Cat Scratching Furniture. Train Your Cat To Stop Scratching Your Couch
A cat can be one of the most delightful additions to your home. It can be a most entertaining and lovable companion to you and especially the children in your home.
A cat might have many endearing qualities that make it irresistible to you as a pet, but any cat owner would vouch that the bane of their existence is the constant scratching of the furniture and upholstery that their pretty puss resorts to constantly.
Be it the favorite sofa that is now in tatters, or that antique wooden table now ridden with scratches, your feline companion won’t spare any piece of furniture from its devious claws. And no matter how much you scream at it, it looks at you with a bemused look and is completely indifferent to your vocal pleas and threats.
Why Do Cats Scratch?
What pleasure does a cat get from scratching your prized wooden possessions? It is most important that you understand the reasons behind this weird behavior of your cat if you want to make progress in curbing this irritating habit.
The most important reason why a cat scratches your furniture is to mark its territory. A little know fact is that the act of scratching leaves more than physical markings; the paw of your cat contains scent glands, which leave a scent on the place where the cat scratches, marking its territory in more ways than one.
It is the natural behavior of a cat in the wild; to mark its territory and let other cats know that this area is out of bounds. This territorial instinct drives your pussy cat to mark and make its presence known on the most visible parts of your home call it the feline way of interior decoration, adding its personal touch to your home!
Exercise
In addition, scratching is an excellent form of exercise for your feline friend. It is one of the best ways for you cat to stretch it and work its front quarters and keep them fit. You never knew your cat was perfecting its kitty yoga skills, when it was busy luxuriously scratching your favorite lounge chair, did you?
Sheer Pleasure
And yes, the final reason why your cat scratches is because it feels really good to scratch!
So, there is no way you can stop your cat from scratching; if you have had a cat for long enough, you know that cats are self-sufficient creatures that will only do what pleases them and will not be forced to do something they don’t like. But, what you must intend to do is rechannel that scratching to a place where you don’t mind him/her scratching.
And please, don’t resort to punishing your cat physically. Your kitty cat cannot understand that she is being punished for doing something undesirable; and hitting your cat is a horrible thing to do.
The cat will adjudge that when you catch and lift her, sometimes you are going to hit her and that is going to reduce the trust level you enjoy with her. Your pussy cat is blessed with an excellent memory and she is not going to forget you hitting her for a long time to come. So, drop the idea of physical punishment, it just won’t work.
The solution — A Scratching Post
Yes, you must provide your cat with an alternative scratching arrangement if you hope to save your precious and expensive furniture from her claws. But then, this is easier said than done. Don’t rush to the nearest pet shop to get the best looking scratching post that will fit in well with your home’s décor.
Remember, we are trying to please the pussy cat here and not your aesthetic tastes. So, it is essential to get your cat an appropriate scratching post.
Basically, a cat loves to scratch anything that has a rough surface and the most alluring scratching post to your kitty might be a simple tree stump. Here is how you choose a good scratching post:
- First make sure the post you choose is tall enough to let the cat fully stretch its body
- The post should also be very stable and should not be shaky
- Sisal textile material is a great option to make scratching posts from. This material will allow your kitty to scratch away to its heart’s content and shred it into as many pieces as it desires
- Alternately, the backside of a rug is excellent scratching material; you can place it at a place where your feline fiend prefers to scratch, though make sure it doesn’t move and is completely secured using tape or staples.
To get your cat to prefer the new scratching post, first place it where your cat usually scratches, make sure its completely secured and doesn’t shake; reward your cat every time it uses the post and detract her from her preferred scratching areas by removing her scent from them using pet odor removers and by spreading citrus flavored sprays (which they detest).
You can also cover the area with a non-scratchable material such as aluminum foil and blow loud whistles to startle her when she scratches. And yes, the sooner you start, the easier it will be!
Good habits are easy to inculcate at a young age, but bad habits are hard to unlearn. As an added measure, you can trim your cat’s nails to lessen the damage, but never resort to declawing, that is an inhuman practice.
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