Okay, so I picked up a kitten that I found on the street while at a BBQ at a
friend's house. The green eyed, black kitten just came up to me and looked
up [sigh... do I give a new meaning to a "sucker born every minute" eh?] .
Got it to a vet first thing Sunday morning, then bought all the kitten
"chuckies" including a rhinestone collar g...[looks fantastic btw ].

Needless to say the kitten is as ungrateful as cats get, and decided to
befriend the BS Paph sukhakulii. I have no idea why the orchids when there
is a fish tank full of very plump cichlids just winking at the cat.

I arrived home earlier today to the orchid laying on it's side on top of
it's pot, with some roots that were ripped off the plant. I immediately
cleaned out the roots to see the extent of the damage. I'd say 25% of the
root system is gone, some of the leaves have chewing marks on them.
I repotted the orchid immediately and I'm wondering what else I can do to
help the orchid survive such hostile friendship?

What can I do to discourage the cat from going after the plants?

Mariana
Who really dislikes cats, but this was just too cute ....

SOunds very familiar to me! My cat (i love him, but sometimes....!!!!!)
In my case, teh cat seems to be more interested in playing with the chips of
bark than anyother thing.....I heard ( i never tried) orange peel! fresh
ones, and keep changing them...at least until the cat grows!
ALso, did you buy toys for your cat? They can get bored very easily and they
need something new once in a while.....!

--
Paulo
"GrlIntrpted" wrote in message
. net...
Okay, so I picked up a kitten that I found on the street while at a BBQ at
a
friend's house. The green eyed, black kitten just came up to me and
looked
up [sigh... do I give a new meaning to a "sucker born every minute" eh?] .
Got it to a vet first thing Sunday morning, then bought all the kitten
"chuckies" including a rhinestone collar g...[looks fantastic btw ].

Needless to say the kitten is as ungrateful as cats get, and decided to
befriend the BS Paph sukhakulii. I have no idea why the orchids when
there
is a fish tank full of very plump cichlids just winking at the cat.

I arrived home earlier today to the orchid laying on it's side on top of
it's pot, with some roots that were ripped off the plant. I immediately
cleaned out the roots to see the extent of the damage. I'd say 25% of the
root system is gone, some of the leaves have chewing marks on them.
I repotted the orchid immediately and I'm wondering what else I can do to
help the orchid survive such hostile friendship?

What can I do to discourage the cat from going after the plants?

Mariana
Who really dislikes cats, but this was just too cute ....

Hello!

I heard that sprinkle ground black pepper on the top of the bark will do the
trick!
Never tried it !
Also, putting some tabasco sauce on electric wire will discourage them to
chew on them!

Claude

"GrlIntrpted" wrote in message
. net...
| Okay, so I picked up a kitten that I found on the street while at a BBQ at
a
| friend's house. The green eyed, black kitten just came up to me and
looked
| up [sigh... do I give a new meaning to a "sucker born every minute" eh?] .
| Got it to a vet first thing Sunday morning, then bought all the kitten
| "chuckies" including a rhinestone collar g...[looks fantastic btw ].
|
| Needless to say the kitten is as ungrateful as cats get, and decided to
| befriend the BS Paph sukhakulii. I have no idea why the orchids when
there
| is a fish tank full of very plump cichlids just winking at the cat.
|
| I arrived home earlier today to the orchid laying on it's side on top of
| it's pot, with some roots that were ripped off the plant. I immediately
| cleaned out the roots to see the extent of the damage. I'd say 25% of the
| root system is gone, some of the leaves have chewing marks on them.
| I repotted the orchid immediately and I'm wondering what else I can do to
| help the orchid survive such hostile friendship?
|
| What can I do to discourage the cat from going after the plants?
|
| Mariana
| Who really dislikes cats, but this was just too cute ....
|
|
|

Cats can be trained, you know... But usually they train their owners.
Kittens are just inquisitive. You need to watch them, and discourage
the behavior you find offensive. I used to wait until the cat would
jump up onto the plant stand (or kitchen counter), and then clap my
hands sharply and point to the floor. Cats hate loud noises. My cats
will now jump onto the floor if I point, without the clapping. I've
heard that squirt guns work too.


You could try spraying your plants with hot pepper wax, or chili-powder,
although I had a kitten which would go out onto the balcony, pick a thai
hot pepper from the potted plant, and play with it (chewing, tossing,
chewing, chasing... etc) for hours. Some cats like hot peppers. This
was the same cat that would play tag, and she also had a knack for
selecting orchids and punishing me when I left her for the weekend by
knocking just the best ones off the shelf. But she did respond to the
clapping thing.


