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All cat homeowners love their cats, however one factor that isn’t fairly as endearing is how they scratch up the furnishings. It’s widespread for cats to scratch at family objects, together with couches, doorways, rugs, beds – the checklist goes on. You’ve in all probability already puzzled why your cat appears to like etching their little artworks onto your furnishings.
Don’t fear, there’s no malice concerned, although people like to assign human logic to animal behaviours. By understanding the reasoning behind the scratching, you possibly can start to know the way to hold your cats from scratching the furnishings.
Why Do Cats Scratch?
Scratching and clawing at objects is solely one thing that every one cats do. In case you watch huge cats similar to lions, tigers, and jaguars, additionally they like to scratch. They only don’t do it on family furnishings however on bushes. Cats scratch to:
- Preserve their claws wholesome – Cat claws are made out of the identical materials as our fingernails, besides theirs peels away in layers. A superb scratching session is a approach for the cat to take away the broken outer layer and sharpen the claw.
- Mark their territory – Like many different predators, cats are territorial by nature. Scratching is a approach for them to mark their territory, each visually and by scent. Every time your cat scratches at an object, the scent glands of their paw pads launch pheromones. These pheromones warn different animals that they’re within the cat’s residence turf.
- Stretch their our bodies – Any cat proprietor is aware of that cats love stretching. Most scratching classes are accompanied by a superb stretch. Many cats will scratch whereas stretching, reaching far above or in entrance of themselves. Consider it as a human stretching whereas digging their toes into the carpet.
- Relieve boredom – Scratching is an effective approach of releasing extra bodily or emotional power. Feminine cats in warmth might also be stressed, and can are likely to climb and scratch at issues.
How Do You Preserve Your Cat From Scratching Furnishings?
We’ve bought a few suggestions that, when utilized in mixture, will assist with scratching behaviours.
1. Preserve your cat’s nails trimmed
Setting a daily nail-trimming schedule is an effective way to maintain your cat’s scratching behaviour underneath management. Most cats will begin scratching at round eight weeks outdated, so beginning younger is a good suggestion. It might be more difficult to get mature cats to sit down nonetheless as you clip their nails, so a visit to the groomer could assist get them used to it. As soon as they’re extra comfy, you possibly can try and do it your self. A nail trim each two to a few weeks works for many cat homeowners.
2. Make the furnishings much less interesting
There are a few strategies to make your furnishings a less-than-ideal place in your cats to scratch:
- Apply cat scratch tape – You should utilize both cat scratch tape or double-sided tape. Most cats discover sticky surfaces annoying, so it’s a superb deterrent to scratching. Nevertheless, this answer might not be viable for surfaces that aren’t easy, similar to couches and different upholstered furnishings.
- Apply a cat scratch spray – There are each business and home made variations of cat scratch spray. Most are supposed to make the cat assume that they’ve already put their scent on the article that’s been sprayed. This methodology takes a while to be efficient, as you’ll have to make use of the spray every day till the cat stops scratching.
- Apply vinyl panelling – That is the drastic choice for cats that merely received’t cease scratching. Vinyl panels are not a deterrent, they’re safety in your furnishings. Panels of assorted sizes can be found, and most screw on to your furnishings.
3. Present scratching posts
Most cats will scratch objects in the event that they’re appropriate for scratching. You may place scratching posts scattered round the home close to furnishings they normally scratch. Be aware of the kinds of surfaces that your cat enjoys scratching. Scratching posts are made of assorted supplies, and it needs to be attainable to seek out some that match your cat’s most well-liked kind of furnishings.
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Typically it takes just a little coaxing to get your cat to make use of the scratching put up as an alternative of the furnishings. Constructive reinforcement is an effective method to get them to make use of the put up – every time they take note of the put up as an alternative of the furnishings, give them reward and a reward.
One other methodology is to sprinkle some catnip round and on the put up itself. Some cat homeowners have had success with enjoying with a wand toy close to the put up, then directing the cat’s consideration to the put up as soon as they’ve began chasing the wand toy.
Let Your Cat Be A Cat
Let’s do not forget that scratching is a pure exercise for cats. Most cats might want to scratch not less than among the time – so as an alternative of seeking to remove the behaviour fully, it’s greatest to direct it to things which might be designed to be scratched similar to cat furnishings and scratchers. In case your cat has moved on from furnishings to the partitions, we’ve an article on the way to cease cats from scratching partitions as properly.
Writer:
Elsa Smith