Fly swatter. Mine runs when he sees me swatting bugs. I only tapped him lightly once. Succulents should love the high humidity.

Both of my cats pretty much ignore my plants. However, one of them just LOVES to chew on cords for my electronics. But once the're chewed on to the point where the cord no longer functions, then they're no fun anymore and she'll ignore it. I don't know how many plugins I've had to replace for my Android phone, lol. And just this morning, I found one of my USB cords chomped thru. I'm currently online looking for a replacement. *ugh...* HaHa! She's not one of those spiteful cats that likes to cause trouble. In fact, she's an adorable little sweetheart. She just happens to love electronics' cords, lmao.

One thing that does deter her is the can of air duster I keep around for cleaning my electronics. She hates the "hissing" sound of the air escaping from the can. Plus, the compressed air has that bitter smell to it. After a couple of squirts from the air duster can, and she knows to stop what she's doing. Now I can just pick the can up and show it to her, and she'll go running, haha...

To clarify, I'm not "spraying my cat" with the compressed air. I simply stated that I give a short burst, enough to make the hissing sound that she hates. And I wasn't taking aim and just unloading an entire can at them. The amount used is minuscule and disperses as soon as it's left the can. Being around electronics and cleaning them all the time, I'm fully aware of why the bittering agent that is added to the compressed air.

I even stated that it was only done a couple of times (and nowhere near them). Afterwards, all I had to do was pick up the can, and she would know to stop. No more harmful than using a spray bottle full of water. Except my method doesn't even come into contact with them, unlike the water.

Silk and plastic plants come to mind for some reason...other than that,perhaps setting up a terrarium that they can't get into.

All the same, you still run the risk of directing those fumes at her and if nothing else should be clear about risks when suggesting such things to people who may not know. I am glad to hear you aren't cruel enough to spray directly on your cat, but your comment about the "bitter taste" made it seem like you were getting it close enough for the cat to experience that taste. Which would be subjecting it to chemicals that can burn its skin and mucous membranes and are proven carcinogens (unlike a bit of water), a risk that just doesn't seem necessary to take with an animal let alone encourage on the internet. Still, thanks for clarifying.

I never said bitter taste. I said it had a bitter smell. A cat's sense of smell is much more acute than ours, just like a dog's. They don't have to be immersed in the odor in order to detect it in the air. Nor do they have to be anywhere near it. I don't know how else to reiterate how I merely sprayed the compressed air into the air (and not directly at them) in order to make the hissing sound that my cat didn't like, and that it also left a bitter smell which would further deter her from going back.

Perhaps next time you could carefully read someone's comments more thoroughly before automatically assuming that they would ever encourage animal abuse.

Was wrong, you said "smell" not "taste". You still didn't clarify what you meant in practice leaving much to interpretation. Again, glad that is cleared up. You may want to consider being more clear about things like this in the future to prevent gaps in interpretation that could be misconstrued by others in potentially harmful ways online. I never accused you of abuse, merely shared information regarding the nature of compressed air others may be unaware of, backed up my statement with research and offered an alternative. Perhaps we should both be more careful before jumping to conclusions. I only found out myself of the potential for harm there a few years ago when I saw a chemical burn on my neighbor from someone playing around with a can of it.

Now that that's stated, I will take my leave. Good luck to OP with the cat issue, I hope you find something that works for both plants and kitties!

Thanks for all the suggestions! They mainly attack my plants at night, and since my apartment is small I can't really keep them out of the room when I'm not around. My plants are on a windowsill, so they get trampled when moths show up.

@Photo Synthesis, that's too funny about not wanting the cords once they're dead. They're no fun once they stop fighting back lol. That's my fear about fake plants too, one of my cats just loves chewing on and eating plastic. I'd rather keep replacing plants that are beaten up and munched on than dealing with the vet bills from a stomach full of plastic. The funny thing is, I have a small balcony garden and the cats don't bother my rose or tomatoes at all. Even the little catnip and catmint garden doesn't take quite the beating any indoor plants get.

I've seen the feliway sprayers that are compressed air with a motion detector, so that might have to be what I try next. I also thought about this air cannon thing called the Airzooka that got lost in a move a few years ago that scared the bejeezus out of my mom's cats. If I could find another one that might scare them off permanently.

Either way, lots of good ideas to try before throwing out my succulents. Thanks again everyone!

This may sound strange, but cats hate the sound and texture of aluminum foil. If the plants are on a table, I would suggest covering it for about a month in foil. Once the cats jumps up there, they will want to promptly get down. Now, for the pots that hold plants on the floor, you might try covering the pots with foil. Weird, I know, but it was the only way I could keep my cats from clawing my couch corners. Some cats are really repulsed by the smell of citrus, so you could leave orange peel or spray orange essential oil around plants as well.

You could try Tillandsias (airplants)

They can be grown anywhere and don't need soil or a pot. They also produce some very interesting flowers. You could hang them in glass orbs, or just hang them with string from the ceiling. Or mount them on drift wood or attach them to a suction cup and stick em on the window...

Possibilities are endless.

That is genius,MrBlubs!!

Normally I would agree with the suggested deterrents,but let's face it people,..when you are a cat,..a moth is hard to resist...obstacles be damned.

Tinfoil saved our couch growing up from a particular cat. Good call!

I agree with the spray mister bottle, I only had to mist my kitten twice on her butt and she learned not to go near my plants, I have used the foil on chairs that were being used as scratching posts, and that worked well also. Good Luck !!

I have used spray misters, air dusters, tin foil. The compressed air scares some, the water scares some, and I have one can that eats tin foil. And it only works when you catch them at it, when nobody's around, they do what they want. I have a couple of plants that are barricaded like fort knox, and the others have had to live outside. Double sided carpet tape placed around the plants may work, cats hate stepping on it. It saved the upholstery on the corner of my couch from getting scratched to pieces.