To think cats swanning about on work surface/table is gross?

[Fluffy24]

One minute it's in the litter box and the next it's on the kitchen table. Urgh.

But surprises me how many people I know who think it's fine.

Is it just me?

So back to the OP, did anyone take the cat off the table or was the problem that the host was quite happy with it?

My cats go anywhere in our open-plan house, but I would mind very much about one on the table if we were eating. Might knock a wine glass over

It is disgusting. My kitten sadly just one is all grown up now and is trained not to jump up, whoever thinks they can not train their cat is just lazy imo and can't be arsed to try

Your cat is trained not to jump up when you can see it cats are smart.

Our cat loves to sleep on the kitchen table (where we do prepare food all the time, often right next to him) and I've never thought twice about it. Of course he also sleeps in our bed and sits on the edge of the bathtub watching me brush my teeth before going to bed.

Funnily the (thankfully few) Dettol spraying germaphobes in my circle appear to catch more colds and tummy bugs and suffer from more allergies than everyone else. I grew up in the country with cats, dogs and horses in a very relaxed household and have definitely ingested more than my fair share of pet hair and all kinds of dirt over the years. I'm rarely ill, haven't had a proper cold or tummy bug for over 10 years now and don't suffer from any allergies, so can't see much reason for getting rid of the cat (or the loo brush!) now.

Training cats?!

I hate seeing cats on work tops too; my cat does it and I tell him off every time. Every single time, day in day out for 10 years! I dread to think how many bottles of anti-bac spray I have used.

Our cat never jumps up on the work surfaces, well not when we are there and there's never any tell tale cat prints.

He will on occasion use the kitchen table as a shortcut from one lap to another, but he does it in such a way that you can tell he knows it's wrong.

His brother on the other hand, would jump up on the surfaces and get roundly told off and jump back down irritably.

I'm not that fussed about the dirt angle, the table gets a wipe down every night.

If you're worried about cats on the kitchen surface, how do you feel about cats peeing in the microwave as happened in this house yesterday? Yes, DCat, I am looking at you!

It's simple.

This is the cat-owner's version of that MN favourite Mothers-Of-Toddlers-Who-Do-As-They're-Asked versus Mothers-Of-Toddlers-Who-Won't-Flipping-SIT-STILL!

Cats have personalities. Some are more trainable than others, and the cat that grasps she must not go on the worktops may repeatedly knock small ornaments off the bookshelf she's not allowed on, instead.

Totally disgusting, but surprisingly common.

My cat has just started in the last week jumping onto the work surface, he's not do it in my presence since he was a kitten, I hoosh him off. Wouldn't have him on the table during a meal - though he's never tried

Not sure why he's started again

It's all subjective though isn't it, animal allowed on couches/beds, people petting animals and then not washing their hands, dogs licking their owners after licking their own bums. Grosses some people out and not othres

My sister uses an air pressure in a can thingy to train hers.

What amazes me is that some of my friends who let their cats walk all over work surfaces, are also the same people who won't let people wear shoes in their house or have a toilet brush in their bathroom.

Does it make a difference if the cats are house cats? Just wondering. As our last cat wouldn't climb when in house and knew where not allowed to go (upstairs, worktops etc). Im allergic so not a chance she was getting anywhere near my bed. But she was out all night and climbed fences and trees etc and hunted. I sometimes wonder if house cats climb more as they dont get out to excercise etc.

The air pressure thing is called Cat Ssscat. It's bloody brilliant. Cat was trained after 2 squirts

I've had cats all my life and they have never been allowed on kitchen work surfaces. You can actually train them not to...

This. My two cats never ever would go on the kitchen worktops or tables. It's disgusting.

Caryam - as I posted upthread - hilarious isn't it?

A bit nervous about opening my mouth again (genuinely didn't realise cats would be so inflammatory, will stick to politics or religion in future) but in answer to your question suburbanrhonda no, having to virtually fish my cutlery out from under a cat drew no comment from my host.

I don't mind cats but they bother me greatly in that I am very allergic. Fortunately, this means I cannot go to a house if there's a cat, so I don't have to worry. I'm not persnickety about hygiene but allowing an animal on kitchen surfaces, in your sink etc is grim.

A good friend has a cat who she proudly allows on every kitchen surface. The cat is her baby. She came 'round to my house with homemade cakes. I politely declined.

caryam

Bet you've got a Venn diagram for that

I think it is disgusting. I am not a cat lover. I remember when I was about 14 and going to my friends house, she had lots of cats and as I walked into the kitchen there were cats all over the worktop. There was a big pot on the stove and she asked me if I wanted to stay for dinner, at that point a cat dipped its paw into the pot....my answer to dinner was a no! So gross.

my cats are not allowed on the worktop but more because they knock everything over than because I find it gross - I'm afraid I don't have the emotional energy to get worked up about such things.

They know not to do it if we're in the room but I'm totally sure they're up there when we're not home...mainly because I come home and various items from the worktop have been knocked on the floor. Anyone who thinks their cats have been totally trained not to go anywhere they shouldn't is fooling themselves.

In any case, if you find pets that disgusting, why bother having them? Humans are much grosser IMO.

Our bsh girl is too fat and clumsy to jump up on our worktops thankfully! Same with the dining table. Would recommend the breed to any cat loving clean freaks!!

Caryam and DadfromUncle - yes I'm sure that there would be inconsistencies in people's hygiene habits! (If properly researched, of course, and illustrated in Venn diagrams.) Nowt as queer as folk.

I, for one, wouldn't allow a cat on a Venn diagram.

Generalising wildly here but I think the world is broadly divided into two camps: people for whom a spotlessly or near-spotlessly clean home is very important, who tend not to like/have animals precisely because they make keeping the home clean harder; and people for whom the companionship of a pet/pets is very important, who see a bit of dirt or hair as the price to pay for having a pet.

My kitchen surfaces are regularly wiped down and always when food is about to be prepared and afterwards, and whichever one of us isn't cooking is on cat-distraction duties during food prep itself (or the cats get banished upstairs until we're done), but otherwise I've made my peace with the fact that pets = a certain amount of mess and as I'd rather have pets than not, I'm happy to live with that.

Well we grew up with various cats and we would just keep taking them off the dining table etc saying no when they look like they want to climb on them and that seemed to work and eventually they dont climb on it anymore.