Scratching Furniture

First thing is to realize that your cat NEEDS to scratch and climb. These are natural instincts that you cannot eliminate. Scratching serves the purpose to remove the old layers of the nails, it’s essential for your cat. Climbing is an enjoyable activity, some cats prefer to sit on the “top spots� in their home. No shelf is too high, trust me.

You can prevent your cat from destroying your furniture by providing it with a proper tool to scratch. There are hundreds of cat scratch posts available at pet stores, some even come in several hights/layers which serves as a combination tool for scratching and climbing. You can even make these scratch posts yourself with wood and thick carpet, or sisal rope wrapped around a post. Your cat might not take immediately to this post because it just does not smell “cat� at the beginning. Cats give off scent from their paws when touching, scratching items. Try to show your cat how to scratch, and if your cat won’t clime on it, just put in yourself on one of the different tiers. Add some dangling cat toys that will attract your Kitty even more. You can also rub some catnip on/around the base of the scratch tree. That works normally with 90% of the adult cats, kittens might not recognize catnip as a pleasant scent though. The secret to safe your furniture and to re-direct your cat’s activities is to properly introduce the scratch tree/post and to make Kitty love and use it.

Another option is to designate a certain piece of furniture the cat already knows and likes, such as an upholstered chair, as scratch object. It will look a mess in no time, but if you don’t mind, go for it. Just make sure that Kitty does not “adopt� other pieces of furniture for variety.

Ways to temporarily protect your furniture:

It is a good idea to place the scratching post near the bed where your cat sleeps. Cats stretch as soon as they wake up and many will resort to reach up, stretch and scratch the designated post.

As with all animals – praise for a job well done! You can also reward it with placing some treats on top of the tree to encourage climbing.

If you catch your cat clawing at anything other than her post, the drapes, your bed, etc. immediately startle her with either a blast of water from a plant sprayer or a sudden loud noise. She will soon realize that unpleasant things happen when she tries to scratch the furniture, and she will remember how wonderful it is to scratch her post.