Just as long as it isn't a moose. Moose bites kan be veri nasti. A moose once bit my sister. No, really..
--Randy
Modeling the Reading Railroad in the 1950's
Visit my web site at www.readingeastpenn.com for construction updates, DCC Info, and more.
Cats within 5,000 feet of a model train layout??? where are you people from?? I have enough trouble keeping my 3 water buffalo from demolishing the layout while they cavort around the train room, I can't imagine anyone letting a cat anywhere near a train room. (Hey Marj.! I just opened the door to the train room, let the cats loose ! )
Lots of goofy kitties.
When I first started my layout, many years ago, it was at my grandmother's farm. The entire layout was in the loft of one of the out-buildings. Usually, the kitty (a large, Maine Coon) slept downstairs, and I kept the upstairs door locked. He'd come up to see what I was working on, but usually slept on the chair. That didn't last--he was soon stealing small objects (an HO scale Jaguar E-Type was his favorite) from the train room. That went on for a bit, until he got tired of getting chased. 2006, I moved and brought the kitty and trains home with me. Once home, he left the trains alone...and slept in his basket.
By 2007, he'd died :( and I had another cat. She pretty much ignored the trains. She'd watch the N scale go in circles on the kitchen table, but left things alone for the most part. Well, she'd occasionally get up onto the layout...simply so she could have the ceiling-mounted A/C duct blow on her.
Now I have two cats, and they don't seem interested in the trains. They don't get on the table, they don't chase the equipment.
Mr. SP We have two now grown cats. Both were kittens when we got them. Cats are intelligent and with concentrated training(no pun intended)can be made to stay off areas that are off limits. Our two cats were introduced to the layout the same at to hte kitchen counter and dinner table. Go there and pay the dues. Usually it was a bopping with a rolled up paper or a flyswatter. After a short time both have shown no interest in places they don't belong
We have two now grown cats. Both were kittens when we got them. Cats are intelligent and with concentrated training(no pun intended)can be made to stay off areas that are off limits.
Our two cats were introduced to the layout the same at to hte kitchen counter and dinner table. Go there and pay the dues. Usually it was a bopping with a rolled up paper or a flyswatter. After a short time both have shown no interest in places they don't belong
I'll second their being intelligent. Last summer, I was coming down the stairs towards my living room. On the wall, I could see Chessie's shadow as he jumped off the top of my bookshelves, where he knows he's not allowed to be since he often pushes things out of his way to stretch out. In addition to seeing his shadow as he jumped down, I heard his feet hit the floor. I got down to the bottom of the stairs, and he was stretched out on the floor acting like he was just waking up.
Kevin
http://chatanuga.org/RailPage.html
http://chatanuga.org/WLMR.html
rrinker Second from the bottom looks like he didn;t much like the idea of where the decoder was supposed to go --Randy
Second from the bottom looks like he didn;t much like the idea of where the decoder was supposed to go
No doubt!!Anybody try laying some tin foil down? I've heard that works.Hmmm...3 pages and no "Shake & Bake for Kittens" comments yet. Probably the most civil cat thread I've seen in years!
I stay out of their litter boxes, they stay out of the train room.
Mick
BRAKIE What I would like to know if they are DCC ready or DCC equipped?
What I would like to know if they are DCC ready or DCC equipped?
Actually, two of them, Tulip and Pepper, are prototype (I found them in a locomotive shop at work).
Dave
Just be glad you don't have to press "2" for English.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQ_ALEdDUB8
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hqFS1GZL4s
http://s73.photobucket.com/user/steemtrayn/media/MovingcoalontheDCM.mp4.html?sort=3&o=27
BRAKIE SteamFreak steemtrayn Wow, Steemtrayn. How big is your kitty roster? What I would like to know if they are DCC ready or DCC equipped?
SteamFreak steemtrayn Wow, Steemtrayn. How big is your kitty roster?
steemtrayn
Wow, Steemtrayn. How big is your kitty roster?
=^..^= I'm just a lovable little devil Bubba
Larry
Conductor.
Summerset Ry.
"Stay Alert, Don't get hurt Safety First!"
I know it sounds like a broken record by now but really the best solution I've ever seen for keeping cats away from the trains is keep the trains in a room with a door or something so they can't go in. Although other things I've seen that discourage cats are
A. rattling a tin can with pennys in it
B. a squit gun
c. an overly affectionate dog.
That's the whole bunch, for now. (Their initials spell C.A.T.N.I.P.)
How you know if you have a Problem Cat:
Whatever you do keep this joker away from your layout...
Have fun with your trains
pcarrell My suggestion on page two of this thread will solve your problem in a most humane way.
My suggestion on page two of this thread will solve your problem in a most humane way.
