Friday, July 31, 2009

How do you stop kittens from scratching furniture?


Answers:
Please don't declaw! Cats NEED to scratch.the trick is to make sure they have adequate "allowed" scratching surfaces. For us, that included a tall, sturdy post - one that they won't just pull over on themselves that allows them to stretch up and get a good pull. The stickypaws strips on the furniture worked wonders for us, too. A lot of cats I've seen love the cardboard scratchers.they're just slabs of sturdy cardboard you can get pretty cheap at pet supply stores.
take a spray bottle and everytime they scratch furniture, spray them
What we did with our kittens was buy the sticky pads at the pet store and put them on the couch so when they went to scratch they got the sticky on their paws. Also, I bought a round toy that has the ball in it they chase and the center is that tough corrogated cardboard with catnip you can dribble in it for them to scratch on. We redirect them from furniture to the toy or the hanging scratch post. Some people will suggest you buy Soft paws. These are plastic caps that you put on the cat every 2 weeks or so as they outgrow them so that they can't scratch. My cat bit them off in a matter of a day from putting them on. I put them on again and he took them back off. They are a good idea, if the pet will leave them on!
get rid of the furniture
Double sticky tape where your kittens scratch. make sure you have enough scratch posts get a few of different materials,
have them declawed it stopped mine!
Declaw them. Cats pretty much do what they want. I don't allow them in my house any more. They really have no use to me and they destroy too much property to be worth keeping around.
my cat does the same thing i mean by scratching it he rips it. so i guess order soft paws through the Internet. the spray water ,scratching pole doesn't work on my cat who knows maybe it works on you.so if you find something i would like to know to.in my op ion that what a cat is about .you can't never change them.you dewclaw them or make him outside cat.don't allow him in the house. we love our cats even though they are bad.
buy or make them a scratching pole. they will use it.what they do is natural so accomodate them and you will fix the problem.
the most humane way is to go to your local pet store(petsmart ect.)they sell little covers that slip over the kittens claws.you just get different sizes as the kitten grows
you can get them declawed or just get a toy that they can scratch at.
Scratching posts

Scratching pads

If those don't work, try SoftPaws:

http://www.softpaws.com/

Please don't even consider declawing! Heres why:

http://maxshouse.com/facts_about_declawi.
get a scratchy post - or one made of cardboard. put the kitten on it when you see them try to scratch the furniture and they'll get the idea. Most of those things come with catnip, so they'll be attracted to it anyway.
Delclawing by a good vet(people have been doing that for-ever), scratch posts, stick ons for the furniture, spray bottle with water to douse them when you catch them doing it!!
POP ON THE AND IF THEY DO IT AGAIN TAP THERE PAWS WITH TAPE AND THEN . THEY CAN T MESS UP FURTUNCE . BECAUSE THEY BE TOO BUSY TRY GET THE TAPE OFF THERE PAWS .AND MAKE U UP A BIG POLE FOR THEM
spray them with a water bottle, swat them with a rolled up newspaper, or you can check the pet store for deterrents. If you don't like those ideas you can buy little caps to put on their claws so that they still have their claws but won't damage the furniture.
You don't. They will scratch. One good way to deter them is with a water pistol or better yet, a spray bottle with water in it. Even this, however, will cause them to run but will not prevent the behavior a little later. Remember, cats think they rule. The below is TRUE!

A dog says, "My human cares for me, scratches me, feeds me, gives me water and a treat. S/he must be god!" A cat says, "My human cares for me, scratches me, feeds me, gives me water and a treat. I must be god!"
ugh. De-clawing cats is cruel.
Buy a water pistol. Then shoot 'em when they touch the furniture. Unfortunately, the hard part is that the cats shouldn't SEE you doing it. That way, they'll think that if they touch the furniture (or go some place they shouldn't go to), they'll think that something's wrong and they'll start avoiding it.
If they see you, they might not make the connection that they're doing something wrong, and they won't know why you're being mean to them.
Some older cats might make the connection of doing something wrong after awhile if you grab them and yell at them several times. Kittens won't know what's going on.
Give them a scratch post or pad, Sam's and WalMart have, among many others. AND spay water on them when you catch'em.
Declaw them
Simple- Lock them in a cage or put them outside.
use a scratching post
Put scratch proof stuff on your furniture and get some cat toy that they can scratch their paws.
Cut their nails completely
Spray bottle - 50% water, 50% vinegar. They hate the smell, but the smell goes away when it dries.

I had mine de-clawed at the first possible chance.
There is a great product called Comfort Zone with Feliway that stops cats from scratching. Cats scratch because they are releasing pheromones to mark their teritory. Comfort Zone (www.petcomfortzone.com) mimics this pheromone, signalling to cats that they don't need to mark an area. It is available in both a diffuser or spray. I swear by it.it really works! Good luck.
everytime they do it, squirt them with a squirt gun. usually its effective after a week or so, but if your kitten has a real problem, it may take longer.

hope this helped!!
-jessica=]
we had the same problem with our kittens. we got them a scratching post and they didnt know what it was at first then they used it all the time. if you get one, put it right next to whatever they're scratching.
I think that the scratching is just something cats do. You can consider declawing the kittens, though.

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