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#21
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wrote in message ... I'm the one who has considered bringing in a stray, and did not want to declaw her. Before I commit to letting her in full time, I've been letting her in for short periods (an hour or so), supervised. I bought a sisal scratching post, and one of those cardboard horizontal scratching pads. When she comes in, she goes straight for my recliner and starts scratching it. I gently pick her up and set her next to the post. She hasn't used it once. But 5 minutes later, she goes back and scratches the chair. I can't let her live inside until I can trust her. How do I train her to scratch the post? Mitch, Thank you for continuing to care for this cat. Believe me, you can have both the cat and unshredded furniture, but it will take some adjustment for both you and the cat. Some accommodations will be temporary on your part. You say that the first thing the cat does after entering the house is to head to your recliner for a scratch. This is probably because the cat is excited and happy to be inside with you. When we come into the house, our cats usually greet us and then scratch one of our conveniently located posts, at which time, we lavishly praise them. From time to time, we join them and scratch a little on the post ourselves to reinforce the behavior. Your problem may be the location of the scratching post. When the cat comes inside, does she have to pass the chair in order to get to the post? I suggest that at least for now that you make the location of the post more convenient than the chair to the entrance she uses to your house. This may involve moving the post, the chair, or both. I know that it seems like a lot of trouble, but once you get the kinks worked out, you will be rewarded more than you ever imagined and you can put some things back the way you want them. You can make the post more attractive by rubbing a little catnip into the sisal. In addition to making the post more convenient, you can take some temporary measures to make the chair less attractive. A product called something like Sticky Paws is a tape that you put on places where you do not want the cat to scratch. Also, you can use Feliway (on the chair, not the cat), which is a behavior modification spray. If you use Feliway, you may find that the cat rubs her face on the chair. This would be a normal reaction. Perhaps an Internet search would lead you to some non-toxic sprays that are unattractive to cats. Be careful to make sure that the product label specifically not toxic to cats. They are sensitive to many chemicals. Now, when the cat comes inside, you go to the post and make noisy scratching sounds while calling to her. She is very likely to join you. If the cat still goes to the chair, continue to pick her up and take her to the post and initiate a scratching session. She should catch on pretty quickly. Good luck. Annie |
#22
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wrote in message ... I'm the one who has considered bringing in a stray, and did not want to declaw her. Before I commit to letting her in full time, I've been letting her in for short periods (an hour or so), supervised. I bought a sisal scratching post, and one of those cardboard horizontal scratching pads. When she comes in, she goes straight for my recliner and starts scratching it. I gently pick her up and set her next to the post. She hasn't used it once. But 5 minutes later, she goes back and scratches the chair. I can't let her live inside until I can trust her. How do I train her to scratch the post? Mitch, Thank you for continuing to care for this cat. Believe me, you can have both the cat and unshredded furniture, but it will take some adjustment for both you and the cat. Some accommodations will be temporary on your part. You say that the first thing the cat does after entering the house is to head to your recliner for a scratch. This is probably because the cat is excited and happy to be inside with you. When we come into the house, our cats usually greet us and then scratch one of our conveniently located posts, at which time, we lavishly praise them. From time to time, we join them and scratch a little on the post ourselves to reinforce the behavior. Your problem may be the location of the scratching post. When the cat comes inside, does she have to pass the chair in order to get to the post? I suggest that at least for now that you make the location of the post more convenient than the chair to the entrance she uses to your house. This may involve moving the post, the chair, or both. I know that it seems like a lot of trouble, but once you get the kinks worked out, you will be rewarded more than you ever imagined and you can put some things back the way you want them. You can make the post more attractive by rubbing a little catnip into the sisal. In addition to making the post more convenient, you can take some temporary measures to make the chair less attractive. A product called something like Sticky Paws is a tape that you put on places where you do not want the cat to scratch. Also, you can use Feliway (on the chair, not the cat), which is a behavior modification spray. If you use Feliway, you may find that the cat rubs her face on the chair. This would be a normal reaction. Perhaps an Internet search would lead you to some non-toxic sprays that are unattractive to cats. Be careful to make sure that the product label specifically not toxic to cats. They are sensitive to many chemicals. Now, when the cat comes inside, you go to the post and make noisy scratching sounds while calling to her. She is very likely to join you. If the cat still goes to the chair, continue to pick her up and take her to the post and initiate a scratching session. She should catch on pretty quickly. Good luck. Annie |
#23
