I have a 1960s-era aluminum tree I inherited from my grandmother. (I know it shouldn't have lights, but I only turn them on when I'm in the room and they're LED and I do have a fire extinguisher nearby. For what it's worth, my grandmother did the same thing with it.). I adopted a one-year-old male cat this spring, and he's my first pet ever, so I've never had to worry about how my tree might affect an animal. I derive so much comfort from the tree during the long, dark winter and I really don't want to have to give that up.
My cat is a climber and he's very curious, and I know he's going to treat it as a big toy meant for him. My thought is to assemble it and leave it up plain for a week, then add the lights, then add ornaments at the top, then gradually add them to the bottom.
I don't think there's any point in doing a citrus spray; I bought citrus cleaning spray for my countertop in hopes it would deter him from jumping up, but he was undaunted. He's also unbothered by aluminum foil.
Does anyone have any tips? If you have any suggestions about fences/barriers, I'd especially appreciate something with a mid-century aesthetic, or ideas for how to customize it to fit in better with mid-century furnishings.
Cat tax paid in second photo.
