So I'm getting used to the cat. He's pretty sweet except when he attacks my ankle as I walk for no reason.
I'm doing ok with the litter box but I'm still ready struggling with him jumping on the counter. He jumps up and I put him down. We do this over and over. I have to have Sissy take him to her room so I can cook. I've wiped my counters down 1000 times a day since we got him.
I understand your feelings about the kitchen counters. Thankfully, my cat didn't jump up on the counters...mostly because there was very LITTLE open space.
I think confining the cat just before you start cooking, where she hasn't yet learned to stay off the counters, is a great idea.
I would leave the counters alone until JUST before you cook. I use a 10% bleach to 90% water spray, and I spray my countertops, then leave the spray on, wet, for 10 minutes, timed with a timer, to be sure that all the germs and bacteria are dead.
I learned that this bleach and water mixture is so safe that it can be sprayed directly on children's toys and left on without wiping, and if the children then try to EAT the toys...(as toddlers do), it won't harm them. I learned that while working at my local homeless shelter. I sometimes helped to clean the toys in the Childcare room.
I did a LOT of research on killing germs during Covid, and a virologist mentioned this bleach and water mixture, and LEAVING it on the cooking surfaces for at least 10 minutes to kill viruses and germs.
Apparently many people started using Clorox wipes during Covid, and this scientist said that the wipes don't stay on the surface long enough to kill the germs and viruses...so you are basically just smearing the germs around if you use those.
@4meAndyou I put him in Sissy's room when I'm cooking now. It's to much stress of him jumping up all the time.
Wiping down the counters have always been a major OCD issues for me. I wipe them down all day long. I even get hyper focused on them and Joel will have to snap me out of it. I'm working on it with my neurologist but they cat really set me back.
@Cigarguy All that wiping doesn't make the counters cleaner, though, unless you are using the bleach and water 10 minute soak thing that I mentioned. Change that ONE thing. Your family will be healthier for it!
there's no stopping my little one from jumping on the counters so i just accept it. she only jumps on them when i'm around. i don't place food directly on the counter and when i do use the kitchen i sanitize the area...i have never gotten sick because one of my animals hopped on the counter
Double-sided tape in strategic areas on the edge of the counter (they don’t like it on their paws). Also maybe invest in a "cat tree" along with a good scratching post. With a cat tree by the window, this keeps them occupied for hours.