Anyway, the cat will gleefully disobey you if she feels like you are
poorly trained. Try to avoid that situation. She may be trying to
train you to have a pot of cat grass (oat grass is good) handy for her
to chew on. Grass is better than paphs (and paphs are far tastier than
phals, with oncidiums running a close second). Keep it somewhere away
from the orchids, to reduce temptation. You may need to find a space
which you can exclude cats from, if such a space exists in your home, if
the cat grass thing doesn't work.


Oh, and cat spit is toxic to orchids for some reason. At least for an
area around the chewed bits, which will turn black. Your paph should
recover just fine, barring future assault.

Rob

GrlIntrpted wrote:

Okay, so I picked up a kitten that I found on the street while at a BBQ at a
friend's house. The green eyed, black kitten just came up to me and looked
up [sigh... do I give a new meaning to a "sucker born every minute" eh?] .
Got it to a vet first thing Sunday morning, then bought all the kitten
"chuckies" including a rhinestone collar g...[looks fantastic btw ].

Needless to say the kitten is as ungrateful as cats get, and decided to
befriend the BS Paph sukhakulii. I have no idea why the orchids when there
is a fish tank full of very plump cichlids just winking at the cat.

I arrived home earlier today to the orchid laying on it's side on top of
it's pot, with some roots that were ripped off the plant. I immediately
cleaned out the roots to see the extent of the damage. I'd say 25% of the
root system is gone, some of the leaves have chewing marks on them.
I repotted the orchid immediately and I'm wondering what else I can do to
help the orchid survive such hostile friendship?

What can I do to discourage the cat from going after the plants?

Mariana
Who really dislikes cats, but this was just too cute ....







--
Rob's Rules: http://www.msu.edu/~halgren
1) There is always room for one more orchid
2) There is always room for two more orchids
2a. See rule 1
3) When one has insufficient credit to purchase
more orchids, obtain more credit
LittlefrogFarm is open - e-mail me for a list )

Mariana,

Casper the Friendly Ghost decided to begin a scratch regimen that included
several upholstered chairs. Also, since he believes he is a dog, he likes
to scratch the door frame to let us know he wants to go out on the patio -
at 5AM. If we're around, a simple NO, or, as Rob suggested, a loud clap and
a point will do it. But, we're not always around.

We found a product called "No-Scratch! for Cats" at one of those Pet
supermarkets. (Gee, the marketing people at that company are ingenious,
aren't they? G) Casper shrinks from anything that has been sprayed with
it, but it has no odor that *we* can discern, unlike some of the Hartz
products that will drive a human being from the premises along with the cat.
It doesn't stain anything and isn't oily. The effect lasts about a week,
but I must say that after a couple of applications Casper was largely
trained not to do that anymore. (Unlike you, I love the little devils, and
this rescued cat is the funniest, most loving guy you could ask for, so we
were anxious to keep it that way!)

Here's the ingredient breakdown for a 16 ounce spray bottle:

Active: Garlic, 7 grams-2%; clove, 7 grams-2%; sodium lauryl sulfate, 10
grams-3%; mint, 7 grams-2%.
Inert: Predictably, Water, 91%.

I don't think there's anything there that could harm an orchid, but someone
may correct me. At the very least, spraying this stuff on the pots ought to
do the trick.

HTH

Diana

GrlIntrpted wrote:
What can I do to discourage the cat from going after the plants?

I have three shelves of plants. I have chicken wire encasing the bottom
shelf.

My cat story... I picked up a Platystele oxyglossa at the Philadelphia
Flower Show this spring. That night, I brought it upstairs to log in
into Cattleya-Log. It was on my desk for about 13 seconds before my cat
jumped up, and started chomping on an inforescence.

--Matt

Xref: kermit rec.gardens.orchids:60755

Repot the orchid, feed the fish, plant the cat...

That should take care of it!

Garland

"GrlIntrpted" wrote in message
. net...
Okay, so I picked up a kitten that I found on the street while at a BBQ at
a
friend's house. The green eyed, black kitten just came up to me and
looked
up [sigh... do I give a new meaning to a "sucker born every minute" eh?] .
Got it to a vet first thing Sunday morning, then bought all the kitten
"chuckies" including a rhinestone collar g...[looks fantastic btw ].

