Related link: http://www.mouser.com/catalog/623/1452.pdf
First it was a single cell phone charger a few months ago. I marked it up to the joys of feline parenthood. Thirty dollars later, I had a replacement charger from Sprint, but my cat decided to chew through that one the same day I brought it home. Then it got worse…
Anyone else have a cat that enjoys eating wires.
Three months later, I’ve lost five cell phone chargers, four vintage Nintendo controllers, fours pairs of headphones, and a digital camera charger. My cat, the saboteur, has ruined business conference calls and has started to affect my livelihood. “Curious” (that’s the cat) has also started to nibble on my laptop power supply, so I’m starting to get worried. Either this cat just has an affinity for the magnetic fields created by DC current flow, or the size of the cables are alluring. I’ve got to find a way to satisfy my cat’s expensive cord habit without losing my livelihood.
This would be cute except for the fact that wireless retailers charge an arm and a leg for cell chargers. For example, a simple 10 Watt charger for a Samsung A620 retails for over $30 USD at my local Sprint store. In addition, I’ve found that many product manufacturers don’t directly offer replacement AC adapters. Take the Kodak EasyShare camera dock on loan from a client. From what I can see, the only way I’m going to get a replacement for this one is to either buy a new camera dock, or order from Mouser.
As Curious eats through more and more of my wires, I’m forced to confront our “replacement society”. I’ve found a sweet spot, for consumer products that cost less than $50, it is nearly impossible to find replacement parts from the retailer or manufacturer. Sure, I can go purchase a replacement part from RadioShack, Digikey, or Mouser, but I’m sure the average Joe isn’t going out there and thumbing through a 1000 page catalog of electronics parts. For more expensive products, like iPods, cell phones, XBox, and laptops I’m able to purchase accessories.
Anyone looking for a cat?
Bitter apple does the trick
I have a 1 year old ball of mischeaveous fur, which has a penchant for chewing on cords as well. I've got a friend who works as the server/desktop admin at the local Humane Society, and he swears by bitter apple spray to protect his cables from little teeth. It's intended to prevent neurotic animals from licking themselves, but spraying a bit on the cables seems to make them taste bad enough that they're not much fun to chew on. I've tasted a tiny bit myself, and can atest to the fact that it's pretty awful tasting:) You should be able to find it at a good pet store.
Conflict of interest
Why are you letting your mouser make profits for the other one? There's a clear conflict of interest here.
I recommend you report your cat to internal auditing. See Steve Martin's first LP for details.
My cat Topher is only about 7 months, but he has really developed his taste for electric power. I couldn't believe it. I should have believed when all the power cords behind the computer, all my ethernet connections, phone cords were being eaten. I left my laptop cord out, on the table (for idiotically, I didn't believe the cat would eat a cord on the table), and 20 minutes later... their the cat was playing with the electric sparks as the chewed up cord dangled over the edge. It's a miracle prior cords didn't catch the house on fire. I need new cords, and I need them now... Any ideas?
Amazing ... i have lost 3 (maybe four) headsets from work ($300 each to the company), 2 apple power book power supplies, a toshiba power supply, 7 sets of headphones, numerous phone and ethernet cables, two ipod dock wires, two xbox controllers, an xbox 360 controller charging wire, 2 cellphone chargers a brand new set of $200 speakers for the power book that never got used (chewed through the satelite and the ac adapter) and 2 of my 5 satelites from my creative desktop computer speakers. All in the last three months.
Me and my girlfriend have tried everything. We play with him, and there is always some one home, he just seems to do it when nobody catches him (ie, if you get a shower) so punishment never really sinks in. I have tried the wrapping the wires thing, but he finds places you cant protect, and the spray is useless unless directly applied to his mouth ... but sadly, i can't bring myself to do that... yet.
I actually made myself sad writing everything out in a list like this ... first time i really thought about it. Little bastard.
I must say I feel your pain - deeply. My cat Lisa loves to chew on the Sony headphones with the spring loaded earpiece. Problem is they got $20 each and she's chewed through FOUR PAIR! Now I keep them in a drawer or some place out of her mouth. She also has a weird facinating with anything made by Apple. She will knaw obsessively on iPod cables or any white cables that might be confused as having come from Apple. Go figure.
Best stuff is the bitter apple. I'm on the lookout for maybe a gel kind. I've started dipping cables in the sour apple stuff and it seems to work though every piece of paper I leave on the floor has teeth marks, *shrugs*, not much i can do there. Try dipping your cables, let them dry, and see what happens.