Cat won't walk on floor

by ANDREA
(PLAINFIELD CT)

MY CAT STARTED JUMPING ON FURNITURE TO GET AROUND NOW HE NEVER TOUCHES THE FLOOR HE IS ALWAYS UP HIGH ON BOOK CASES AND FURNITURE IS THERE A REASON WHY HE STARTED THIS BEHAVIOR?


Answer by Kate
hi
well i must admit I have never come a cross a cat that only walks around on furniture and not the floor.

it is perfectly normal behaviour for a cat to want to climb etc and often they do prefer to be up high, as this gives them an advantage point to see everything from.

the only thing I can assume is that the floor may smell strange to him (i.e a floor cleaner or new carpet).

It is nothing to really worry about though, he just prefers to walk around higher up and if your home allows him to do this easily then this is what he will choose to do.

best wishes Kate

Comments for Cat won't walk on floor

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Cat won't go on floor
by: Anonymous

My mom lived in a mobile home and she had critters living under the trailer. Whenever something was living under there, her cat would not go on the floor even to use litter box.
Cat refuses to touch the floor
by: Anonymous

My kitten I got today refuses to touch the floor, I have checked her for fleas before bringing her home and my house is flea free and just recently put flea spray down as a precaution as I usually do. There is no carpet and it is bad enough whatever makes her scared of the floor that she will not come down for food, water or to use the litter, she peed on my bean bag just to not touch the floor. The second I put a pan on a tray to test my theory she went on it instantly. When I put her on the ground she instantly gets back to my bed where she stays all the time unless I make her. When I put her on the floor she HISSES AT THE FLOOR ITSELF. I don’t know what to do about this. She is 10 weeks old and I got her this morning.
Cat won't walk on floor.
by: Anonymous

My cat also just recently started avoiding the floor. Nothing has changed on the floor of carpet. Weird. He acts like he is afraid of the flood. My cat is an inside outside cat, for what that matters....
Cat won't walk on floor?
by: Anonymous

You may be disappointed in my answer but I have kept cats for 50+ years and have seen this several times. Your cat has almost certainly got fleas- his vision is v much stronger than yours and he can see them. Treat him, treat the carpet and soft furnishings and he'll go back to the floor- promise.

Even very clean cats pick up fleas- it's not your fault but it is up to you to get rid of them.
Cat won’t go on floor
by: Tina Cross

Our lovely me gibbs has started acting really strange, he’s a beautiful british Blue aged 13. He won’t go on the floor anymore to eat his food but I’ve had to put it on the kitchen table which I don’t really like doing. He a
Pears to be a bit forgetful. If I pick him up & bring into the bedroom he’ll quite happily stay with us all night. He’s using his litter tray although not as often however I have to carry him and put him in it to do a poo- which he does. Can cats get dementia? He might even be bored as he was an outdoor cat for 12 years however we’ve moved to a flat so he’s now an indoor cat & has been for 9 months. It’s just the last 2 weeks he’s changed, he’s still as placid & lovinging as always. I took him to the vets & he had fleas so we frontlines him for 12 weeks dose and also bought flea cleaner for flat nut he still won’t eat his food from his bowls on the floor and stays up high. Maybe I should try and de flea the house again as someone said he might be avoiding the floor due to fleas. Any other help greatly appreciayed
Not only will my cat not want to walk on the floor but she wants me to hold her all the time like she scared
by: Donna

my cat will not walk on the floor when I set her down she acts like there's something on there and she tries to jump on something but mostly she wants me to hold her or otherwise she sits in the bathroom all day and won't go out and I have to put her food on the counter not sure what's going on
Cat avoids carpets and beds
by: Suze

