Few experiences in life can compare to owning a pet, and it only makes sense to want to do right by them. A pet can prepare you for eventually having a child and so much more. It can be a challenge at times to raise your pet correctly, especially if you are new to it.
When it comes to owning pets, there are a lot of unexpected occurrences that you’ll have to prepare yourself for. However, the first thing you’ll have to think about is the kind of pet you want to bring into your home, and the two most popular options on the markets are cats and dogs.
For this guide, we will focus on cats, as dogs are a topic for another time. Idiosyncrasy is a word that is often associated with cats, as they have many strange behaviours and tendencies, and scratching is one of the things that they do, which often confuses.
Over the course of this guide, we’ll be covering some of the reasons why cats choose to scratch things around the home and what you can do about it. More specifically, we’ll be looking at how you can get your cat to start using a scratching post initially, as it may be a bit of a challenge.
Whether you are a new cat owner or have experience with felines, this article should cover everything you need to know about the topic.
Why Do Cats Scratch?
Before we discuss how to keep cats from scratching furniture, we have to look at why they do so in the first place, as it will help you understand things. The primary reason for cat scratching is to remove the layer of dull keratin on the exterior of their claws.
In short, when cats scratch something, their claws get sharpened, as they don’t have any other way to keep them like that in nature. Of course, while felines have been domesticated for thousands of years, it takes longer than that to change instincts that have existed in a species for even longer.
As you can imagine, when your cat reaches a certain age, they start clawing, and they need a way to keep those claws honed. If your cat doesn’t have anything convenient to scratch, its instincts will lead it to go after your furniture or other parts of your home that are accessible for scratching.
Knowing this, it makes sense that you will need to give your cat something to scratch, as you can’t expect an animal to forget its instincts at the drop of a hat.
Whether you are trying to mitigate the damage to your home, or if you are looking for a solution before clawing occurs, we’re here to help.
The Cat Scratching Post: The Best Way To Avoid Scratched Furniture
If you are wondering how to get cats to stop scratching, you won’t come across many methods that can hope to match the scratching post.
A scratching post is a simple product that consists of an upright post covered in a material designed to be scratched by your cat.
As your feline scratches, their claws will get sharper, and they will be satisfied, though there are some issues with scratching posts. First off, you will want to ensure that you get them early on, before your cat even needs them, as that will prevent your furniture from getting damaged in the first place.
One of the more common issues that cat owners will run into with scratching posts is that the pet will refuse to use them in the first place. There isn’t much reason to use a scratching post if your feline refuses to utilize it. Luckily, there are some ways that you can make sure that your cat uses your scratching post.
Get Your Pet To Use A Scratching Post
One of the best ways to ensure that your cat uses a scratching post is to purchase one before it ends up needing it. If there are already scratching posts available, your feline will be much more likely to use them when their claws eventually come in. Being prepared is essential to prevent scratching.
Of course, not everyone has the luxury of getting a scratching post before their cat’s claws start to come in. If you have to rush and get one after you come home to ruined furniture, all hope is not lost, as you have a few different ways to get your feline to start using the product you purchased for it.
Catnip is likely the best way to get your cat to get acquainted with a new scratching post, as that will attract them to the general area. Once your cat tries the scratching post at least once, it will likely want to keep doing so, as it is much more satisfying for them to scratch away at one.
If the catnip isn’t getting your pet to the scratching post, you can always try repositioning it, as you will want to place it somewhere that your cat frequents. Putting your scratching post in an area where your cat is comfortable is key to ensuring that it is used in the first place.
Finally, if moving around your scratching post won’t get your cat to start using it, you may have to purchase more than one. Some cats will use a scratching post in addition to scratching away at your furniture, and the best way to avoid that is to position several around the house by the furniture that they scratch.
Conclusion
We hope this guide has given you all of the info you needed to get your cat to use its scratching post. Thank you for your time, and feel free to drop us a comment in the section below.
