Wood Shop Cat

Woodworkers are always looking for the newest tool to make their hobby more fun or their business more profitable. Sometimes, however, you can find new uses for old tools: the shop cat, for example.

The traditional use of a shop cat is to control the mouse and bird population around the shop. It’s annoying to find mouse droppings stuck to a freshly finished table top in the morning when you come to work. Shop cats eliminate that problem. Now, instead you find mouse heads and gall bladders, or a heap of starling feathers stuck to the freshly finished table top. Some woodworkers find cats make good self cleaning tack cloths for removing dust prior to finishing.

I never thought much about shop cats until I acquired one last year. Charles, a stray kitten, moved right in to our house, put the dogs in their place and put the humans to work serving him. We soon learned that Charles is a “licker”. At five AM you awake to find Charles lying on your chest licking everything in reach: mostly your face. Cats have rough tongues, I’d estimate about a #80 grit in sandpaper. Charles, like most cats, also has an on/off switch at the base of his tail. You rub that spot; the tongue automatically comes out and licks everything in reach.

One day in the shop, while finishing some table tops, I discovered I’d run out of coarse sandpaper. It’s fifteen miles to town, and the customer was due to pick up her table late in the afternoon. There were mouse droppings, a gall bladder, a mouse tail and a pile of goldfinch feathers stuck to the freshly finished top. I felt my feline tack cloth rubbing around my legs. In desperation, I picked him up. Holding Charles like an auto body grinder, I rubbed the base of his tail and sanded the table down to bare wood. Charlie’s saliva raised the grain a little. Fortunately the customer wanted a satin finish. Best of all, I didn’t need to wear hearing protection while sanding.

If you are considering purchasing a shop cat, here are some tips:

1. Go to the animal shelter and run through the cats, scratching the base of their tails. Some aren’t wired correctly for licking so wear a pair of welding gloves. Some—kitchen cats—will bite. Give these to the family cook for chopping vegetables in place of a food processor.

2. Most shelters require spaying or neutering. It’s too bad since a good sander can cost a lot of money and still requires frequent replacement of sanding pads or discs. If you can find a fertile cat you may be able to sell the offspring to other woodworkers. Just make sure the father is also a licker before allowing any procreative action.

Next time you are tempted to buy the latest shiniest new fangled tool in the glossy woodworking catalog, think about new uses for traditional tools. You’ll not only save money, you can keep the rodent and bird population under control and maybe even provide a home for a lonely, unwanted pet.