Have a cat that won’t stay off your counters? I do. I finally got fed up with it enough to do something about it: scare the crap out of him with a motion-detecting blender (while recording the results for my own amusement, of course).
Confused at what you’re looking at? This is a repeating shot of security camera footage of my cat jumping on the counter – in search of a plant to munch on – and initiating my Blender Defender. Take a look at the following comic to get a better understanding 🙂
 
Videos
Sorry, but you’re going to have to pretend you can hear an extremely loud blender while you watch these clips
Details
If you were to walk in my house, you may see something you dont normally see in a kitchen. On the wall, to the left of my sink is a webcam (network camera). It is plugged into the network jack and screwed into the wall plate cover, supporting itself. It doesnt get it the way, nor do we ever have to think about it. The camera is being monitored for motion by my computer upstairs in our office.
The camera itself is one of the cheapest network cameras out there, the DCS-900. It can be picked up for about $120 or so. There are a couple network cameras that are a little cheaper, but the D-Link one is pretty rugged and makes it easy to get into the raw feeds, something that cant be said for many other cameras.
As you can see from the videos above, the blender and the strobe light are both controlled by an X10 unit. The unit is sent an on or off command from the computer running upstairs by means of an X10 Firecracker. The Firecracker is just a wireless X10 transmitter that plugs into your serial port. I wont get into explaining it much here, but one thing to note is that is happily co-exists with my CM11A unit.
The computer upstairs is running the ‘motion‘ library for linux. As soon as it detects something moving on camera, it starts recording frames. While it is saving frames, it also initiates another Perl script I wrote that sends an X10 command to turn on the blender and strobe, wait 3 seconds, then turn them off. After the script is done detecting motion, it then splices all the JPG frames together using ffmpeg and saves the resulting movie as a SWF file, which you can see above. Finally, after it saves the movie, I have it set up to email me a link to the movie so I can see the results from where ever I’m at (remotely by using my phone).
Is this cruel?
Of course not! To teach a cat not to do something, it has to get the idea that what it is doing is a bad thing. One way to do so is to sternly tell your cat ‘NO’ when it does something. The cat may learn that it is bad, but more often than not, the cat learns that it’s not supposed to it when your around. This is not what you want. The best way to teach the cat not to get on a counter is to take yourself out of the picture. If the cat jumps up on the counter and is greeted with a scare, it will learn that the counter is not a very nice place to be. The cat is never harmed, but it’s instincts tell is that this may be something to be feared. Just like a vaccuum. The cat doesn’t like it at all, so it stays away.
Some will say that the cat is trying to eat the plant because he needs it for his digestion. In this case, it’s just not true. Our cat doesn’t simply eat our plants. He sees them as a toy. He plays with the stalks, digs them out, etc. We find leaves in the other rooms half the time. And, yes, he does get grass every once in a while.
Project Cost
The table below shows how much money would normally go into a project like this. This isn’t to say that I’ve spent this much, as I already had everything lying around the place, but if somebody else were to start this project, this may be what they should expect to pay.
| Item | Notes | Price |
| Strobe Light | Bought from Spencer’s | 20.00 |
| Blender | Housewarming present, woot. | 50.00 |
| X10 Firecracker | Check Ebay and Amazon if you’re looking for one | 12.00 |
| X10 Appliance Module | You wouldnt want a Lamp Module for this. | 12.00 |
| Network Camera | D-Link DSC-900 | 120.00 |
| $214.00 |
I don't have any friends, actually. I'm pretty lonely, and cats keep me company. I try to reach out to people, but they don't seem to understand me.
If you're going to attack me, why don't you have the guts to identify yourself?
I can't stop beating myself up. Even posting my inner conflict online is a cry for help.
Maybe my comments are too sincere. I shouldn't bother; it seems people appreciate stupid jokes ("I just kill 'em!" OK, Beavis) more than observations.
[b]@EVERYONE[/b] Would you all stop bickering and attacking each other? You are all entitled to your own opinions on this project – just like everything else. People are going to have different views and feeling about everything – there is no need to attack anyone for it. But here's an idea: if you don't like it – just click your stumble button and move along…
Being deliberately vague does not make you sound smart. But please tell me about my "inner conflict"
LAST POST: Sorry. I didn't want to bicker. Catty made a point of jabbing me for not appreciating Nick's stupid, 1st-grade joke.
FTB: Sorry, can't stand idly by: pointing out something is a joke isn't much of a jab compared to telling someone "Certainly you own video games and pornography" and that they won't amount to much. I was simply pointing out the obvious, and calling out your negative behavior in a subtle way. I just don't see the point in being mean to people like that, and being so overtly aggressive and off topic.
