Cats often take the sofa for their scratching post, sometimes going so far as to ransack it. So how do you stop the cat from scratching the couch? In this article, I explain everything you need to know and especially how to achieve it quickly.
How to prevent the cat from scratching the sofa: Understanding its behavior
Cats need to scratch and don’t realize that scratching the couch is wrong. In addition, the sofa offers them many advantages:
Why does he choose the sofa?
The sofa is perfect for him because he is there often, the texture allows him to scratch and above all, it is high, allowing him to stretch out well. To top it off, the couch has a nice texture for him, you can even see him kneading the couch while purring.
The sofa also sometimes has a good smell which will automatically attract her to him. But I reassure you, it is not inevitable, it is enough to put in place the right behaviors to make him stop this habit.
He can also do his claws by waking up directly when he sleeps there, avoiding him having to move to do his claws. Finally, the cat can have warmth towards the sofa, which he likes in winter. The sofa being a corner of life, it is often at the right temperature.
How to make him prefer his scratching post?
To make him prefer his scratching post to the sofa, here is everything you can put in place:
To start, make sure your cat has a scratching post to allow him enough stretch, cats like to stretch by scratching themselves, and a scratching post on the floor will not appeal to him.
Take a large model, which allows him to scratch his claws and which is pleasant to the touch, allowing a good grip.
The second thing to take into account is the location of the scraper, in an environment that must be clean, calm and temperate, ideally in its personal corner. The better your cat will feel in the place of the scratching post, the more he will use it intuitively.
Then, if your cat is young, make him understand that the scratching post is made for scratching by taking his paws and making him scratch the scratching post with it so that he can understand its usefulness.
Cats being territorial, the scratching post must be personal to them, so that they can smell their own scent and not that of another animal. So make sure your cat can have his scratching post.
Finally, associate the use of the scraper with a reward so that he can understand that he has done a good thing, you can give him food that he loves for example, the idea is that he knows that using the scratching post, a reward awaits him.
A bonus point is to diffuse soothing pheromones via a spray on the scratching post so that your cat feels best there, he will associate this place with a relaxing place.
How to protect the sofa?
If making the scratching post attractive is enough in most cases, it is sometimes necessary to protect the sofa so that it does not go there anymore, but nothing very complicated, here is what to do.
First of all, make sure your cat doesn’t like scratching on it by putting some aluminum on it which he hates to touch and he will quickly stop scratching the sofa, the aluminum will break his habit of scratching. get your claws. This is the best way to preserve the sofa in your absence.
Then, even more effective but less durable over time, make sure to diffuse citrus scents towards the sofa, the cat hates the smell and he won’t go near it.
If your cat is scratching, tell him NO firmly and take him to lock him in a room for 15 minutes to create a negative association, you can also redirect him to the scratching post, especially if he is young and just doesn’t understand what it’s for.
Close access to the sofa, if every time you come in your cat soils the sofa, make sure that he cannot go there, put his personal corner elsewhere than in the living room and do not give him access to this room during the day.
Even more radical during his absence, make sure to cover the sofa with a tarpaulin and you will be 100% sure that he does not scratch the sofa.
Finally, place the scratching post on the couch where it usually scratches, some cats scratch on the couch out of habit, this method is sometimes sufficient.
How to react ?
If your cat has misbehaved, there’s no need to hit or yell at it, because it will lose some of its trust in you, especially if it’s very young. Authority yes, but fear no. Instead, make sure he understands without traumatizing him.
Then, do not use violent methods like throwing water in his face, he will also lose all his confidence in you and you will not get anything positive from it.
Finally, do not let him scratch before acting, do it during and ignore him afterwards to punish him in a soft way, a cat must learn without any verbal or physical violence.
Finally, do not cut the cat’s claws, because he uses them to move around and you would handicap him, file him a little bit to the limit but do not go further. If he scratches you , stop right away, he doesn’t like what you’re doing at all.
One exception: The medical condition
I specify that in very particular cases, your cat can make the claws on the couch compulsively because they have a problem, for example, they can be black or with crusts, in this case, it will obviously be necessary to treat it so that the problem disappears.
If the condition is really bad or does not heal, take advice from a pharmacist and go to the vet if necessary.
Cat scratching the sofa: The final word
If your cat is scratching on the couch, it’s time to encourage her to use her scratching post and encourage her to ignore the couch to scratch, because your cat shouldn’t be scratching just anywhere.