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"Wendy" wrote in message ... You can also try that sticky tape stuff on the recliner. My new girl was going to town on the stereo speaker. I put sticky stuff on that and got one of those cat trees/scratching posts wrapped with the rope over the weekend and she hasn't messed with the speaker since. I sprayed the cat tree liberally with cat nip spray (don't know if that did anything or not). By the looks of the sticky tape it shouldn't be a problem to remove when I'm sure the cat is well established with the appropriate things to scratch. Wendy All great advice. I pin aluminum foil (you could tape it, too) to the places they like to scratch. They hate it and will not touch it--and you sure can tell that they have not been there. After two weeks of a funny looking chair, you can take the foil down because the cat will be trained. Meanwhile ... everyone offered this same advice the first time around, no? |
#24
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"Wendy" wrote in message ... You can also try that sticky tape stuff on the recliner. My new girl was going to town on the stereo speaker. I put sticky stuff on that and got one of those cat trees/scratching posts wrapped with the rope over the weekend and she hasn't messed with the speaker since. I sprayed the cat tree liberally with cat nip spray (don't know if that did anything or not). By the looks of the sticky tape it shouldn't be a problem to remove when I'm sure the cat is well established with the appropriate things to scratch. Wendy All great advice. I pin aluminum foil (you could tape it, too) to the places they like to scratch. They hate it and will not touch it--and you sure can tell that they have not been there. After two weeks of a funny looking chair, you can take the foil down because the cat will be trained. Meanwhile ... everyone offered this same advice the first time around, no? |
#25
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"Wendy" wrote in message ... You can also try that sticky tape stuff on the recliner. My new girl was going to town on the stereo speaker. I put sticky stuff on that and got one of those cat trees/scratching posts wrapped with the rope over the weekend and she hasn't messed with the speaker since. I sprayed the cat tree liberally with cat nip spray (don't know if that did anything or not). By the looks of the sticky tape it shouldn't be a problem to remove when I'm sure the cat is well established with the appropriate things to scratch. Wendy All great advice. I pin aluminum foil (you could tape it, too) to the places they like to scratch. They hate it and will not touch it--and you sure can tell that they have not been there. After two weeks of a funny looking chair, you can take the foil down because the cat will be trained. Meanwhile ... everyone offered this same advice the first time around, no? |
#26
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"kaeli" wrote in message ... In article , enlightened us with... I gently pick her up and set her next to the post. Do you praise her and play with her next to it and on it? MAJORLY important, and something men will not usually do. Coo and talk sweet to her. Use a soothing tone of voice and tell her gooooooood girrrrllllllll while petting her. When you sound about as stupid as you can imagine sounding, you have it right. You can tell when the cat loves your voice as her eyes will get narrow and she will lean into your hand when you pet her. And, as Kaeli said, cat treats will help your case! Put a treat in your pocket, then place her paws on the post and gently "scratch" with them, then give her a treat. |
#27
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"kaeli" wrote in message ... In article , enlightened us with... I gently pick her up and set her next to the post. Do you praise her and play with her next to it and on it? MAJORLY important, and something men will not usually do. Coo and talk sweet to her. Use a soothing tone of voice and tell her gooooooood girrrrllllllll while petting her. When you sound about as stupid as you can imagine sounding, you have it right. You can tell when the cat loves your voice as her eyes will get narrow and she will lean into your hand when you pet her. And, as Kaeli said, cat treats will help your case! Put a treat in your pocket, then place her paws on the post and gently "scratch" with them, then give her a treat. |
#28
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"kaeli" wrote in message ... In article , enlightened us with... I gently pick her up and set her next to the post. Do you praise her and play with her next to it and on it? MAJORLY important, and something men will not usually do. Coo and talk sweet to her. Use a soothing tone of voice and tell her gooooooood girrrrllllllll while petting her. When you sound about as stupid as you can imagine sounding, you have it right. You can tell when the cat loves your voice as her eyes will get narrow and she will lean into your hand when you pet her. And, as Kaeli said, cat treats will help your case! Put a treat in your pocket, then place her paws on the post and gently "scratch" with them, then give her a treat. |
#29
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Rub the scratching post with fresh catnip. ;-)
I can guarantee that will get a good response from most cats! I grow my own...... so always have access to it. K. -- ^,,^ Cats-haven Hobby Farm ^,,^ ^,,^ "There are millions of intelligent species in the universe, and they are all owned by cats" -- Asimov Custom handcrafts, Sterling silver beaded jewelry http://cgi3.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAP...s&userid=katra |
#30
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Rub the scratching post with fresh catnip. ;-)
I can guarantee that will get a good response from most cats! I grow my own...... so always have access to it. K. -- ^,,^ Cats-haven Hobby Farm ^,,^ ^,,^ "There are millions of intelligent species in the universe, and they are all owned by cats" -- Asimov Custom handcrafts, Sterling silver beaded jewelry http://cgi3.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAP...s&userid=katra |
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