Archive: Around Town

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 Lansing's Advice Column

Dear IMO,

We are having troubles with our cat. He seems to think the Christmas tree is his new toy. It is his first experience with the tree, and as soon as we brought it home, he began to explore from the inside out. My father yelled at the cat, and he hid in the other room.

We no sooner finished decorating the tree, when we heard the distinct sound of several ornaments falling on the floor. To make matters worse, the cat began to toss the ornaments about the room. This time, the entire family chased the cat away from the scene of disaster. What should we do to keep the cat out of the Christmas tree?

Desperate in Ludlowville

Dear Ludlowvian,

Wow, people read the Lansing Star in Ludlowville! I didn’t think any signal reached down that far in the valley. You and many others who own cats have a serious problem. Cats and Christmas trees are a dangerous mix especially when the cat starts chewing on a string of electric lights or decides to take a bite out of a blinking one. For some strange reason, cats believe that everything in the house is a toy, especially people sound asleep at 3:00 am, but that is another problem.

Your cat seems to enjoy climbing the branches and knocking off an ornament or two every chance he gets. I assume the cat is a male since a female would have much better judgment than to chew on electric cords or glass bulbs. By the way this same behavior is displayed by young men who live in college fraternities.

The cure is simple: a spray bottle of water. Each time you find him near the tree, close to the tree, thinking about getting close to the tree, in the tree, or playing soccer with Great Grandma’s hand blown glass ornament, give him a good shot of water from the spray bottle. As you know, most cats hate water, and this form of punishment is much more effective than other means such as throwing a pillow or chasing the cat with a broom. The water will drive the cat bonkers and add moisture to your tree. Have a Merry Christmas.

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