Cats - Scratching problem - Help!
 

Hi, we moved from England 1 year ago to BC and inherited 2 kittens. Now having a real problem with them (now 10 months old), due to scratching. They rip up the carpets, climb the walls and fly screens, causing damage everywhere. Husband going mad, now saying they have to go. I have just done a search on the internet regarding this problem and have found a product called 'Soft Paws'. Has anybody heard of this product???? It looks really good, they are rubber nail caps which are glued onto the cats nails. Hoping someone has used this product and can give some feedback. Desperate for a remedy for this problem as de-clawing is not an option and I so want to keep the little buggers.

Hope someone can help. Many Thanks

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

I used to have 3 cats and I know they are a pain when they scratch your furniture etc. I have a 'stropping post' screwed up against the side of one of my kitchen units. It's only a board covered in carpet bought from my local pet store. My cat hangs off it and goes nuts when he's having a 'psycho half hour'.

I only have one cat now and you need to train them early on. Every time he stropped elsewhere I would say no remove him and immediately put him by his proper stropping post and encourage him to strop there. Also praise them when they do the right thing. It worked for me, I have a siamese.

HTH?

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

Thanks for help... I do have a scratch post, which they do use sometimes. The damage usually happens at night when we are in bed or when we go out.

Thank again.

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

In my experience, making sure the scratch post is made from a material that the cat prefers over the fabric of your furniture is key. I sacrificed a sofa learning that one. My cat positively loved her scratch post once I reversed the carpetting that was on it so that the carpet backing was on the outside and she could really dig into it. I found that rubbing the post with catnip helped too.

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

Probably stupid question, but can you lock them in one room/area and surround the wee loves with scratching posts/beds, etc. I've never seen such a combination of 'playhouses' for moggies in the shops !

I used to find a quick smack on the nose when they 'attacked' the furniture did the trick to some degree. Praise might work. Bit like kids really ! :p Got to get in there early ....

Re: Cats - Scratching problem - Help!
 

try getting a waterbottle spray and spray them with water when they scratch the wrong thing. It does then no harm. It worked for our cat, she only tries to scratch now if shes in a strop, she does it to annoy us as knows its wrong as she looks straight at us while positioning her claws

Re: Cats - Scratching problem - Help!
 

Yeah, just like kids then ! :rofl:

Re: Cats - Scratching problem - Help!
 

Thats just what the ginger cat does, he looks straight at me, then when I pick up the waterbottle he runs.

Its mainly at night time and when we are out the most damage is done. Our walls have deep scratches in them, I have to keep going around with the filler and re-paint before hubby gets home.

Going to give trimming their nails:ohmy: a go today and try and get some of the nail caps.

Re: Cats - Scratching problem - Help!
 

omg glue and nail caps for cats wtf :eek: whatever next, the mind boggles :confused:

get two or three scratching posts around the house, make them convenient for the cats and then no probs...it's the thing cats do, scratch! our two twelve yr old cats which have never been declawed btw :eek: and we don't have a thing damaged, never have.

Re: Cats - Scratching problem - Help!
 

I have scratch posts etc. but dont know what to do now! Desperate to keep them, thats why I'm asking for help.

Re: Cats - Scratching problem - Help!
 

have you had their nails trimmed?

Re: Cats - Scratching problem - Help!
 

they were done at the vets a few months ago. I will try and do them today, but will this stop them ripping the carpet up?

Re: Cats - Scratching problem - Help!
 

for sure it will help big time, however they have to be done regularly..ours are done every month...just think about how your own nails grow, so do theirs.
good luck :)

edit....pls be careful how far down you go just as with our nails if you cut too low down it will hurt!

Re: Cats - Scratching problem - Help!
 

Will do, thanks

Re: Cats - Scratching problem - Help!
 

hope you saw the edit on my post not to cut them too low down and let me know how you get on.....:)

Re: Cats - Scratching problem - Help!
 

Just watched a video on internet show where to cut. Dreading attempting it incase they freak and I slip with the clippers.

Re: Cats - Scratching problem - Help!
 

i know and that's why i take mine to the groomers once a month ;)

Re: Cats - Scratching problem - Help!
 

It's not hard once you get the hang of it. Do the cats behave at the vets when they have it done?

Soft Paws do work but they will come off after a month or so. Teaching the cats not to scratch the things you don't want them to will be a better long term solution.

First, you need to make the areas they scratch unattractive - you can put double sided tape, or something like Sticky Paws on furniture. Then you need to redirect the scratching.

