I tried the mousetrap method to keep the cats off the kitchen counter and the table. It SOUNDED like a good idea.

I set several mousetraps, and covered them carefully with a single sheet of newspaper. I accidentally set a couple off and they scared ME.

Cat jumps on table, sets off mousetraps, & runs off immediately.

Five minutes later, cat jumps onto table (traps have been reset), looks carefully from the edge, then steps very carefully in the slight dips until he reaches the center, where he sits down. Then he reaches out with a paw and pushes at the humps. SNAP! ("Hey, that's fun!") SNAP! SNAP! SNAP!

Because I live in earthquake country, I got a couple packages of that plastic tacky clay-like material that is supposed to be used to stick posters on the wall temporarily (usually blue or yellow). I tear off a piece, work it with my fingers until it softens, then put two small wads under the back edges of a vase, under the feet of my computer monitor, etc. It works quite well.

The cats still remove the flowers from the vases, but that doesn't make quite the mess.

Sue

Oh, Sue, that's a great story. I laughed out loud. I have seven, yes, seven, cats. I'm quite sure they'd be tickled to have fun mousetraps to play with!

Diane, I use large vases only. One is a giant ceramic pitcher, with the base wider than the top--very stable. No disasters yet. I also use a French-style galvanized metal vase. It is smaller at the bottom than the top, but I weight it with 2-3 inches of gravel in the bottom, again, very stable.

The vases are secure, but the flowers aren't. Especially with Casper, the reason we have so many cats. When we rescued--her--we thought she was a male kitten. Well, one night, "he" got under the house with a male tom--we were like, wow, he sure is feisty!! Yep, a few months later, "he" blew up. I said, "Boy, he must have worms"! We took "him" to the vet, who called later to say, "HA! He's not a he, he's a she"! She was only about 7 months old at the time--we were in shock. After kittenhood, all our cats get "fixed." The vet laughed, and said, "Yep, it's rare, but it happens--kittens having kittens." I think he dines out on this story even now.

Good luck!

Valerie

This is just a thought - I haven't tried it myself: there is a kind of stickum called Quake Hold or museum putty that is supposed not to damage your furniture and to hold relatively light things in place. It might keep your vases in place even though the cats pull the flowers out. Or, Gardener's Supply has spiky little plastic mats that could go on your table top. Of course, they're not beautiful; think of them as a training device. I wonder if there are cat-repellant plants that can be mixed in with your flowers...

Use a different vase (much wider at the bottom than the top)

Surround the vase with other objects to prevent the cat from being able to get to the vase in the first place. Use common sense.

DO NOT use mouse traps, this could cause you more problems in the long run if the cat gets seriously injured and you have to nurse it to health.

there is a product out there called a scat mat (google search) there are made of plastic like the mats people put under thier chairs in front of thier desks and they give a little static shock when stepped on. Its especially fun to step on when you get out of the shower. But we got one for our 2 chocolate labs and it worked VERY well the stepped on it once or twice and never went back. We dont even need them any more! check it out it might be what you need