> Training
How do
I get my cat to begin scratching its scratching post instead of
the furniture?
By Steve Dale
Steve
Dale's Pet World
You
can be like the grandma who puts plastic over her furniture. At
least temporarily, consider putting heavy plastic over the
furniture to prevent the behavior -- and prevent reupholstery.
Meanwhile, give your cat something that it can scratch. Either
build your own scratching post with four-by-fours or purchase a
"cat hotel." If you decide to construct your own,
purchase a piece of sample carpeting and turn it over to the nubby
jute side. While cats don't like walking on the back side of
carpeting, scratching at it is another matter. Appealing cat trees
have a sturdy base and have at least one horizontal branch.
Encourage the cat by playing with it and feeding it near the
scratching post. Tuck some catnip at the base and on the tree. You
may even want to teach it a lesson in Scratching 101. Take the
cat's paw and show it how to scratch the post. Sometimes feline
see/feline do is effective. You may also try waving a toy in
front of the scratching post. The cat goes for the toy and digs
its claws into the post, then you praise the cat. In older cats,
you may need to repeat this scenario several times a day for a
week to 10 days before it catches on. (You can teach an older cat
new tricks; it just takes longer.)
As the cat begins to use the post, remove that tacky looking
plastic off your furniture. If you catch the cat in the act of
daring to scratch at your furniture, either hide around a corner
and blast a bicycle horn or take an empty soda can filled with
four pennies and throw it at your cat. Please, don't test your
aim. The idea isn't to hit your cat with the can. Your intent is
the startle the cat, and to deliver the correction without the cat
realizing that you're responsible for it. Otherwise, the cat will
simply scratch at your dining room table when you're not looking.
Then, the entire affair will become a cat and mouse game as you
attempt to catch kitty in the act. It's a game you will never win.
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