Couch scratching cat -- help!

Hi,

I have two cats, sisters. One sort of adheres to the rules in the
house, i.e. no scratching of furniture and the other absolutely not.
The latter either sees it as a game or wants attention. We give both to
her her constantly however the scratching doesn't stop. It has turned
more into a habitual thing. Punishment as expected with cats doesn't
help.

My couch is really starting to look terrible! What can I creatively do
the get the cat not to scratch??

Thanks for your reply's!

Regards,

Victor

"victor" wrote in message
oups.com...


My couch is really starting to look terrible! What can I creatively do
the get the cat not to scratch??

Foolproof solution (and I am not exaggerating) is to give her
something she likes to scratch better than the couch.

As soon as I bought one of these and put it near the corner of
the big chair in my bedroom and one down by a favorite
couch, I saw no further sign of inappropriate scratching:

http://www.petcarecentral.com/cospetprodsc.html


If for some reason this does not work, a nice cat tree
might help, or a post if it is tall enough to let them stretch.
It seems some cats are horizontal and some vertical
scratchers.

FYI the Alpine Scratcher is around $11 and you can
turn the insert over to use that side and buy refills for
$5.99. It comes with cat nip to rub on the scratcher
and has a dangly mouse inside. They sell them at
Petsmart and even at Walmart and other box stores
around here.

"victor" wrote in message
oups.com...
Hi,

I have two cats, sisters. One sort of adheres to the rules in the
house, i.e. no scratching of furniture and the other absolutely not.
The latter either sees it as a game or wants attention. We give both to
her her constantly however the scratching doesn't stop. It has turned
more into a habitual thing. Punishment as expected with cats doesn't
help.

My couch is really starting to look terrible! What can I creatively do
the get the cat not to scratch??

Thanks for your reply's!

Regards,

Victor

First, buy a couple of really good, sturdy scratching posts (one vertical,
one horizontal since cats have differing preferences on how they like to
scratch - but if it's your sofa being scratched I would guess at a vertical
preference).

It's really important that the post be sturdy and not shaky or liable to
turn over - the cat must feel secure in being able to lean on it and stretch
her body. Place the scratching post next to the sofa.

Next get some really potent catnip and rub it all over the scratching post.
Then demonstrate how it's to be used (sounds silly, but cats learn by
watching what their mothers do and your cat will see you as the mother cat).
Then when she shows any interest at all in the scratching post praise her
and give her treats and petting.

At the same time you can get some "No Scratch" to spray on the sofa, or use
double sided tape on the spots she scratches.

Don't ever use physical punishment or yelling when you see her at the sofa,
just quietly pick her up and put her next to the scratching post and show
her again how to use it. Remember to freshen it up with catnip
periodically.

I have scratching posts in every room of my house - two next to my sofas,
and I've never had a problem with my four cats ruining furniture.

Hugs,

CatNipped

In message "cybercat"
wrote:


"victor" wrote in message
roups.com...


My couch is really starting to look terrible! What can I creatively do
the get the cat not to scratch??

Foolproof solution (and I am not exaggerating) is to give her
something she likes to scratch better than the couch.

As soon as I bought one of these and put it near the corner of
the big chair in my bedroom and one down by a favorite
couch, I saw no further sign of inappropriate scratching:

http://www.petcarecentral.com/cospetprodsc.html


If for some reason this does not work, a nice cat tree
might help, or a post if it is tall enough to let them stretch.
It seems some cats are horizontal and some vertical
scratchers.

FYI the Alpine Scratcher is around $11 and you can
turn the insert over to use that side and buy refills for
$5.99. It comes with cat nip to rub on the scratcher
and has a dangly mouse inside. They sell them at
Petsmart and even at Walmart and other box stores
around here.


Mine won't touch any sort of angled scratching surface, flat is best for
one and vertical for the other...

It really depends on the cat.

--
Q. How many Microsoft technicians does it take to change a lightbulb?
A. Three. Two to hold the ladder and one to hammer the bulb into a faucet.

On 2005-11-14 13:30:09 -0600, "victor" said:

Hi,

I have two cats, sisters. One sort of adheres to the rules in the
house, i.e. no scratching of furniture and the other absolutely not.
The latter either sees it as a game or wants attention. We give both to
her her constantly however the scratching doesn't stop. It has turned
more into a habitual thing. Punishment as expected with cats doesn't
help.

My couch is really starting to look terrible! What can I creatively do
the get the cat not to scratch??

Thanks for your reply's!

Regards,

Victor

http://www.birminghamind.com/Scratchaway/index.html

I have one. Works pretty well. Plus they have their own trees, so if
she doesn't care for the surface of this, it would turn her to the
trees. The main mistake folks make in choosing scratching posts is that
they are not sturdy and stable. That's what cats love about couches.
You can really hang on them and scraaaatch. So make sure you get
sturdy, tall, posts or trees. This is a popular one at my house:

http://www.petsalley.com/catscratch.asp

The one that says "round tray with sisal post". There are lots of good
ones on that page actually.



and I've heard this one is terrific:

http://www.petco.com/Shop/Product.as...v=294&N=23+104

or

http://tinyurl.com/ckjmg

"Karen" wrote:

My couch is really starting to look terrible! What can I creatively do
the get the cat not to scratch??

Thanks for your reply's!

Regards,

Victor

http://www.birminghamind.com/Scratchaway/index.html

I have one. Works pretty well.

This looks like a really bad idea to me, because since it fits OVER
the couch, it teaches the cat that scratching the couch is just fine.

Much better to distract the cat from the couch, I think.

Besides the 2 scratching posts I keep an old bedspread over my couch and
velvet chair. Also a sheet over my bedspreads. I remove the spread when
company is coming and reveal a furless, unscratched couch. I tried
tacking a carpet sample to a wall in the garage but my cats weren't
impressed. It would sure be an economical scratching post if your cat
would use it. Those carpet samples usually cost $1.

victor wrote:
Hi,

I have two cats, sisters. One sort of adheres to the rules in the
house, i.e. no scratching of furniture and the other absolutely not.
The latter either sees it as a game or wants attention. We give both to
her her constantly however the scratching doesn't stop. It has turned
more into a habitual thing. Punishment as expected with cats doesn't
help.

you got another place for them to scratch?
They are going to scratch something

My couch is really starting to look terrible!
haaaaaaa ha

"Teddy" wrote in message
...
Besides the 2 scratching posts I keep an old bedspread over my couch and
velvet chair. Also a sheet over my bedspreads. I remove the spread when
company is coming and reveal a furless, unscratched couch. I tried
tacking a carpet sample to a wall in the garage but my cats weren't
impressed. It would sure be an economical scratching post if your cat
would use it. Those carpet samples usually cost $1.


Teddy--wouldn't it be cool if you tried the Alpine Scratcher and they
never went neat the couches and chairs again? That is what happened
here four years ago. It depends on the cat, but if that also works for
you, no more covering the furniture.

cybercat wrote:

Teddy--wouldn't it be cool if you tried the Alpine Scratcher and they
never went neat the couches and chairs again? That is what happened
here four years ago. It depends on the cat, but if that also works for
you, no more covering the furniture.

Teddy is not going to buy an alpine scratcher
I mean, he would if they was a dollar

it's what you call, a nickel holding up a dollar

he'd rather let them shred up the sofa and chair then onto the
mattresses.