3. CAT-PROOF YOUR HOME

Kitchen

There are many places in a typical household where cats should not go. The kitchen is the source of most of them. The stove is an obvious no-no but also a major attraction - especially when there's food a-cookin'. Make sure your kitty stays off the counter, both for health reasons and to prevent her from getting to your steak before you do. Try placing double-sided tape or masking tape left sticky side up at strategic places on the kitchen counter to put your kitty in a snit. Cats don't exactly relish getting stuck to the counter or having an object cling to their sensitive feet.

House plants

If you're unable to remove all plants from your cat's reach, try dusting their leaves with Bitter Apple powder (sold at pet stores), cayenne pepper or Tabasco sauce. Put orange or lemon peels and biodegradable soap slivers in the soil, or - to prevent your cat from digging in the soil altogether - cover the soil with gravel or aluminum foil. If all else fails, turn your plants into hanging plants. If your cat reaches those, then bite the bullet and get plastic plants.

Curtains

Cats love to climb. Curtains let them get up high, so cats love curtains. Rigging up a soda can with some pennies at the top to fall when the curtain is touched may help. Attaching the curtains so they will fall down with the cat's weight is another option. If the cat is persistent, consider Venetian blinds.

Electrical cords

If a cord is dangling in the breeze, your cat will naturally bat it around. So to prevent your cat from frying itself, try some of the same substances we suggested for plant leaves (like pepper or Tabasco sauce). Tie cords up to keep them up out of reach of the cat, or at least make cords less susceptible by taping them down or covering them in a cardboard paper towel roll.