But being negative in the form of a joke is okay, apparently.
Last post for real this time. Enjoy joking about violence towards animals.
Thanks for this little project Sarah! I have three cats and one of them loves the counters in the kitchen. In fact, he likes to knock things off the counters in the middle of the night. We wake up to all sorts of things on the floor: egg timers, spice jars, towels, even utensils. I'll have to try this out. DISCLAIMER: The boy has a TON of toys and we play with him until he's tired. But for some reason, he still loves to do this.
This reminds me of the trick I used to stop my kitty from peeing on my bed. (We did take her to the vet first and found that there was no illness present…only a "litter preference" for MY BED.)
We covered the bed with cardboard, then scattered several mousetraps UPSIDE DOWN over the cardboard surface. (Right side up would be dangerous!) We spread a bedsheet over the entire bed. When kitty jumped up on the bed, the cardboard jiggled and all the mousetraps jumped SNAPSNAPSNAP! and kitty was out of there!
I salute your ingenuity…Shaking a penny jar, spraying with water, etc. are only a consequence when you are present! So coming up with a solution to the problem when you aren't there is really the only way to extinguish negative behavior.
And haters? My mousetrap solution was my vet's suggestion. Worked like a charm!
It looks like that cat just wants water. Cats try and find the freshest source which is why they get into the sinks and toilets.
Or you could lay some strips of packing tape sticky side up on the counter. Cats hate tape on their paws.
Seriously, last message. I am a complete tool.
I thought it was funnier than heck! Too bad you can't set off the blender and strobe light when the cat falls asleep!!
This is just for Nick. He'll appreciate it. Do not read this "F-T-B-" :
Never pull the kitty's tail,
You can't hurt him much like that.
If you want to hear him wail,
Sock him with a baseball bat!
And I mean that in the nicest way.
Great idea! Now make one to keep bickerers and haters off the internet.
you should set it up so that the strobe goes on a few seconds before the blender. After a while of conditioning, the cat will anticipate the blender after the strobe. Once the cat is conditioned, you could dispense with the blender.
Is there anyway you could give the cat abnesia or maybe get a new plant eating cat every three or four days?
I've used the sticky tape method, with good results. Double-sided taped on a piece of cardboard will keep him off. Apparently, he doesn't like the tactile feel of it on his feet. After a few tries, he decides it's not worth it to go there. The cat can go anywhere he wants in the house – except on the kitchen counter and dining table (for obvious reasons).
THE CAT ISN'T THIRSTY. Look at the other videos. you'll see thst the cat loonks at the plant!
In fact, you could make use of the cat's artificially induced aversion to strobe lights in other areas of the house. For example, You could put a detector and strobe combination on the sofa, or bed, or where ever else you don't want the cat to leave hair mats. You could even replace the strobe with a simple red light or random clicking noise, or a recording of yourselves issuing a command. You could eventually get to the point where you can say "boo" and have that cat running for dear life for fear of the dreaded blender noise. B.F. Skinner would be proud.
I once stuck a bunch of toothpicks in my plant soil so my cat would stop digging it up. She outsmarted my by pulling out the toothpicks a playing with them all over my wood floors pricking my feet instead of her paws. 🙂
[b]This just in:[/b]
For the very first time, we just caught our other cat up on the counter via motion-detecting-video.
It will be up shortly. It's great.
@nick. I do too. I basically let them breed until I have a huge genetic pool to filter–a nice wild tree to prune, if you will. I quickly kill all the cats that don't exhibit any behavior I approve of and make sure that any cats that exhibit desired behavior have more kittens in the next generation. Cats breed pretty quickly, so, I already have several bipedal cats and two that can do linear algebra.
the new cat video is great. man, i have to get back to work. these videos are addictive.
FADE TO BLUE I think you might have a point if this contraption somehow launched the can into the blender and then started up, but fortunately is does not. How in the workd can you relate this to any form of animal cruelty? You might have some other issues not related to any of this that should be addressed. Good luck!
This is almost as funny as the squirrel catapult…
If cats are such a nuisance, wouldn't it be a lot simpler not to keep cats at all?
More videos, more videos! Please!
[b]@Tin Soul[/b]: I can only put them up when my cats jump up there, and to be honest… they are now learning that its not a good idea. Blender Defender Success!
I originally thought you grounded the sink to the appliance and the cats body acted as connector…..Im glad you found a better way
Oh gawd, seriously I laughed my ass off, had to watch this like ten times.
