Cat people: window treatments?

[Becky]

Thanks for all of the feedback! It sounds like blinds are worth a try with the terrible twosome. Leaving the blinds/shades up or the windows uncovered isn't really an option due to the amount of foot and vehicle traffic on our street.

I love seeing the kitties in the window when I come home. Auric will sit at the window nearest the driveway and yowl when he sees the car or bike! (Yep, he's our troublemaker.)

[Koronin]

Can't really help. The mini blinds we had at the old house the cats destroyed. They went right through them to get into the window and those ended up broken. With drapes they just move move them with their claws, so we ended up with claw holes (tiny holes, but they were there) in the area where they moved them so they sit in the window. This house we have the larger wooden type "mini" blinds which the cats haven't messed with.

[malkin]

We have paper folding blinds that push and pull to open and shut; they were cheap from Target. We needed something immediately when we moved in. The cats have had their way with the edges of one set, but I don't care. Anyway, they seem to have lost interest in the blinds. There are way better things to do in this house!

[Biciclista]

wooden blinds. never had a problem

[GLC1968]

We have an assortment of window treatments. 1 inch wooden blinds in most rooms (we installed these), metal mini blinds in the laundry room (came with the house), drapes in the dinning room, drapes with sheers in the big front picture window and before that, vertical blinds with a fabric side.

The worst was the vertical blinds. I guess if you had totally smooth ones that you could clean, they would be better but my guess is that there would still be a static/cat hair problem. In our case, it was cat hair and dog slobber...not a good combination. And the little chains at the bottom were toast almost immediately. I was thrilled when we got rid of those things!

The cat doesn't hurt the sheers but the dogs do manage to wipe their slobber on them. Luckily, they are easily washed. ;-)

The cat shows no interest in the drapes, but those are usually left open so he can sit and see unencumbered anyway. He can't get to the mini blinds due to their location and he leaves the 1" blinds alone. One time he did get tangled up in one because he insisted on seeing out that window (there wasn't even a ledge or any furniture for him!) and since that little episode, he says away from those windows. ;-) Neither the cat nor the blinds were hurt in the process.

[malkin]

For the moment, we have drapes that need hemming and are about 10" too long on a sliding glass door. It is kitty playground in there. I also got them a new scratch post which I am hoping they will like better than the door screen.

[Becky]

It sounds like wood or faux wood blinds may not have the issues that we previously experienced with mini blinds and Auric. I think I'll start looking there. Thanks for all of your help, ladies!

(And no, I wouldn't really eat the cat )

[Owlie]

DBF's family has standard blinds, and the cat ignores them, except for pawing at the ones on the window behind DBF's bed if he wants to look at birds. However, this cat is fat and old and lazy, so he's not exactly a good example.