I had the same problem with our cat and my daughters ferret.

I used some hard plastic 3/4" wire conduit that you can get from home depot relatively cheap. After using the conduits on the exposed wire, I used a type of pet-off spray recommended by someone at Petsmart and sprayed the outside of the conduit, it worked. I think the spray was Apple Core Based, as strange as that sounds.

Gonks tobasco/hot sauce remedy is the cheapest solution and it really does work, animals hate hot and spicey tastes, but be careful it can stain rugs, walls and wood flooring.

Not a good thing with the wife!!!