Protect power cords from cable-gnawing cats

My cats have picked up the habit of chewing on laptop power cords. They’ve bitten clean through them at least ten times. I got tired of repairing the cords, so I went on Amazon in search of a solution. I ordered a product called Crittercord Micro. It’s 6 feet of split plastic tubing infused with “citrus scent and bitter taste” to discourage animals from chewing. It cost $10.

Crittercord works as advertised, but the solution is worse than the problem — the smell is unbearably foul. It reminds me of the nauseous odor of hair curling preparations. Everyone in the house complained about the penetrating stench.

I told my friend Sean Ragan about my gnawing cats, and he recommended ¼-inch split loom tubing. For $12 I was able to buy a 100-foot roll, which is more than enough for all of our laptop power cords. It has no odor, and it works beautifully. The cats want nothing to do with it. Perhaps the tubing doesn’t have the right mouthfeel or pleasant-smelling plasticizers that my cats love.

The tubing is flexible enough that I leave it on the power cord when I travel. — Mark Frauenfelder

American Terminal SL250-100 1/4-Inch Split Loom Tubing, 100 feet $12