I know you have scratching posts, are they tall enough? The post needs to be long enough so the cat can stretch the full length of his/her body up while scratching. Have you tried the cardboard scratchers with cat nip sprinkled on?

I generally have a tree and or scratching post in practically every room in the house and we have never had an issue (we have four cats) even with our foster cats, as we give them a new scratcher of their own as soon as they arrive.

You can also try putting cat nip spray on all of the posts, this will attract them to the posts. You need to put a scratcher or some kind of deterrent (like double sided tape or sticky paws) in every place that they scratch so they are re-learning where to scratch.

Also, if they are doing a lot of damage at night, they may be bored, do you have any large cat trees? Indoor only cats (like mine) like to have a fair bit of vertical entertainment, if they can chase each other up and down cat trees, they are less likely to run up screens and blinds etc.

You can also try wearing them out before bed. At least a 15 minute play time before bed is great exercise for them and keeps their minds working, toys like Da Bird, (this one really exhausts them) wand toys, cat nip balls, remote control mice etc, anything they can stalk, chase or pounce on, exercises both their body and their mind.

Here is a great article on scratching and what you can do - http://www.newbeginningscatrescue.or...ching_art1.pdf

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

Snorkmaiden you beat me to it, but this took so long to type I'll post it anyway :)

My cat has never scratched anything but her scratchpost but she was trained when she was an ickle kitten. Her breeder used to gently rub her little paws up and down the post - did the trick.

You are going to have to teach you cats not to scratch furniture. You can buy some scented spray from the pet store/vet to put on your furniture to discourage them from scratching there. To encourage them to use the scratchpost you could always spray or rub in a little bit of catnip into it. Most cats go doolally for it :p When they attempt to scratch your furniture, be ready with a waterspray (don't spray them in the face though) a firm 'NO' and then take them to their scratchpost. Crikey, this reminds me of potty training - except I never sprayed my kids ;)

My cat is a Ragdoll and does not get to wander about outside so I clip her nails every few weeks. You get special clippers from the pet store which have a circular cut-out hole in the them. Only cut the transparent ends of the claws off. My cat hates having her back feet done so they rarely get touched but don't appear to grow at the same rate as the front paws.

Just remembered, trying clipping your cats claws when they are asleep or very sleepy - it helps!

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

Ooh, Ragdolls are gorgeous!! What colour do you have? One of mine is a lilac lynx point Birman, so a relative of the Ragdoll, I think the Ragdolls are generally bigger though.

Great tip about doing the clipping when they are sleepy, we do our cats claws when they are sleepy also, and then we give them treats - positive reinforcement! We use Kitty Kaviar (otherwise known as crack for cats) and they forget all about nail clipping then :D

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

Lucy is a 2 year old seal bi-colour. We brought her over with us from Scotland.

She wears a harness and gets attached to an extending dog lead which is tied to a post either out front or back. She gets to sit outside and can wander around only up to 16ft. When we go outside she likes to join us.

A couple of months ago she ran out the door straight into our woods - she didn't even look back. She is a fearless one :ohmy:

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

Thi sis how you trim
Utilities needed:
2 people
large towel/blanket
toenail clippers or cat claw clippers
1 (or more) cats

One person takes cat and wraps it in towel. Pull out ONE paw from towel. Other person has trimmers, grab hld of paw.

Here's the trick - the quicken is full of blood and nerves. A cat with white claws you can actually see the quicken. DON'T clip in to it or you will experience the full wrath of a cat.

If your cat has never had it's claws trimmed the quicken can be quite long. It will shrink so clip as close to it as you can without exposing it and keep checking every week. AS soon as you have a bit of growth, clip again. The quicken will gradually retract and shrink back.

Always treat your cat to his favorite feed after a clip. Be firm, calm and confident. If not - go to groomer's.

As for poles - get the pole doused in cat-nip. You will need a crow-bar to peel your cat of it.

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

we have a Lucy also...she's a blue Persian and is in the photo gallery....we brought our two over from the UK 5 yrs ago...haha our Lucy is a fearless one also, we call her Houdini!

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

She is sooooooo amazingly gorgeous!! I had a seal point Birman, Leon (after Leonidas chocolate) but he died of FIP. He was the most gorgeous kitten, I love the seal points.

Here are my crew, Violet, Indigo (they are Chartreux) Anubis (god knows what he is, he was one of our fosters that we adopted, he is so huge we think he must have maine coon in him) Asriel the lilac lynx Birman and my gorgeous Leon who passed away last August.

TrueBrit, Lucy and Millie are gorgeous, I bet those coats take some looking after, I am fond of the blue/gray colour as you can probably tell ;-)

Re: Cats - Scratching problem - Help!
 

