Indoor Repellent For Cats

When you decide to get one of the best indoor cat repellent devices — designed keep your cats off your furniture or counter tops — you’re probably wondering if it will work. You see, while some of these devices are effective in keeping your cat away from certain areas of the house, they may not work as well as you had planned.

Indoor Repellent For Cats

Do Scat Mats Work For Cats?

When I was a kid, I would play a practical joke on my annoying little sister. I would flip the clear plastic floor runners over so the plastic nubs were facing up. She’d step on them barefoot and instantly jump off. Then she’d get me back, often doing the same thing.

Scat mats are very similar to these plastic runners. They have little nubs on them that are uncomfortable for little paws to step on. These are very effective and do not physically harm cats. Placing them on countertops, tables, and furniture keeps your fur baby from walking there, and over time it trains them to always keep off them.

A scat mat is a great tool for teaching kitty. It works by surprising them with an unexpected sensation. Every cat is different, and it might take a few weeks or months before your stubborn kitty gets the message that playing on the coffee table is a no-no.

There are some excellent scat mats on the market, but if you are feeling handy, you can make them yourself. Here are a few ideas.

If you have an unused clear plastic runner with nubs, you can always cut it into pieces in the sizes you need. To hold it in place, just get some double-sided tape.
The plastic mats people put their office chair on is perfect. Like floor runners, they have nubs on the bottom. Just cut them into the sizes you need and hold them down with double-sided sticky tape.
When making your homemade scat mats, be sure the nubs are rounded, not sharp. You want to deter your cat, not harm her.

At the pet store, you will find scat mats that give off an electric shock when a cat steps on them. Do not use them, since the non-electric versions work just as well without causing any harm. Think about it like this. If you wouldn’t like to be jolted by electricity, neither will your purring best friend.

Do Ultrasonic Repellers Work For Cats?

The use of ultrasonic repellers has grown considerably. They are a humane method of keeping cats away from unwanted places, especially when combined with other types of repellents.

Ultrasonic repellers work by emitting high-frequency sounds that startles cats and other animals. They combine most commercial ultrasonic devices with a motion sensor to trigger the sounds. Some also trigger a spray of water or strobe lights. While this method works with most cats, if the kitty in question has hearing loss, it loses effectiveness.

Studies show that ultrasonic repellers work, but not as well as manufacturers hoped. In fact, even though cats and dogs can hear in the ultrasonic range, the sounds rarely bother them much. This can actually be a good thing because nobody wants to harm their cat.

Personally, I think a good old-fashioned scat mat can get the job done while not harming pets. What it does is startle them, and when combined with other methods should deter unwanted animals from your yard.

If you decide to test an ultrasonic deterrent out, it shouldn’t harm your cat or dog. It might cause distress in other small animals though, like rodents and rabbits. If you have a pet bunny, you might want to skip this option to be on the safe side.

Ultrasonic repellers typically last three to five years. Most are meant for outdoor use, but I review an indoor option below that is worth checking out.

The frequency of most devices is between 18-30 Hz. What’s interesting about these devices is that they have a long-term effect. It seems that cats learn to avoid these devices over a period of time, not instantly.