Operation Armchair Shield
The Cat has declared war on my beautiful armchair.
Early in the morning--you pet owners know, earlier than your alarm and earlier than their breakfast time--the "Pick! Pick! Pick!" of claws on upholstery tears me out of bed so I can shoo someone off back of the armchair.
And then there are those totally random moments where she just can't fight the compulsion to scratch on the side of the chair as she walks by. Or thinks I'm not giving her (perhaps her food bowl?) enough attention.
She's always been pretty good about where she scratches. She likes the sisal post part of her perch (a.k.a. "Scratchie"), and I praise her when she uses it, which is several times a day. Considering that Foster & Smith doesn't make it anymore, maybe it's getting a little old. (This is her second one, actually.) I've been a little lax about the carpet, because it was garbage when I moved in and should've been replaced. I know they're going to replace it when I move out. Those were the only places she scratched. On those rare moments of naughty behavior, I could say, "Show me what a good girl does," and she'd trot over to "Scratchie" and stretch up to it.
Until the armchair business started about a month ago.
I couldn't take it anymore. I'm starting to see some pulls in the upholstery. I've been looking around for a scratching post like "Scratchie," but they're all really pricey and seemingly not tall enough. You can see "Scratchie," as well as The Cat's height, in the photo for this post.
So, I have given up on sisal and am going to try this stand-up cardboard scratcher. She loves the catnip from that company--she gets a pinch of it every morning on her perch--so maybe it will attract her.
Attract her far away from the armchair.
Early in the morning--you pet owners know, earlier than your alarm and earlier than their breakfast time--the "Pick! Pick! Pick!" of claws on upholstery tears me out of bed so I can shoo someone off back of the armchair.
And then there are those totally random moments where she just can't fight the compulsion to scratch on the side of the chair as she walks by. Or thinks I'm not giving her (perhaps her food bowl?) enough attention.
She's always been pretty good about where she scratches. She likes the sisal post part of her perch (a.k.a. "Scratchie"), and I praise her when she uses it, which is several times a day. Considering that Foster & Smith doesn't make it anymore, maybe it's getting a little old. (This is her second one, actually.) I've been a little lax about the carpet, because it was garbage when I moved in and should've been replaced. I know they're going to replace it when I move out. Those were the only places she scratched. On those rare moments of naughty behavior, I could say, "Show me what a good girl does," and she'd trot over to "Scratchie" and stretch up to it.
Until the armchair business started about a month ago.
I couldn't take it anymore. I'm starting to see some pulls in the upholstery. I've been looking around for a scratching post like "Scratchie," but they're all really pricey and seemingly not tall enough. You can see "Scratchie," as well as The Cat's height, in the photo for this post.
So, I have given up on sisal and am going to try this stand-up cardboard scratcher. She loves the catnip from that company--she gets a pinch of it every morning on her perch--so maybe it will attract her.
Attract her far away from the armchair.
Comments
I'd try that line with the Official Dog, but I fear the answer would be, "Whatever the hell I'm already doing."
Not that she's not well-behaved, but she's devious about being naughty and doesn't appreciate being caught.
As for attracting her far away from the armchair, I had luck with a now departed cat by putting the sisal scratching post (also not made anymore...) right in front of where she liked to scratch. It blocked her normal scratching spot and she learned to scratch on it. Then it started to slowly move across the floor as time went on, until it was in a place we were happy with and she (and her claws) followed. She never scratched the chair again.
Sara--O.K., the armchair gets it when I don't respond to being walked on and yelled at. And it hurts much more to be walked on now that she's close to 10 lbs., yet I still want my 15-20 minutes before I absolutely have to get up.
Your plan with the scratcher is exactly what I want to do. I hope it works!