Got a new cat - need help

[80sFan]

Big hair?

Where I grew up, big hair lasted well into the 90s

 

[staropeace]

Continue to take him down when he gets up on the counters. When we have cats, we must be prepared for them to do things we do not wish lol. Cats are stubborn but that is why I love them so.

 

[arista]

We had the cat just fascinated this year with the Christmas tree. A friend of mine suggested putting Vick's on the lower branches. I did and the cat has not touched the tree since. However, the tree is very menthol and good for sinuses.

 

[Blake]

Long story short, our cat we had for almost 12 years died a couple weeks ago and we adopted another cat a couple days later.

New cat is younger...not a kitten but not fully grown yet either (old cat was younger when adopted her).

As he gets used to his new home, we've had a couple issues.
We feed him a good amount of cat food, but whenever one of us is eating, he tries to get our food. He jumps up on the dining table when we're eating or have just finished eating, which disgusts me.
His paws can't be clean, he uses a litter box (old cat didn't dare go on tables, but she also didn't use a litter box).
I've solved that issue by enclosing new cat in another room while we eat.
But he still constantly jumps onto countertops. Again, I am grossed out by this. The only way to deter him is to line up cookie sheets the length of the counters with a few inches overhang...all it took was one time of him jumping on the edge of a cookie sheet that slapped him in the face and made a lot of noise and he didn't try to get up that way again.
But I can't keep the cookie sheets like that overnight...all I need is that noise waking everyone in the house.

I guess my main question is, what is a good way to keep a cat off the countertops/tables?

He is also getting on my nerves bothering with the Christmas trees and he's punctured a few tiny holes in our leather couch. I wasn't BFFs with our old cat at all, but she was a walk in the park compared to this new guy.

I read a book on how to deal with cats and you get a water pistol, and every time the cat jumps up on the table or whatever, you squirt in with water, after about three times it won't do it anymore.

 

[Blake]

I forgot to mention, it seems to like water! Doesn't mind getting wet. It tries to get in the shower with us.
Also forgot to mention that it has pooped in the shower stall 3 times already, even though it had access to its litter box every time.

fill the water piston with something smelly but nothing that will make the cat sick.

 

[80sFan]

fill the water piston with something smelly but nothing that will make the cat sick.

I'm thinking orange juice, because it smells good to us but I've heard cats don't like citrus.

 

[Neesy]

I keep forgetting I changed it lol. This one is more in line with my screen name, I guess.
What's more 80s than a CPK?

I had to look up "CPK"

Good luck - sounds like that cat has picked up some pretty bad habits in the previous home they were in - glad you've decided to keep him/her (it?) indoors.



Edit: I see your cat is actually a "he" - sorry about that - going by post # 3 I thought he was an "it"

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