Hi, I'm in the UK and our utterly fearless little cat is suddenly afraid of the carpets sofa and beds.
She wants to be near us and used spend so much time cuddled up to us but now just sits halfway up the wooden stairs crying untill we sit with her.
We did spray the carpet with flea spray but think that made the problem worse.
We put her food bowl on the carpet and she hop, skips and jumps to it, eats very fast, all the while looking around at the carpet and then bolts!
We've hoovered again and again. I've even tried sprinkling catnip on the carpet, to no avail.
We're at our wits end, she's only 8 months and will take on anything outside the home.
Please, someone, help! 🐈
but i have floorboards and no carpet
by: Nicky

my cat has just started this recently but we have floorboards
she has always ran around like a maniac and is ultra suspicious of new bed coverings till they stop smelling new
when we first got her i got her a lovelly mat for in front of the heater but she refused to walk on.
.If
she gets fleas it's because she goes under the house to lie in the dirt (i don't know what she does under there - probably poop)
we have a stray tom who we are feeding and plan to take him to the spca to be rehomed once he's friendly enough to get in the cat cage
i have defleaed him as well. i used broadline from the vet
one really cold night i let the stray tom sleep inside and he did spray (he has a warm dry bed in the back porch) but her odd jumping on the furniture was before this
our old house had carpet and tons of long grass and she never got fleas
Another cat that won't get on the carpet.
by: AnonymousDono

I have fought a flea problem all summer. Have used Diatomaceous Earth and then two different aerosol sprays over a period of three months. Still occasionally find a flea but not often. Since the onset of the flea issue my cat will not get on the floor except to run from one table, chest or another high roost. I'm wondering if it is a flea issue or the residue from the spray that has the cat traumatized about the carpet? If residue is the issue, how do I neutralize it?
Back on the floor in 12 hrs.!
by: Hope & Christian

Hi. My name is Christian. My sister, Hope & I are indoor cats. We had to stop walking on the floors because there were fleas jumping on them ! We avoided them completely & after 2 months,mom finally fixed the problem! We are so happy! She first tried FrontlinePlus for 4wks. That helped a little, but there were still fleas on us & the floor. Then she used Revolution on us & in less than 12 hours we were feeling like our old selves & back on the floors! Thanks mommy! We love you!!! Hope & Christian.
Cat won't touch floor.
by: Terry

My cat was fine with walking on the floor until one night we came home she was meowing her head off. That's when I first noticed she was afraid of the floor. That was 5 days ago and she is still afraid. She drinks a lot of water, pukes it up, and she is not eating. What to do?
Fleas
by: June

Definitely fleas.. they hide in the carpets and round the skirting boards. Need to treat the cats and the floors. Spray a strong household flea spray all round the house. Will probably need more than one aerosol can. Wash and spray all bedding, carpets, edges of curtains, all surfaces. Fleas lay eggs and they can lay dormant for ages so you need to be pretty thorough. Eventually cats will be happy to walk back on the floor. Good luck !
Fleas are probably the reason
by: Gwen

I agree with Kate. Fleas are probably the culprit. A little tube of Vectra ($17.00)from the Vet applied at the base of the cat's head will solve the problem. Needs to be applied every 2 months but is well worth it. Don't wait too long between treatments like I did. Fleas come inside from outdoors and make a cat's life miserable. Cat's have super eye sight, and know they're in the carpet. I've treated my cat 3 times with Vectra during the past 3 yrs and it works every time. You'll see the difference in just a few days.
cats won'r walk on new deep pile carpet
by: Anonymous

My cats always walked on my previous new carpets which were short piled, but since having a new deep pile carpet they are furniture hopping and will not walk on it. Would it be the new smell, or because of the length of the pile.
Sorry Kate!
by: Nancy

It is normal for cats to want to climb. However, my cats know better than to get on the tables and counters...When I or my husband are home anyways, if cats suddenly won't walk on the floor and will only jump from furniture to furniture then something is wrong and that something is fleas!
Fleas!!
by: Nancy

It's all about fleas! I've finally gotten mine under control after spending way to much money on natural products, and this and that! I bombed my house with twice the amount of bombs everyone said to use and broke down and bought the Advantage2. The fleas are gone! However it took a week before my little cat would walk back on the floor. That's where they believed they were getting them from so they wouldn't go there. Now they're back to ripping and running ON THE FLOOR WHERE THEY BELONG! GOOD LUCK TO YOU ALL
Cat won’t walk on floor
by: Anonymous

