Your sofa is not a larger-than-average feline scratcher for your kitty! Here are a few hints on picking furniture your feline will not be enticed to scratch.
The main thing more regrettable than a lounge chair canvassed in feline hair is a sofa shrouded in scratch marks. Scratching is a characteristic way of behaving for felines and it is something they have an actual need to do, however, that doesn’t mean you need to allow them to do it on your furnishings.
One thing to remember is that your feline may be enticed to scratch your furniture given how it feels, so there are steps you can take to guarantee you purchase furniture that will not entice your kitty into involving it as a scratching post. It could try and take a touch of experimentation to sort out what your feline won’t scratch feline is a novel individual, all things considered. Yet, when you get the hang of things, you will want to have fantastic furniture in a home with at least one cat, so everybody can be cheerful, including your furkids.
As well as giving your feline a scratching post, select cautiously while furniture shopping to lessen the gamble of having your new furniture scratched to pieces. The following are proposals and tips that you can utilize immediately.
Why Do Cats Scratch So Much?
Scratching is a common and important habit for cats. This helps to remove their old claws and keep them healthy. Cats also have scent glands between their toes, so when they scratch they mark their location by leaving a unique scent. Also, scratching is best for cats because it helps them to stretch and flex their feet, body, and paws.
Because scratching is natural and satisfying for cats, you should not try to stop them from doing it. Rather, understand that it’s part of being a cat owner. However, that does not mean you have to let your furniture go to waste. There are several ways to protect your home and keep your cat happy at the same time.
Declawing Is Not the Solution!
If your cat tends to scratch your furnishings, don’t go to declawing as the arrangement. Declawing a cat is certainly not an innocuous strategy like managing your fingernails. Truly, the surgery utilized for declawing eliminates the keep-going bone on every one of the cat’s toes, in addition to the hook.
This method can prompt enduring actual issues for cats and it might likewise add to issue ways of behaving like animosity and inability to utilize the litter box. It is nothing unexpected, then, that such countless creature promoters, specialists, and vets have been standing in opposition to declawing felines. What’s more, many pet people are deciding to keep away from this strategy. In addition to the fact that it is brutal, it’s pointless because there are a wide range of arrangements and techniques that you can carry out if your feline is scratching your furnishings.
Keep Your Kitty’s Claws Trimmed
Before we discuss the types of furniture that can work well in homes with playful cats, let’s cover a basic step you can take to help prevent your kitty from destroying your furniture and other things: keep his claws trimmed.
Some scissors are specifically made for trimming a cat’s claws, so buy these scissors and keep them on hand. Then, simply trim your pet’s claws at home daily. This not only will protect your furniture from damage, but it can also help you prevent getting scratched up by accident when playing with your cat.
Training your cat to bear having his claws trimmed may be more challenging when she’s older, so starting this earlier is best. But don’t lose hope even if your kitty is an adult and isn’t used to this. Just take your time and ask an expert, for help if you need it.
Related: 7 Common Cat Health Problems
Try Deterrents
To Prevent your cat from scratching your furniture, give them many alternatives that match your home decor. A rope-covered post or a cardboard scratch pad, rubbed with catnip, can be very appealing to your cat.
You can also protect your cat from scratching furniture by covering areas with foil, sandpaper, or double-sided tape. Spraying the furniture with citrus or menthol aromas can help too, because cats don’t like these aromas. So, make sure any scented products are safe for pets.
When buying new furniture, choose materials that are less appealing for scratching. Microfiber is a great option because it’s smooth and soft, which cats don’t like for scratching. Microfiber doesn’t snag or show claw marks, holes, or tears, and it’s easy to clean and doesn’t collect dust and dander.
Replacing your furniture with microfiber can help, but remember to provide your cat with scratching posts or pads to keep them happy.
Best Furniture Options for Homes with Cats
Assuming that you will purchase new furnishings, you ought to likewise be careful about the style and the materials you pick since this will influence how likely your feline is to find the furniture engaging for scratching.
The best material to pick in a house with felines is microfiber. Microfiber is a smooth, delicate texture and those characteristics are something contrary to what felines like concerning surface. Felines like to scratch things that will assist with wearing out their nails and this will not occur with microfiber – microfiber additionally doesn’t more often than not tangle or run like other upholstery materials. Generally, microfiber just doesn’t gather indications of scratching like paw marks, openings, pulls, or tears. It additionally doesn’t hurt that microfiber is not difficult to clean and it doesn’t generally gather residue and dander like different materials.
Supplanting your current furniture with microfiber might be the best answer for feline scratched furniture, however, remember to give your feline a scratching post or two too.
Don’t Punish Your Cat for Scratching
Anything that you do, don’t attempt to deter your cat from scratching by rebuffing him. For a certain something, he won’t comprehend the reason why he is being rebuffed and he could begin framing a negative relationship with you. It is additionally conceivable that you could hurt your feline unintentionally. Most issue ways of behaving can be tackled just by giving your feline an elective means for communicating the undesired way of behaving – a strategy that doesn’t adversely affect you, your furnishings, or your home.
Simple Solutions Can Achieve Great Results
By understanding your feline’s regular ways of behaving and needs, you can start to adopt the right strategy with regard to giving him the ideal home. Remember the tips above as you improve his current circumstance and plan your space to suit both of you.