked in the room. I don’t want to use cat repellants becaus my room is their living space but if they keep getting on the layout when construction progressess it couldbe a problem