Needless to say the kitten is as ungrateful as cats get, and decided to
befriend the BS Paph sukhakulii. I have no idea why the orchids when
there
is a fish tank full of very plump cichlids just winking at the cat.

I arrived home earlier today to the orchid laying on it's side on top of
it's pot, with some roots that were ripped off the plant. I immediately
cleaned out the roots to see the extent of the damage. I'd say 25% of the
root system is gone, some of the leaves have chewing marks on them.
I repotted the orchid immediately and I'm wondering what else I can do to
help the orchid survive such hostile friendship?

What can I do to discourage the cat from going after the plants?

Mariana
Who really dislikes cats, but this was just too cute ....

Thank you all who responded with great tips, both on and off list.

Mariana

"Matthew Donadio" wrote in message
...
GrlIntrpted wrote:
What can I do to discourage the cat from going after the plants?

I have three shelves of plants. I have chicken wire encasing the bottom
shelf.

My cat story... I picked up a Platystele oxyglossa at the Philadelphia
Flower Show this spring. That night, I brought it upstairs to log in
into Cattleya-Log. It was on my desk for about 13 seconds before my cat
jumped up, and started chomping on an inforescence.

--Matt

Squirt guns do work well [when you can get to them fast enough]. If plain
water doesn't do the trick, try vinegar.
--
Kenni Judd
Juno Beach Orchids
http://www.jborchids.com

"Rob Halgren" wrote in message
...
Cats can be trained, you know... But usually they train their owners.
Kittens are just inquisitive. You need to watch them, and discourage
the behavior you find offensive. I used to wait until the cat would
jump up onto the plant stand (or kitchen counter), and then clap my
hands sharply and point to the floor. Cats hate loud noises. My cats
will now jump onto the floor if I point, without the clapping. I've
heard that squirt guns work too.


You could try spraying your plants with hot pepper wax, or chili-powder,
although I had a kitten which would go out onto the balcony, pick a thai
hot pepper from the potted plant, and play with it (chewing, tossing,
chewing, chasing... etc) for hours. Some cats like hot peppers. This
was the same cat that would play tag, and she also had a knack for
selecting orchids and punishing me when I left her for the weekend by
knocking just the best ones off the shelf. But she did respond to the
clapping thing.


Anyway, the cat will gleefully disobey you if she feels like you are
poorly trained. Try to avoid that situation. She may be trying to
train you to have a pot of cat grass (oat grass is good) handy for her
to chew on. Grass is better than paphs (and paphs are far tastier than
phals, with oncidiums running a close second). Keep it somewhere away
from the orchids, to reduce temptation. You may need to find a space
which you can exclude cats from, if such a space exists in your home, if
the cat grass thing doesn't work.


Oh, and cat spit is toxic to orchids for some reason. At least for an
area around the chewed bits, which will turn black. Your paph should
recover just fine, barring future assault.

Rob

GrlIntrpted wrote:

Okay, so I picked up a kitten that I found on the street while at a BBQ
at a
friend's house. The green eyed, black kitten just came up to me and
looked
up [sigh... do I give a new meaning to a "sucker born every minute" eh?]
..
Got it to a vet first thing Sunday morning, then bought all the kitten
"chuckies" including a rhinestone collar g...[looks fantastic btw ].

Needless to say the kitten is as ungrateful as cats get, and decided to
befriend the BS Paph sukhakulii. I have no idea why the orchids when
there
is a fish tank full of very plump cichlids just winking at the cat.

I arrived home earlier today to the orchid laying on it's side on top of
it's pot, with some roots that were ripped off the plant. I immediately
cleaned out the roots to see the extent of the damage. I'd say 25% of
the
root system is gone, some of the leaves have chewing marks on them.
I repotted the orchid immediately and I'm wondering what else I can do to
help the orchid survive such hostile friendship?

What can I do to discourage the cat from going after the plants?

Mariana
Who really dislikes cats, but this was just too cute ....







--
Rob's Rules: http://www.msu.edu/~halgren
1) There is always room for one more orchid
2) There is always room for two more orchids
2a. See rule 1
3) When one has insufficient credit to purchase
more orchids, obtain more credit
LittlefrogFarm is open - e-mail me for a list )

"GrlIntrpted" wrote in message
. net...
Okay, so I picked up a kitten that I found on the street while at a BBQ at
a
friend's house. The green eyed, black kitten just came up to me and
looked
up [sigh... do I give a new meaning to a "sucker born every minute" eh?] .
Got it to a vet first thing Sunday morning, then bought all the kitten
"chuckies" including a rhinestone collar g...[looks fantastic btw ].

