One of the top reasons a cat loses his home is destructive scratching when the importance of pristine furniture trumps the cat-owner bond. Seren learned pretty quickly the difference between acceptable behavior and what prompts human outrage. I suspect that my attitude also has relaxed as my furniture and carpeting aged.

People already bonded with a cat tend to put up with more household damage before resorting to ditching the kitty--but it can still happen. Understanding why a cat scratches--and how easy it is to prevent damage to furniture--helps motivate us to train Kitty to properly use a legal target.

Clawing is hard-wired into the feline brain, and is a natural instinctive behavior that can’t be stopped. While some felines are claw-maniacs and others less demanding of scratch-time, all cats claw for physical, emotional, and social reasons.

Clawing feels good, and provides great aerobic exercise to stretch the shoulder and foreleg muscles, and keeps nails healthy. Scent pads in kitty paws leave invisible smell-cues of ownership. The marks also serve as feline Post-It Notes to warn away other cats from prime feline real estate. That’s why singleton cat households may have less claw-trauma than the multi-pet homes, where each cat vies for territory and attention. Cats also claw to comfort themselves during times of stress. I’ve noticed that Seren claws more in the presence of the dog, Magic, than when she had the house to herself. He may not understand the significance, but she certainly does!

Feline claws correspond to the last joint of a human’s fingers and toes, but extend and retract courtesy of two small “hinged” bones that rest nearly on top of each other. A relaxed paw sheaths the claw inside a soft, smooth furry skin fold. Flexing the tendon straightens the folded bones and pushes claws forward and down. Declaw surgery cuts off the last joint of each kitty toe. The most humane techniques use lasers these days, but declawing should never be considered routine. Some declawed cats develop other behavior problems, such as biting to defend themselves, or snubbing the litter box when sore paws make them reluctant to dig in the litter.

Rather than resort to surgery, offer your cat legal outlets for this natural behavior. For successful scratch training, give the cat an irresistible target, while making forbidden objects undesirable. Kitty wants the world to see his scratch-graffiti, so don’t hide posts in back rooms. Place them in high traffic areas or near important cat territory— windows, lookouts, nap places, and food stations.

Seren has two cat trees, situated at both the front and the rear windows. Each has vertical wooden posts for scratching, as well as carpeted horizontal resting spots that also can be scratched. They were quite pricey, but serve the purpose while looking good, and lure her away from targeting nearby furniture.

The scratch surface—wood, sisal, carpet—and its shape—vertical or horizontal—are very important. Observe your cat to figure out what he likes. Spiking the new object with catnip helps promote feline allegiance.

Seren tends to prefer horizontal scratch objects. Before we purchased the high-dollar cat trees, I made several cheapo scratch objects for her use. When a cedar tree blew down, we cut two lengths (two-foot by three inches) and brought them inside. The shredding bark makes a bit of a mess that must be vacuumed regularly even after ten-plus years. The third homemade object consists of a length of pine shelving wrapped first with quilt padding, and then covered with upholstery fabric. It’s very tattered and remains a favorite. Because scratching is a marking behavior, cats want their chosen object to reflect the claw-assault, and that makes the shred bark on the cedar and tattered look of the fabric more alluring. Avoid “cleaning up” or re-covering tattered scratch objects. That can risk the cat losing scratch-allegiance when her marks disappear.

Make illegal targets unattractive to the cat, until he learns to use the right object. Sticky Paws double-sided tape, endorsed by the ASPCA, works great on upholstery—cats dislike touching surfaces that stick to paw fur. Strong scents such as citrus deodorants or Vicks Vapo-Rub repel many cats. Cinnamon peppered on dark upholstery, or baby powder on light fabric, prompts a poof of dust into the cat’s face when he assaults with feline claws. You can even temporarily wrap chair arms with bubble wrap. These pet-safe “booby-traps” are effective when you’re not around.

A product called Comfort Zone with Feliway duplicates the cheek scent that cats produce and rub against furniture or other objects. Cheek-rub scent tells the cat to “chill, calm down! Everything’s cool” and reduces stress-related behaviors such as urine spraying, clawing, and aggression. Feliway comes as a spray or a plug-in from pet product stores.

Meanwhile, position the legal object next to the illegal target so you can redirect your cat’s claws when necessary. Interrupt forbidden scratching with a loud sudden noise. Slap a newspaper against your thigh, clap hands, or shake an empty soda can full of pennies. A long-distance squirt gun aimed at a furry tail can startle some cats out of the behavior, but this won’t work for all cats. Seren actually LIKES to be squirted! Once kitty stops, direct claws to the legal target perhaps with a laser pointer or dragging a feather lure over the surface, and praise when he does the right thing.

For hard-case cats, Soft Paws reduce the potential for scratch damage. The vinyl claw covers glue over the top of each nail, and come in a variety of fashion colors. They are available from pet supply stores and some veterinary offices. You can learn to apply them yourself.

After the cat switches to scratching the correct object, move it to a better location, a few inches at a time. The bubble wrap comes off as well. A little bit of human inconvenience translates into a well-trained kitty and a lifetime of love. And that’s the purr-fect outcome for everyone.

You'll find more information about dealing with kitty claw issues in "PETiquette: Solving Behavior Problems in Your Multipet Household" as wall as Pet Peeves radio show "Claws & Effect" at PetLifeRadio.com.

© 2009 Amy D. Shojai