That looks like a good product for general use in a "cat" house, we have three, one being a socialized feral. They don't get to the railroad, but there are a couple of places I could use it. Thanks for the link.
Bob
The Best solution, Lionel O-Gauge if Your Locomotives out weigh your cat(s) you don't have many problems. Missy, (short for Mischief) will get into ANYTHING, but fortunately many of my locomotives weigh more than this eight pound, four legged mobile natural disaster zone, that I Love so much. It is amazing how carefully she can walk past some of my displayed locomotives to get to one of her favorite windowsills.
Doug
May your flanges always stay BETWEEN the rails
Dang, if I had that many YELLOWSTONES, I could rule the WORLD! What a classy roster of felines!
Tom
Tom View my layout photos! http://s299.photobucket.com/albums/mm310/TWhite-014/Rio%20Grande%20Yuba%20River%20Sub One can NEVER have too many Articulateds!
Nelson
Ex-Southern 385 Being Hoisted
HamltnblueI had the same problem with my last Kat and finally tried scaring him away with a pellet gun. He ran somewhere in the corner of the basement. I haven't seen him since. Weird thing though, I think a bottle of milk or something was spilled because a couple of days after the cat hid I started smelling something bad. Hope it clears soon. trains are running fine though so I guess all is good. :) Oh by the way, anyone know where to get a cheap Missing Cat sign?
Sorry, but I think you latched onto the wrong thread with the wrong response. People here are offering opinions because A: We love our trains and B: We love our cats and we're sharing ideas on how to balance the two.
A pellet gun is hardly the solution the rest of us are seeking.
Springfield PA
ScatMat (google it) is a device consisting of a plastic mat imbedded with wires connected to a transformer powered by a 9-volt battery. It is used to train cats to stay off furniture. I see no reason why it couldn't be wired directly to the rails when the trains aren't running.
rrinker The mistake here I think is getting the wrong sex kitten --Randy
The mistake here I think is getting the wrong sex kitten
Ah my friend truer words were never spoken. Oh wait, now I see what you were talking about. never mind.
Dave Nelson
To fix this, either:
1. lock the door
2. buy a Supersoaker
3. Buy an airsoft gun
If you really want to light them up, get the airsoft gun first. Just load .2 gram in, and get one that's got a high fps rating.
Sawyer Berry
Clemson University c/o 2018
Building a protolanced industrial park layout
I am glad to be reading the enjoyable responses to this post. Our basement cat passed away last week, and I hope the next cat will not live in the basement, but these are some of the things that I did that worked. I did get frustrated at times, cleaning cat hairs out of locomotives and concidering a change in layout name to the "Cat Hair Central".
It was clear that the cat liked to sit on the layout and watch activity out the window, so I made a Cat Perch for her, which sat right under the window but kept her from sitting in the middle of the railroad yard.
I made cat covers for the layout, a 48 foot shelf design. The cat covers were 8 feet long, 2 feet deep, made of plastic drop cloth. I used 1x2 furring strips for the inner edge of the cat cover, stapling the plastic to them. The cat did not like plastic, and whenever I wanted to keep her off something I would put plastic over it.
I hope you find a good solution for your cats that preserves your layout, your sanity, and the other things that matter -- like your marriage!
RegardsPeterconford
My wife and I kept four feral kittens in the basement bathroom for several weeks, socialized them, and then the folks from the Siamese Rescue came and took them away to find new homes.
We have three adult cats, one is the feral mother of the kittens who now is an indoor cat, actually the best of the three. BUT THEY DO NOT KNOW ABOUT THE BASEMENT. They know only the two upstairs levels and they are happy with that. They would have to get through three closed doors to get to the basement and the railroad. Never the twain shall meet.
Always good to hear about the different solutions to the cat "problem", even though my two cats would say they don't have a problem - if it's in the house it's fair game for them. Douglas, who is 10, doesn't really care about the trains as long as I let her in the room with me. Maggie, the Siamese who is 3 1/2 is another story. All she sees is hers and that's the way it is. Because of that, she is not allowed into the temporary train room, and will certainly not be allowed into the train room where the layout will be, once it's construction proceeds to a stage where she could do some damage. I may try some of the suggested remedies but don't know how successful they would be. It will just have to be off limits until she gets to an age where she's not interested anymore. For now....
Mainetrains
'there's something happening here, what it is ain't exactly clear' Modeling the Hard Knox Valley Railroad in HO scale http://photos.hardknoxvalley.com/
Get a sign?
Best defense, keep the door closed, second defense, if they're isnt a door, can you install one?
Sprinkle a little cayenne pepper around the layout where they congregate, also sprikle a little around the base, they'll learn to assocoiate the pepper with the layout and will eventually stay away from it.
Also, keep a squirt gun with water handy, if they look like they about to attack the layout, give'm a squirt!
They'll learn, and its not harmfull in any way.