Check out this video at 1m:58s to see the best way to solve this problem.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svEPX...elated&search=

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

Well it is Canada and if they are truly house cats

you can get them de-clawed , its legal here

but given the amount of hair, fleas, shit, and everything else that comes with cats.. I went with your husbands suggestion about 3 years ago and have never looked back

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

Snorkmaiden your cats are lovely. Leon looks very similar to a Ragdoll. Birmins and Ragdolls can be very alike.

I only have to comb my cat once a week as her fur is similar to rabbit fur and does not really tangle (thank goodness)

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

:rofl::rofl:

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

I have two kids for what its worth, that why the cats had to go, cats aren't always nice to newcomers

But think of this as an option, a one way trip to the vet (or worse) or no claws, you might ask the cat its choice in the matter before you choose to judge what other people consider an acceptable practice.
I used to think it cruel until I lived with two cats that had been de-clawed at a young age and it didn’t seem to bother them in the slightest

So it’s legal in Canada and from what I see still a popular choice too; maybe it’s the large number of wood floors and natural wood furniture? That most cats are kept in doors 100% of time? I don’t know?

But regards of opinions you have to face it, it is an option that solves the problem

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

Nobody wants cats that are a bit aggressive especially with kids.

I took in a stray kitten and one minute it was purring as I stroked it, then the devil would surface, its eyes would go black and then it would bite me. Yikes, Cats Protection League got a call pretty sharpish from me to rehome it :eek:

When I was looking for a cat to to replace my beloved 16 year old cat I researched breeds and chose a Ragdoll because they are complete saps. :thumbsup:

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

Actually, it very often causes more problems, and is one of the reasons a great many cats end up in rescue. When you remove claws as a defence, cats will bite to defend themselves. Many will become aggressive, another issue it can cause is litter box problems.

Declawing is amputation of the toe at the first joint (not the claw) and causes severe pain. The cat then has to scratch on painful feet with amputated toes in the litter box, and will associate the pain felt with using the litter box and start peeing outside of the box instead.

Over the last few years I have volunteered in rescue and the majority of aggression and inappropriate elimination I have seen has been because of declaw ops.

If furniture truly does take precedent to the cat, it's better to find an organisation to rehome it rather than mutilate it. Obviously many cats manage fine without toes and claws, as humans would no doubt without fingertips if they had to, but we wouldn't choose it would we?

Believe me, if you'd seen photo's of declaw ops, and dealt with the cats damaged by it, you might go back to the opinion that it is cruel. I prefer to think of it as barbaric and backwards, and people who want to mutilate animals to save the furniture really shouldn't bother with pets.

My kids drew on the walls when they were little, with that manner of thinking I should have chopped off their fingers :D

We've managed fine with four kids and a stream of foster pets of all different temperaments over the years, I think it has taught my kids a healthy respect for animals and I've not often come across a cat who attacks a child without provocation.

I have fostered a couple who would attack kids, they'd been abused and had learned this response however they now live in homes with children perfectly happily after having learned to trust humans again.

It's also common for kittens who have been taken from their mothers too early to be more scratchy and bitey but you can teach them better manners, we certainly had to do that with our black kitten.

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

Thank you all very much for your advice. I have successfully managed to trim their claws with not too much struggle. Have bought them an activity station and dowsed in catnip. Fingers crossed I can encourage them to use instead of my walls and carpet. Hubby still not convinced, but I will just have to live with that.

Wish me luck.

Thanks again..

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

Chopping their legs off would also solve the problem and has the advantage of stopping them from wandering off and getting lost.

Our cats don't scratch indoors. That may be a function of their diet which largely consists of voles, mice and rabbits and is augmented by examples of the less agile avian species.

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

Ooh that sounds interesting, is it easily available? My cat has never really taken to catnip and I'd like to try something... anything else! :)

He only does the attention-grabbing scratching btw, he's always been very good with the furniture, even though he's never taken to a scratch post, though he loves the wicker basket!

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

Yep, it is easily available (or it was in Dallas at least) you can order it online here - http://www.thecatconnection.com/page...CH/KITTYKAVIAR

There might be a store that sells it nearer to you but that is where I used to buy it. It is fish flakes, so it does whiff a bit but it's never around long enough to make a room smell :D One of my cats lies outside the cupboard we keep it in and looks mournful until we give him a bit :D

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

That looks very promising - thank you
He loves Whiskers "Oh So Fishy", so he'll likely eat this too :)

Re: Cats - Scratching proglem - Help!
 

What is a lynx point, not heard of that one before ??