We all love our furry friends, but we often don’t like the mass amount of hair that they can leave all over the house. Cats love jumping on sofas and chairs to have somewhere soft to lay. They're also very independent and won’t always do what they’re told, so to keep them off of your furniture, cats have to decide that they don’t want to jump on it for themselves.
If the couch doesn’t feel or smell how a cat wants, this is how they will decide that they no longer want to get near the furniture. One could always spray their cat with water, but there are better and more effective methods for keeping your cat(s) off of the furniture.
Vinegar
If you are more of a DIY person or just someone on a budget, using a vinegar mixture for a cat repellant can be your best bet. You just need to mix some vinegar with water in a spray bottle, and spray some on your couch or wherever you don’t want your little furry friend. Thankfully, you don’t have to worry about the vinegar harming the cats physically, cats simply don’t like the smell.
The ratio can be of your choosing, especially if the smell of vinegar bothers you or people within the house. Some may even use straight vinegar, but it's just as effective to dilute it with water. Just make sure that there's enough vinegar to deter your cat. And if you’re someone who uses vinegar to clean anyways, this will be a very simple solution.
Citrus Scents
While some people use vinegar for everything, there are some who absolutely cannot stand the smell. Thankfully vinegar is not the only homemade solution to ensure that your cat will stay off of your furniture. Even though we typically love the smell of sweet orange or lemon, cats don’t share the same love for these sweet citrusy scents. Cats have extremely sensitive noses, so they're typically very sensitive to strong scents and oils.
Just fill up a spray bottle with water and add some sweet essential oils to spray on your furniture. It’ll smell great for everyone within the house, except for that cat of course. Even scents like lavender can deter them. Just be extremely careful which essential oils you choose to use. If you're a cat owner and an essential oils user, you probably already know that there are certain oils that can be dangerous for cats. Just be sure to do your research if not already.
Store-Bought Sprays
For those of us who don’t like vinegar, have no other use for essential oils, or maybe just hate DIY projects in general, there are sprays sold in pet stores (and really any store with a pet section) that are specifically made to keep cats off of furniture.
And even though they can cost more than using ingredients around your house, they tend to not be expensive at all. On average, you’ll pay about $5 for a bottle of cat deterrent. Although some of these sprays use citrus scents or vinegar as a deterrent anyway, they can be an easier solution than a DIY spray, especially if you don’t already have the ingredients around the house.
Tin Foil
If you don’t want to spray anything on your furniture, there are some non-scent related solutions. As most of us know, cats are usually divas, and the texture of wherever they walk or lay has to be just right. For some reason, they hate the texture of crinkled tin foil.
Although it may seem weird to place tinfoil on your couch or recliner, there are people who swear by this method. It's also important to remember that the tin foil is temporary. After a while, your cat won’t want to jump on the furniture anymore and you won’t have to look at the tin foil anymore once removed. You can also double up by using both tin foil and spray to create a surface that your cat will absolutely hate.
Double-Sided Tape
All you have to do is take one-inch strips of tape and place them one-inch apart of whatever furniture you are trying to keep your cat off of. While it may take a bit more labor than just placing tin foil on your furniture, it looks a lot better and it practically blends right in. Just like the tinfoil method, you only have to do this temporarily until your cat learns not to jump on the furniture. You can also use it with a spray as well to double-up on cat deterrent.