We did a post over at Scratchings and Sniffings about my daughter's puppy, Miles, and his puppy chewing up stuff problem. He chomped her cell phone recharger in half. I'm sure that's not the last thing he'll destroy.
The incident reminded me that Claire's kitten chewed through my cell phone recharger last summer. Being a true Scotsman, I spliced and repaired my charger!
Cats, and especially kittens, seem to have a real affinity for electrical cords. I don't know why, but maybe it has to do with their inquisitive nature. Maybe that's where the expression "curiosity killed the cat" comes from. They can get some pretty serious burns and shocks from chewing on cords.
There are a number of things you can do with curious kittens and cords to prevent serious injury.
For instance:
1. Make sure they have plenty of toys to occupy themselves.
2. Encourage them to play with these toys when you are around. And, what's old can be new again, if you take the toy away for a few days and then re-introduce it at a later date.
3. Cover the cords with
cord covers or rugs and furniture. You can confine the kitten to a small room while you are out and unplug any offending cords, too.
5. Coat the cords you can't cover up with something like Bitter Apple (every couple of days) or even cayenne pepper spray if the bitter apple doesn't work.
6. Wait them out. Most likely they will grow out of this behavior by the time they reach adulthood.
Which reminds me. Silly, annoying and potentially dangerous kitten behavior is another reason to insure them at a young age. They may learn that they shouldn't chew on some things or try to swallow some things, but those lessons can be expensive for owners. We can't replace your Gucci Loafers but we can help you out if a veterinarian has to go in surgically to retrieve something your kitten swallowed.