When I lived with my dad he would set up upside-down mousetraps all over the kitchen, since the cat knew which cupboard held her cat food and would sneak into it. Unfortunately, we kept the toaster in the same cupboard.
So, early morning finds me half-asleep looking for toast… I open a cupboard and SNAP CRAK mousetrap falls on my head. At least it woke me up.
Also. Cats (particularly gluttonous ones) will eat plants even if they're not sick.. simply to be eating something. It's like people who chew gum, or people who have small snacks all day. You just… feel like eating something.
All of that stuff: $214
Get rid of the cat: $0.00
FTB I think your inner conflict stems from irregularity as a child. Mind you that's just a pat diagnosis based solely on your twisted rebuttals. Your welcome! …and same to you.
haha – classic.
well done good sir – next please tie a sock around your cat's waist and film it.
Love the videos! The 10/17 one is too funny!
I thoroughly enjoyed your videos, thank you for taking the time and effort to share them. Your cats are beautiful, and your idea is ingenius. My cat recently decided to try the kitchen counter as a bed, and wouldn't take no for an answer. I sprinkled the countertop with black pepper and left it over night. He hasn't tried to get up there again. This also works for training kitty/dog not to urinate/deficate where s/he shouldn't and keeps him/her from returning to the same spot repeatedly. Harmless and effective!
Mike said:
"All of that stuff: $214
Get rid of the cat: $0.00"
fred said:
"If cats are such a nuisance, wouldn't it be a lot simpler not to keep cats at all?"
Obviously, you negative-minded f***sticks were a financial and/or mental burden to your families, and yet they kept you around.
No, I'm not a cat person; I'm actually not big on pets. I'm not getting defensive. I'm just pointing out the sheer stupidity of you two, and others who said something similar. Obviously – OBVIOUSLY – this person likes his cat enough to keep him around, and to even go to this effort to keep the cat from doing something annoying. But instead of complimenting his/her creative pragmatism, you suggest getting rid of the cat, as if this is a thought that somehow just never occurred to him, as if you are shining the bright beacon of enlightenment on his problem. I can't believe you actually thought that your input would actually bring something to the conversation. So you don't like cats all that much, and getting rid of the cat would be YOUR logical course of action. I suppose it also makes little sense you you that this person probably has (or eventaully will have) a better paying, or at least more fulfilling, job than you have. Intimidated by problem solving? I know, it's tough. But you're going to have to accept that sometimes, other human beings will do things that don't make a lot of sense to you. I know this might be a difficult concept for simple-minded fascists like yourself (who want everyone to think the same, dress the same, and generally just BE the same so that they can "fit in" to your simple little world) to accept, but we humans are each individuals who enjoy DIFFERENT things. Look at the world beyond your own toes for once. Or, if that proves too hard for you, just go ahead and eat sh*t and die.
AHAHA omg Topher you have issues man. Peopl say something two lines longs and admittedly funny- "All of that stuff: $214
Get rid of the cat: $0.00 " and you have a bitch fit at them.. lol
Poor kitty! Gonna think twice about jumping on the counters again.
This is serious fucking business.
What can I say, I was in a bad mood. I do have issues, mostly with stupid people. Verbally destroying them…well, makes me feel good. We all have our vices.
I love your videos! I demand more! LOL! I used to live with a very nice and sophisticated tuxedo cat. Love them to death! More Videos! Thanks for all the entertainment!
Thanks Topher!
(Oh, and I'm willing to bet that you had to try a few times to post that message due to my bad-word filter… sorry about that! Its fixed now, haha)
love the idea, not so hardcore as to install the motion sensor… but to all the haters… my cats spazz every time i turn the vacuum on… am I cruel too???
Instead of spending $214. on hardware to SCARE the beejayzus outta the poor cat… why not spend $5 on another potted plant just for the cat's use? Better for the cat and your karma.
[b]@Catlover[/b]: Giving him a potted plant to play in would 1) Enforce his idea that potted plants are for playing in, and 2) Not solve my problem. I would still have a mess to clean up every morning. He gets grass to eat when he wants it, but he's not supposed to touch the potted plants.
This is hilarious and is relatively safe for the cat.
It teaches important lessons like:
SOME HOUSEPLANTS ARE SCARY/POISON!
AVOID LIGHTNING!
DON'T DROWN IN THE SINK!
BLENDERS CAN KILL!
Imo this setup can save lives. Multiply that by 9's and you have a lot of lives…