Not all cats scratch standing up. Many are quite happy to do so horizontally.
Equally not all homes have plenty of room for an upright scratching post.
The answer? A cat scratching pad. It’s flat, cats still love to scratch away at them and they don’t take up a lot of space. Put them under the table if you want.
Here’s a good video of cats using their cat scratching pad.
Read the rest of this entry
One of the most common complaints of cat owners is that their cat just never seems to stop scratching things. It seems that once you introduce a cat into the household you can say goodbye to your table legs, that nice leather couch and even the curtains. As we have said before scratching is an instinct that most or all cats seem to have, and it is probably unlikely that you will stop him from scratching by punishing him.
So what tactics can you use to stop your cats from ruining your furniture?
Scratching can be a symptom of boredom. If you give your cat plenty of entertainment this reduces the likelihood that he will take out his boredom on your table legs. Play with him and give him plenty of cat toys to play with and you reduce the likelihood of him tearing up your furniture. A simple piece of newspaper on a string, pulled by you, can give your cat a ton of entertainment. And you’ll soon discover when you start experimenting with different cat toys available which ones will provide him with the most fun.
Whilst it won’t stop him from scratching cutting his nails will help reduce the damage. It’s perfectly possible to cut your cat’s nails as long as you don’t cut too deep. If you begin doing this as young as possible your cat will become used to it and will happily subject himself to nail clipping without too much stress after he gets used to it.
You can try and divert your cat’s attention using noise. Put a few coins in a soft drink can and suspend it from something that he regularly scratches at. For example hang it on the curtains and every time he starts to pull the noise will startle him, and sometimes, though not always, direct his attention elsewhere. This has been applied by various manufacturers and it is now possible to get alarms which sound when cats disturb them.
And there are also commercial sprays that you can get which, when sprayed on the offending area, can divert your cat’s attention away.
While some people actively advocate de-clawing your cat we are strongly against that.
Of course the simplest solution is to buy a simple cat scratching post and train him to use it. Whilst it is not always easy sailing training a cat to use a cat scratching pole can usually be done with a little persistence. Use something to attract him there such as some catnip. Place it near where he eats and sleeps, as cats will often stretch and scratch after eating or sleeping. Read the rest of this entry
Here at The Cat Scratching Post we are strong advocates of keeping your cat indoors. There’s a range of reasons for keeping your cat indoors including the safety of the cat and the safety of our native animals.
Of course if you keep him indoors you then need some good cat furniture such as a cat tree and cat scratching post because he is unable to climb trees and scratch away as he would normally do outdoors.
So if you’re keeping your cat indoors 100 percent of the time how do you keep him happy?
As already noted a good cat tree and scratching post are essential, and if you train him to use them then you will find that he would use them regularly, and thoroughly enjoy his cat furniture.
However there is more that you can do to ensure you have a happy indoors cat.
It’s perfectly possible to make a run outside the house with an enclosure which allows your cat to play outside without escaping the enclosure, thereby having the advantage of some outdoors time. It’s quite possible to buy excellent cat enclosures or to build one yourself, and you can make them extremely complex and lots of fun for a cat or cats.
It also possible to buy all sorts of cat toys, and an indoors cat and in particular a kitten loves to play with toys.
If your cat is indoors he will still like looking outside. Why not provide him with his own dedicated place where he can curl up and look outside the window? A small cat seat next to a window that is all his own will be a lovely way to provide your cat with some exposure to the sun and a sleeping place that is just for him. Read the rest of this entry
There are many cat owners who are driven to distraction by their cat clawing the furniture. Whilst a cat claws naturally, and instinctively, some people still expect to be able to train their cat to stop clawing.
Once they realise that they are on a loser trying to stop their from clawing the furniture they turn to other solutions. Despite the fact that there are simple and effective solutions, for example purchasing a cat scratching post, some consider declawing their cat. Lets look at de clawing cats.
De clawing your cat is a surgical procedure where the claws are removed. As the claws are a part of the bone in the foot it is necessary to amputate a small part of your cat’s toes. It is not easy surgery and your cat will have a painful time recovering.