My cat has just started jumping from work top to table then top of cubared he likes to be up high and we have job getting him in he seems afraid
Fleas!!
by: Nancy

If your cat will no longer walk on the floor check him/her for fleas! Cats think they are getting the fleas from the floor so they will not go there and it is said they can actually see them jump around on the floor. I know it's crazy but after I bombed my house, flea dipped the cats and shampooed the carpet, the cats were back to normal and back to playing on the floor!
New apartment, hates new laminate floor
by: Anonymous

For the first 2 weeks my girl was all over everything exploring and all was fine. Then out of the blue she started running across the new laminate flooring, stopped sitting in her perch, won't go near her favorite box and will only play while on my bed. She runs in to the kitchen (tiled floor) to eat and will lay by my computer chair. I am highly allergic to fleas so I don't think it's that, as I've read in others posts. I have no bites. She is indoor only. And just got a clean bill of health at the vet, however, this was the day after we moved into this apartment.

For 8 years she has been the most personable kitty, loves everyone, greeted me at the door when I got home, would want to help any maintenance people, etc.

Looking for suggestions on cleaning this new floor - maybe it's a smell?? They laid this floor right before we moved in. I've had other laminate floors and this never happened.

Other times we moved and she would settle right in. I know cats have odd behavior but this is really making me sad for her. I carry her around in my arms (she purrs) showing her all she is missing, telling her she is safe and am giving her calming treats, which she loves.

Thanks for any recommendations!
Throw rug
by: Tracy

My cat 🐱 Lulu will not walk across a black throw rug I have. She either goes around it or jumos completely over it!! Any clue to why she does this????
paranoid cat
by: Anonymous

my cat has only started to not walk on the floor since a bad storm last week went three days without eating or drinking till i brought the food to her on the tv table that she lives on since the storm i need help any one else with answers desperate
Fleas are probably the reason
by: Gwen

If your cat suddenly becomes afraid to walk on the floor, there are probably fleas involved. Even if there no other animals around, fleas can come inside on shoes, pants, etc. There might be little bumps on the cat's skin where fleas have been biting or the cat has been scratching. A tube of Vectra (from a veterinarian, about $17.00) will get rid of the fleas on the cat, and those that get on the cat after the treatment. You'll see the difference in the cat's behavior in a few days. Do this about every 2 months. The Vet will advise. I know what a worry this can be, so good luck!
Mandy Update 29/10/2016
by: Anonymous

well after 22 days of furniture hopping and avoiding the floor she has now got her third Pippet "THIS ONE Was a VEt supplied at just $68.00 OMG of ADVANTAGE NEW 6ML for cats 4 KG or bigger mandy has stopped bitting herself and has stopped pulling her hair out,she still crys at door when I go outside for a quick chat to someone at door like she wants to be with me for some reason I beleieve she wants to run away as we moved into here in april 14 this year being indoor cat hasn't ventured the fleas in grass and garden we all have seen them and rescued some outside cats in hot days they were totally covered in hundreds and hundreds of blood bitting fleas wow breeding outside in woodchip covered gardens which have proven to be a very costly way to beautify your garden in hurry anyways Im very concerned about killing fleas asap.

what a strain stress full time for any pet animal cat or dog well i wouldn't like it thts for sure.

she isnt really improving just yet she vomiting not using water bowl to drink water as she is too frightened of being bitten so she runs from litter tray directly to loungeroom coffee table where my laptop is situated strange weird behaviour she trusts where I sit et however will NOT trust my bedroom bed windows sill since she got back.
my cat Mandy won't touch floor
by: Anonymous

after reading everyone's flea problem one wonders that common sense prevails. I have flea treated her twice in 30 days and STILL SAME scratching madly will NOT even go to her food or litter Im over it but still vacume daily trying everything she wants to run away outside mind you she hasnt ever been outside she would freak.

All ideas welcome Im having trouble dealing with her she is only four a persian longhair.

troubled concerned

Comment
If you have tried everything then the problem may be an allergic reaction to either the flea bites or the flea treatment. If you are sure she has fleas then my advice would be to have her looked at by a vet. he may recommend a stronger flea treatment only available from vets or he may advise a antihistamine injection.