Needless to say the kitten is as ungrateful as cats get, and decided to
befriend the BS Paph sukhakulii. I have no idea why the orchids when
there
is a fish tank full of very plump cichlids just winking at the cat.

I arrived home earlier today to the orchid laying on it's side on top of
it's pot, with some roots that were ripped off the plant. I immediately
cleaned out the roots to see the extent of the damage. I'd say 25% of the
root system is gone, some of the leaves have chewing marks on them.
I repotted the orchid immediately and I'm wondering what else I can do to
help the orchid survive such hostile friendship?

What can I do to discourage the cat from going after the plants?

Mariana
Who really dislikes cats, but this was just too cute ....

Remember the old metal bandaid boxes? A penny inside startles kittens when
they are getting ready to explore where they shouldn't be. Works
immediately. Any metal can will do. An old coffee can would suffice.

My cats love Cyperus. Not the Egyptian stuff as it's way to tall but the
grasslike stuff. Excellent distraction that I'm sure has saved the accessible
orchids.

Doug Bolton

SOunds very familiar to me! My cat (i love him, but sometimes....!!!!!)
In my case, teh cat seems to be more interested in playing with the chips of
bark than anyother thing.....I heard ( i never tried) orange peel! fresh
ones, and keep changing them...at least until the cat grows!
ALso, did you buy toys for your cat? They can get bored very easily and they
need something new once in a while.....!

Squirt guns/plant sprayers are very effective, but if you aren't there
to catch them, according to a book on cat training I got recently, an
upside-down mousetrap will do the trick. You put it somewhere where
it will be triggered by the cat -- maybe under a piece of paper beside
the plant or something, then when the cat steps on it, the snap scares
it enough to make it leave the area alone, at least for a while. If
you put it upside down, you won't catch kitty's feet -- or nose.
Amazingly, our foster kitty has left all my plants alone. She wasn't
even that interested in the cat grass I grew for her, but you could
try that too, if you can make the kitten understand which pot is for
him/her. I put mine near the food dishes.
People who rescue abandoned kitties get lots of brownie points
somewhere in the great scheme of things... don't they?

Alison

"betsyb" schrieb im Newsbeitrag ...

"GrlIntrpted" wrote in message
. net...


I arrived home earlier today to the orchid laying on it's side on top of
it's pot, with some roots that were ripped off the plant. I immediately
cleaned out the roots to see the extent of the damage. I'd say 25% of the
root system is gone, some of the leaves have chewing marks on them.
I repotted the orchid immediately and I'm wondering what else I can do to
help the orchid survive such hostile friendship?

What can I do to discourage the cat from going after the plants?

Mariana
Who really dislikes cats, but this was just too cute ....

Remember the old metal bandaid boxes? A penny inside startles kittens when
they are getting ready to explore where they shouldn't be. Works
immediately. Any metal can will do. An old coffee can would suffice.

Also a mousetrap under a layer of newspaper on windowsills, etc. It scares them but won't hurt them. Good against dogs getting up
on the couch, too!
--
Reka

This is LIFE! It's not a rehearsal. Don't miss it!
http://www.rolbox.it/hukari/index.html



---
Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free.
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Had six cats (one "t"). Now, sadly, down to four. One used to go after
any orchid on any windowsill. Got a piece of clear plexiglass and cut it
to the width of the window frame and about 3/4 of the height plus an
inch or so for the pot. Very carefully drilled a hole in the upper two
corners. Screwed two "L" hooks into the window frame and hung the
plexiglass from the hooks. Put one hook at a bottom corner that could be
turned to lock the sheet down. The cat couldn't get at the plants and
the plexiglass doesn't look all that bad - mostly clear. It was possible
to, very carefully again, slip the sheet to the corners of the hooks and
raise slightly for watering, removing or anything else that needed to be
done. Never got another plant after that.

"GrlIntrpted" wrote in
. net:


Needless to say the kitten is as ungrateful as cats get, and decided
to befriend the BS Paph sukhakulii. I have no idea why the orchids
when there is a fish tank full of very plump cichlids just winking at
the cat.


I had to give up most orchids in my home because my cat 'Quince' likes to
munch on the thick leaved orchids, reducing a typical young Cattleya into a
mushy, pulverized leafless goo within about a week or so.

I found a solution however.... Catasetums and Cycnoches. He doesn't show
any interest whatsoever in these thin leaved orchids.

Bob Dickow, Moscow, Idaho


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