Of course it works to stop your cat clawing the furniture. How can he claw with no claws. However it comes at quite a price. While your cat is recovering from what is quite serious surgery he will be walking around on paws that are extremely painful. Whilst you or I would stay in bed to recover from serious surgery your cat will not be able to do this, and will suffer the price.
As well as this a cat’s claws are important to many things, including his ability to climb, stretch and jump.
There are also various risks to declawing including the possibility that if it is not done correctly the claws can grow back and are often missshapen.
Declawing is illegal in some countries for good reason. There are also other reasons why it should be avoided.
The sad fact is that usually for little more than $20 and some effort on the part of the cat owner it is perfectly possible to buy an effective cat scratching post and to train your cat to use it. This involves far less stress for the cat and less cost and stress for the owner.
Whilst it is unlikely to be straightforward it is also perfectly possible to train your cat to use a cat scratching post effectively. You are always better to start training your cat as young as possible, however it is not impossible to train older cats to use a scratching pole. Read the rest of this entry
Cats scratch naturally, and it is exceedingly difficult to stop your cat doing it.
Your cat is going to scratch no matter how much you try and stop him scratching. So why not stop banging your head against the wall and accept the inevitable, your cat will scratch.
There’s a number of things you can do to stop your cat scratching. Not to stop him scratching completely, just to stop him scratching your favourite furniture.
A cat scratching post is certainly a big part of it. Cat scratching posts give your cat somewhere acceptable to scratch.
Here’s a good video telling you a little more about cat scratching and how to deal with it.
Why does my cat scratch? A question asked by so many cat owners.
That’s one of the biggest complaints of cat owners. They love having the cat in the house but the damage to the furniture is a bit much. Usually it’s the legs of your favourite furniture as well. We know someone who’s favourite dining room table looks like it’s had its legs attacked by a chainsaw.
Of course no one knows exactly why cats scratch, however people who study these things have come up with some relatively simple answers. Firstly it’s to sharpen his claws. Actually whilst many maintain that a cat is sharpening his claws by scratching some suggest that it is not actually to sharpen the claws but more to help remove loose dead parts of the nails which come away from time to time. The scratching motion helps these fall away.
If you look at the floor at the base of your cat’s favourite scratching post you may see fine pieces of his nails lying there.
As well as that it is also considered that scratching is a part of the process of marking his territory. There are glands in cat paws. When they scratch they leave faint scents behind, and this marks their territory just as it does when they mark in the garden.
This is of course to let other cats know that this is where your cat lives, so stay away. They probably don’t understand that it is unlikely that rival cats would get in your house anyway.
Scratching is an instinctual behaviour. It’s not realistic to expect to get your cat to stop. You would probably spend your life, and his, punishing him for doing it and he would keep doing it. It’s quite natural. However there are a few simple tactics you can use to try and redirect his attention.
The first thing you need is a good cat scratching post. This is a place where your cat can scratch to his heart’s content, doing all the damage he wants, and you’re perfectly happy to allow him to do it. However just buying a scratching post and putting it in the house may not be sufficient to actually get him to use it. He will still probably prefer the legs of the table. However there are some strategies to help redirect his attention.
Put his new scratching pole somewhere he likes to be. You can put a little catnip on it to attract him to it and/or use some of his favourite toys to get him there. Play with him there until he gets the idea, and if you see him heading for the legs of your table gently pick him up and take him to his scratching post.
Another suggestion which will work but which may dampen your furniture is to use a small water pistol and spray his paws when he scratches where you don’t want him to.
And you can use other tactics as well, for instance wrap something around the legs of the table that he may not enjoy scratching, for example plastic. Read the rest of this entry
Cats need a good scratching post, and if you don’t provide him with one he’ll most likely scratch your favourite piece of furniture instead.
It isn’t hard to make a cat scratching post, some time, a hammer and some nails and a piece of timber, and carpet or sisal and you’ve got started.
So why not make a scratching pole for your cat yourself? He’ll appreciate it, and you’ll save the legs of your favourite piece of furniture.
It’s one thing having a cat scratching post, it’s quite another to actually make him use it.
And different cats like to scratch different ways, horizontally, vertically and so on.
Here’s a good video explaining all about the different types of options for buying a cat scratching post.