My own cat was allergic to flea bites. Just one bite would send her into a frenzy and needed an antihistamine injection from time to time.

of course there may be an entirely different reason for her reaction. Which again a visit to the vets will help to identify.
Kate
Cat will not walk on carpet floor
by: Anonymous

FLEAS are my first thought she is so allergic to flea control I'm hesitant in using it please can anyone help with good flea control without making my cat ill please help any help appreciated
Cat won't walk on the floor
by: Anonymo

I sprayed for fleas. She was always playing on the floor. Since I've sprayed, and swept numerous times, she takes the furniture route. Any ideas?
Successfully overcame
by: Elizabeth

Hey everyone,
My husband and I moved from a house to an apartment this year, and our normally rambunctious little cat refused to go on the floor and was constantly scared and crying. She took four months but she overcame her fear! It turns out she did get flees while moving which we fixed, we also got her a gentle anti itching liquid you mix with water to help anxious grooming. Then we made her walk ways with boxes or papers on the floor, or arranging furniture. We had to act happy and relaxed around her at all times, and continued normal routines. But don't worry, now she's 100% back to her old self and loves every room of the apartment, it just takes a long time for them to come to terms with change, but having their humans behave normally and not acting worried or panicked by their behavior goes a long way!!
Cats won't walk on floors.
by: Anonymous

My mother's cat started doing that awhile ago & now her other cat is doing that. I'll pass this info on to her.
Thank You! Cats Wont Walk on Floors/Rugs
by: Valkyrie Inflight

You guys have Taken a Huge worry off my mind! My sister's 2 cats, 9 yrs old brothers she adopted, suddenly stopped walking on the floor or carpet. It has gotten to where I have had to pick them up and take them to their food. They wolf it down and run! I cant even get the greedy lil buggers to come by crinkling the treats bag. I was so worried because they are eating and drinking less than usual just to avoid the floor. And YES, we did recently have a flea issue (one of them brought home 'guests'). And one of them, the innocent one, had a strong reaction to the flea spray. I think there are still fleas in the rugs, and the sensitive one may be worse because we also sprayed the carpets. THANK YOU!!
cat not walking on floor
by: Anonymous

Check your cat for fleas. They won't walk on the floors if you have fleas, they jump on things to avoid getting bit by fleas.
Cant wont walk on floor
by: Anonymous

it is because of fleas, mine have started doing it, it's a yearly event as i live at the beach and cannot entirely erradicate the fleas. Usually it lasts until the end of summer. Sorry!
thank you
by: Anonymous

thank u but i have already done that but thanks for ur replie
my cat wont walk on my landing floor
by: Anonymous

hi i have been im my house now 1 year and my cat willnot walk on my landing it is not carpeted and is painted wooden floorbords he jumps from furnicher to the banister we have to leve the door open so he has something to jusp of i dont no why he dose this he has never done it befor this has been going on for a year now can someone please help me has i want a normal cat any comments welcome

Comment from Kate
All I can think of is that the floor must smell of something which your cat does not like.

Try washing it down with a solution of bicarbonate of soda.
cat won't walk on floor
by: Glenda

Glad to hear you've isolated the problem. I must say though that Frontline would not be my choice of flea treatment. I own and operate a boarding cattery and of all the cats that visit with a flea control product on, Frontline always fails to live up to itself. My suggestion would be Advantage, Revolution or Advocate. Also once you've established a flea burden it's advisable to give a treatment fortnightly initially.
MY CAT UP HIGH
by: Anonymous

THANKS FOR YOUR FEEDBACK WE DID HAVE AFLEA PROBLEM IN THE RUG ALTHOUGH THE CATS ARE BOTH TREATED WITH FRONTLINE. THINGS ARE BETTER NOW MY CAT IS GRADUALLY GOING BACK TO THE FLOOR AND COUCH.
cat won't walk on floor
by: Glenda

I totally agree with Alison. Fleas is the usual cause for this behaviour. Not unless you have small children in the home and the cat finds being up high is the safest place.
most likely fleas
by: alison

when that happens to my cats it usually means that there is a flea problem.

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