How to Cat Proof Your Computer

Many cats seem to be fascinated with computers, maybe it’s the warm place on top of the monitor, maybe it’s that enticing clicking sound, or maybe it’s because this thing is stealing all the attention and occupying the fingers that should be scratching behind their ears. Whatever the reason, neither the fur nor the lounging is doing your computer much good and kitty risks harming herself if she gets entangled.

1 Take care of the wires. Tie and bundle all the loose wires, and, if possible, enclose them in an appropriate covering. Remove any peripheral devices you don’t use and put them away. For more information on keeping the cords at bay, read wikiHow’s article How to keep cats from chewing in electric cords and chargers. Don’t forget about laptop cords. While laptops are easy to carry about the house with you, their thin cords are an invitation to curious felines. Be sure to keep the cords out of sight and definitely not dangling or jiggling!

2 Keep the computer clean and clear of cat fur. Cat fur ends up everywhere, including inside your computer and your keyboard. If it builds up, it can present a safety hazard as with any build-up of dust and fluff.  Clean the fan, vent openings, and any filters in your computer regularly. Doing this will help reduce your household’s allergies and will remove any build-up of cat and other pet hair. All that fur clogging things up can overheat your computer and will make the computer work harder to keep itself cool.

3 Cover the keyboard when not in use. There are various dust and keyboard covers for sale in computer retail outlets. Alternatively, you could improvise one out of a bag. Don’t cover the keyboard of a laptop while it is turned on; doing so could trap too much heat. Use your favorite search engine to help find places that will sell you custom keyboard covers.

4 Shut the laptop when not in use and put it away. Even when shut, claws can leave scratch marks on the laptop surface.

5 Discourage your feline companions from living near the computing equipment as much as possible. Obviously, if you’re the kind of person who delights in having your cat sitting alongside your keyboard while you type, this step will probably never be for you and you’ll just have to minimize the risks that come with allowing puss to share your desk space, the main one being never leaving your cat there unattended.

6 Keep drinks, cats, and computers well apart. If you’re enjoying a hot or cold drink near the computer, use common sense and guard the drink if there is the likelihood of puss jumping up and knocking it. In fact, it’s probably best in this case if you don’t have your drinks near the computer.

7 Tidy up the surrounding area of your desk space. Papers, food packaging, last night’s dinner, or bottles will probably tempt your cat to jump up onto the desk. By keeping the desk area clean, you will certainly have less of a mess to clean up in case the cat does jump up and knocks it all off.

8 Close the door. Keeping the door to the office closed is a very easy way to keep a cat and computer separate when you’re not in the room.

Source: wikihow.com

You could also like...

Tornadoes: Keeping Pets Safe Why is it bad for cats to drink milk? Keep your cats safe during fireworks Tips to Increase Your Cat’s Water Intake Can my cat eat fruits?