As an owner of a cat, one of your main priorities will be to train your cat to prevent it from scratching your furniture. This will not only prevent stress for you, it will enable you to form a better bond with your cat.

There is a reason your cat scratches the furniture and you will need to understand that reason. It’s not a question of your cat not having a taste for your furniture, or that your cat wants to irritate you. Cats have a need to scratch. You can’t stop a cat from scratching because it is a natural behavior for it. It is not diificult to train your cat to stop scratching your furniture, all you have to do is to provide a substitute for scratching.

Cats need to scratch in order to stay healthy, as it helps their muscles.  Also, their paws have scent glands and scratching helps them to leave a scent in order to mark their territory. Your cat will also scratch as a means of keeping their claws sharp and clean. Obviously there are reasons as to why a cat needs to scratch. Instead of preventing this type of behavior, it should be encouraged, although on your terms.

Punishing your cat because it scratches your furniture is not going to make it stop. Cats will not respond to punishment and will increase your cats problems. Punishing him/her will only result in your cat avoiding you in the future. Even if you chase your cat away when you catch it scratching furniture, all it will do is to wait until you have gone, and then continue to ruin your furniture behind your back. The only way you can stop your cat from scratching furniture, is by the correct training.

Along with getting a cat, you should also buy a scratching post at the same time. Even better is if you can get hold of a few scratching posts, as this will allow your cat to have more options to scratch. Cats can be trained at any age, but the earlier you can start, the quicker and easier it will be.

The scratching posts should be in places that your cat likes to go. One of the best places to place a post is near where your cat sleeps. The first thing that a cat likes to do when it wakes up, is to stretch and have a good scratch. I think we all share this particular trait. Using a scratching post soon becomes a habit, and your cat will happily continue to use the post in the future.

The room where everybody sits together is another great place to position a scratching post. Although cats give the impression that they are not bothered about people, they secretly love spending time with their owners. If your cat chooses to have a nap on your lap, a nearby scratching post will come in handy.

The only way to train your cat to use a scratching post is to make your cat familiar with it. Get your cat to scratch the post by moving a toy or piece of string up and down it. You could tie some of your pet’s favourite toys onto the post, this will encourage your pet to make contact with the post with its paws. Just by using these simple methods you will easily be able to teach your cat to use the post instead of your furniture.

Ensure that the post is pretty stable and of a good length. Cat training is not difficult if you use the right methods, and it is easy to train your cat to stop it from ruining your furniture.