Why Your Cat Needs a Scratching Post

Along with a litter box, one of the first necessary purchases should be a scratching post or scratch pad. Scratching serves psychological and physiological needs by providing your cat the opportunity to stretch, mark territory, and shed dead layers of nail. The outer part of a cat’s claw regularly becomes frayed with wear and tear. Scratching pulls off this frayed outer sheath and exposes sharp, new claws. Scratching is also a way of fulfilling the cat’s strong instinctive need to mark territory. Not only does a cat mark an object visibly by scratching it, but scratching also leaves her scent from the glands on her paws. A scratching post gives a cat the opportunity to exercise this instinct. It is a normal part of your cat's behavior. We highly discourage declawing a cat . Using a scratching post for behavior modification and trimming the nails regularly are healthier alternatives.

A scratching post is an upright wooden post wrapped with sisal rope or carpet that your cat can scratch his front claws on. The surface is usually covered with carpet or sisal rope but some are made from natural wood logs with the bark still on. The rough surface is essential and most cats will naturally want to scratch on it. Homemade scratching posts are more affordable but make sure the post is sturdy and won’t fall over when the cat uses it.

A scratch pad is a flat area of corrugated cardboard that offers a great scratching surface for cats. They cost much less than scratching posts and can be thrown away or recycled when they are no longer useful. They usually lay flat on the floor or at a slight angle and do not offer a cat the stretching ability they can get with an upright post.

Introducing your cat to a scratching post: The location of your scratching post is crucial. If it’s not where your kitty wants to scratch, she won’t use it. Cats will scratch to create a visual territorial marker. If your post is hidden behind a couch or in an unused room, your cat isn’t likely to use it. The best placement for the post is in an area that your cat uses; positioning it near her sleeping or eating area is a good idea. You can entice your cat to use the scratching post by sprinkling catnip on it, playing with your cat using fishing pole toys, and placing treats on or around the post.

Discouraging inappropriate scratching: If you are trying to discourage the cat from scratching on a particular piece of furniture, try placing the post in front of the furniture, gradually moving the post aside as the cat begins to use it regularly. Praise your cat when you see her using the scratching post and spend a minute playing at the post. Place Sticky Paws® or double-sided sticky tape on in the areas of your furniture you want to discourage your cat from scratching. The tape can be removed once your cat is trained to scratch the post. Squirting the cat with water is not very effective and only works when you are present. The cat will still scratch in the wrong place when you are not around.