Pet Lovers

[Wsmom]

We have a jumper.  We have the kind of cabinets over the kitchen counter that have the space between the top of the cabinets and the ceiling.  Our jumper would jump from the ground to the top of the cabinets.  Even if we put stuff up there he would still go for it and stalk around.  A few time he got stuck and I had to climb up to get him otherwise he would jump down.  Eventually he outgrew doing that.  Still a jumper, just not up there.  As a kitten he would walk along the banister upstairs.  He and his brother.  Both lost their footing and fell to the ground level once and did land on their feet. Short of locking them up or putting them outside, they just had to learn their boundaries and we just dealt with it.  We did get those motion detector  cans that sprayed if they got close...that worked for about a month.

[GCR18]

My kitties are gone now.  When they were young, they jumped everywhere.  They eventually outgrew it.  

My mother is having issues with her kitty jumping.  She's never been a good jumper, but is worse now.  She's blind in one eye and it throws her off.  A couple times lately, she jumped and missed.  My mother put stairs, but the kitty won't use them.  The other day she started closing the door to the room.  That stopped the falling issue, but the kitty is now obsessed with getting in the room and so is her sister.

Do you have curtains or blinds on the window?  Try keeping them closed.  Is there a lower window or screen door you can make more enticing?

[Toppers3]

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@FindingMyJoy wrote:

I hope someone may be able to offer some advice on my issue. I have a very curious 1.5 year old cat who has become a great jumper! She has found ways to leap up into windows that are 5-6 feet up so she can watch leaves and critters go by. (She has plenty of other windows and a large door she can look out but she's just super interested in these high up windows). I don't mind that she's so curious but I fear she will injure herself when she leaps down. Has anyone experienced this and has found a way to curb the jumping from high heights? I've already moved the table that she used as a springboard so now she's just using brute strength to get to the window and clawing up the wall if she doesn't make it. Any help or advice would be appreciated!

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I've grown up with cats, and have had them as pets ever since I was very young.

If it's one thing that I have learned over the years, it's that it is better for us if we learn to think like our cats.  

If you think about it, there is obviously something that she is seeing out of those particular windows that she finds fascinating and that she is very determined to get there to look out of those windows.

In our logical minds, we're providing other doors and windows for our cats, but they find other things interesting, instead.

I agree with the other forum members who have mentioned putting your table back there for her to use, or putting a cat tree in front of the window instead.

I like the idea of a cat tree for her for one of those windows.

It will be higher up for her so that she can enjoy looking out of that window, and it will satisfy her need to climb.

I also have a kitty that loves to be higher up, too.

She likes to climb on the back of our couch and love seat and hang out on those areas, and we have a kitty tower that we had for our last kitty that she also likes to lay on.

It's in our living room, and when she's on it, it's high enough where she can see everything from there when we're in the living room and dining room.

[ECBG]

I have also heard of using a water gun.  I like the idea of the cans with coins better.

[FindingMyJoy]

Thank you to everyone for sharing their advice and stories!

It's been a while since we had a kitten in the house. Our last cats were 18 years old when they passed so they had grown out of the jumping/playing stage. Having frisky playful cats around again feels like an entirely new experience.  

I decided to get another cat tree/tower. I'll be putting it by the window so she can explore the window and lounge on the different layers of the tower. It will actually work out well to have another scratching post for her too. 

[shopperqvc]

@FindingMyJoy  Cats love anything high off the floor. My one cat preferred the top of the fridge. She even jumped down from there the day after she came home from having her surgery.

Another cat loved a ledge above the living room. There was a window 8' above the floor looking out across a field. From time to time she landed on my shoulder when I was walking from the kitchen into the living room. Don't worry about her leaping, she loves the height and the sights. If she thinks she can't make it, she won't jump. Their little legs absorb the landing really well.

Enjoy your young cat and her adventures.

[noodleann]

Great that you're getting a tree. Please ignore anything saying that cats can't hurt themselves by jumping down from heights. That's a myth. They can and they do. Googling "cat injuries from falling" yields this from Wikipedia:

"Common injuries sustained in cats after a fall include: Broken bones, most likely the jawbone as the cat's chin hits the ground; a broken jawbone and shattered teeth are the classic signs of a cat having sustained injuries in a fall. Injuries to the legs: joint injury; ruptured tendons; ligament injury; broken legs."

It's great that you're honoring your cat's needs and instincts. She will have a wonderful life with you. 

[NickNack]

@FindingMyJoy   I'm so glad you're getting another cat tree for her.  She'll love it!

[CelticCrafter]

It's been my experience that cats are either jumpers or they are not.

We had one that was and two that weren't.

[Anonymous032819]

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@noodleann wrote:

Great that you're getting a tree. Please ignore anything saying that cats can't hurt themselves by jumping down from heights. That's a myth. They can and they do. Googling "cat injuries from falling" yields this from Wikipedia:

"Common injuries sustained in cats after a fall include: Broken bones, most likely the jawbone as the cat's chin hits the ground; a broken jawbone and shattered teeth are the classic signs of a cat having sustained injuries in a fall. Injuries to the legs: joint injury; ruptured tendons; ligament injury; broken legs."

It's great that you're honoring your cat's needs and instincts. She will have a wonderful life with you. 

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Many, many, many  moons ago, when I lived in a single story apartment complex, I had a cat that just loved being on the roof.

Instead of going over to the fence which was about 200 feet away, and hopping on to that to get down, my cat decided to take the "easy" way down, by jumping down straight from the roof!😮

The first time that I saw him do it, it gave me a heart attack, but he landed  just fine.

Then one day he jumped down off of the roof, and he landed wrong, and hurt himself.

He was limping a little, and decided to spend the rest of the day and evening under my bed, but by the next morning, he was walking normally again.