--- title: Cat Reacts to Tin Foil on Counter in Viral Video description: If you're having an issue with your cat climbing all over your kitchen counters, then the tin foil trick may be for you. canonical: https://time.com/5800184/cat-tin-foil-counter/ author: Megan McCluskey article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2020-03-10T16:20:41.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-14T08:54:31.607Z og:title: Cat Reacts Accordingly to Tin Foil Used to Keep It Off the Counter og:description: This feline is not a fan of foil og:url: https://time.com/5800184/cat-tin-foil-counter/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7dd25441b6dbd8c7/698a0b59656a3f0753bd9c9c/Cat-Tin-Foil-Counter.jpg?branch=production&width=509&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 509 og:image:height: 286 og:image:alt: Cat-Tin-Foil-Counter og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Cat Reacts Accordingly to Tin Foil Used to Keep It Off the Counter twitter:description: This feline is not a fan of foil twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt7dd25441b6dbd8c7/698a0b59656a3f0753bd9c9c/Cat-Tin-Foil-Counter.jpg?branch=production&width=509&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Here's a Cat Reacting Accordingly to the Tin Foil Used to Keep It Off the Kitchen Counter > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=be7f86b0-642c-4bf0-b332-3d88db2f997d&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Cats Care About People More Than Food, New Study Finds [Watch (HLS stream): Cats Care About People More Than Food, New Study Finds](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/3tc6BEh1.m3u8) (0:56)  _Published 2017-03-28. Cats may have a reputation of being standoffish creatures who show their owners affection merely to fill their tummies_  by [Megan McCluskey](https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/)  ## Megan McCluskey Staff Writer Mar 10, 2020 4:20 PM UTC Cats may have a reputation of being standoffish creatures who show their owners affection merely to fill their tummies  by [Megan McCluskey](https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/)  ## Megan McCluskey Staff Writer Mar 10, 2020 4:20 PM UTC If you’re having an issue with your [cat](https://time.com/5768746/cat-reacts-to-can-of-tuna/) climbing all over your kitchen counters, then the [tin foil](https://time.com/5682464/area-51-raid-hat/) trick may be for you. Since most cats dislike the way aluminum foil feels and sounds under their paws, it can be an effective deterrent for keeping them off of a surface you don’t want them to walk on. At least, that’s certainly true for the cat in a now-viral video that was recently shared by [YouTube channel ViralHog](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC3339WgBDKIcxTfywuSmG8w). “My cat won’t stop jumping up on the kitchen bench, so I googled ways to stop that,” the cat’s owner explains at the beginning of the clip. “Apparently all you need is some tin foil.” This is followed by the owner laying down the foil and secretly filming as his cat prepares to jump up. In a hilarious sequence that seems to prove the trick works, the cat proceeds to make its leap but rebounds off the counter as if it was hit by an electric shock as soon as its feet touch the foil. It then scurries out of the room without even attempting a different approach. 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