Had Bad Experience With Soft Claws

[Discovery86]

My cat likes to scratch on our rugs. It wasn't a problem until we recently moved. I used soft claws, and while they kept her from scratching, at least two of them didn't fall off. This past week I discovered that the claw was growing into her pad. My Mom, sister and I spent a couple of hours cutting them off her claws. She is doing well now, but I don't know what to do about her scratching the rugs. We do have a rug specifically for her to scratch on, but she won't use it. Any ideas

 

[grahamsokel]

Could you not get a cat scratcher post?Our kitten doesnt scratch anywhere but the scratcher and if you rub cat nip onto the scratcher it encourages them to use it

 

[Discovery86]

She only scratches on horizontal surfaces. I tried for a while to get her to scratch on a rug like this one:
petsmart.com
since it could be placed on the floor. She didn't like it much, but I'll try some catnip on it and see if that helps any.

 

[catxx]

cat's don't like citrus juice like orange or lemon, so if that can be put on any surfaces that helps
also double sided sticky tape or duck tape over the surfaces, they hate that too.

or sneak up on them when they do it and spray them with water.

 

[WILDER]

I have a tree stump in my garden for the cats to sharpen there claws on.
The other method is fill a spray bottle with water, and when it attacks the rugs give the cat a spray of water, that will soon stop it.

 

[snowyangel]

or sneak up on them when they do it and spray them with water.

Oh boy can count how many times i've done that lol. What i find is my cats LOVE clawing up large pieces of cardboard. So much that if i pretend clawing at it, they come running over and join in. It really works for them. Only downfall is cardboard pieces, but it saves my furniture.

 

[KathyM]

She only scratches on horizontal surfaces. I tried for a while to get her to scratch on a rug like this one:
petsmart.com
since it could be placed on the floor. She didn't like it much, but I'll try some catnip on it and see if that helps any.

Hiya I don't know if this will help, but we had a similar problem with one of our cats and I read in Think Like a Cat (how sad am I?) that if a cat won't scratch a post it's generally because the ones in petshops are nowhere near tall enough. A cat likes to be able to stretch out and arch it's back to scratch, so a much taller post would be needed.

Like I said, don't know if that's any help, but they're dead easy to make

 

[pica_nuttalli]

is "her" rug a different texture than yours? if she's grown accustomed to scratching on a surface just like one that she isn't allowed to scratch, then you may never break her of the habit...

 

[Discovery86]

is "her" rug a different texture than yours? if she's grown accustomed to scratching on a surface just like one that she isn't allowed to scratch, then you may never break her of the habit...

It is a different texture than the rest of the house. (She will scratch anywhere there's a rug, and sometimes even the arm of the couch.)

I've put catnip on the rug, and I'm going to put it in the hall where we catch her most of the time. I just remembered we do have some no scratch spray. It works in that spot, but usually she just finds another one. I could also try to find some carpet scraps similar to the carpets in my house and put it behind the basement door. (at the old house the first basement step was carpeted, and that was her scratching spot since no one could see it) We already tried the scratching rug there, and it didn't work.

I don't think she'll go for the cardboard idea, although it's really good.
Also, I don't think it's a matter of a scratching post not being tall enough, just that she is way to lazy!!!

Thanks for all the advice and ideas.

 

[Kairi]

hm- sorry about the soft paws not working we use them and love them on our cat. as for the scratching- is there anything kitty really really hates? (ie: loud noises, water, vibrating feeling). our cat, while she does wear soft paws and has a scratching post she likes, loves to scratch the side of the bed, the laundry hamper and the carpet right in front of the bathroom and my duck rug. drives me NUTS. we just say NO fairly loud, or tell the dog to get the cat... lol that works too. (point of this was- find something your cat really doesn't like and associate that w/ scratching)

 

[Discovery86]

Can't think of anything much that she really hates...besides baths and the dog. She knows she's not supposed to scratch, because when someone opens their door or comes up the stairs or whatever she runs away. I don't know if we could ever use a water bottle effectively since she always runs away when she's been caught.
Maybe we could train the dog to come shoo her away when she scratches on the rug (just kidding)

 

[KathyM]

I would recommend that book I mentionned. It's more aimed at the US pet owner than the UK ones (but despite that it's a good read for us Brits too), and is very eye opening on many behaviour traits.

Over here the Soft Claws are just starting to take off, which I'm disappointed about really. Without meaning any disrespect to any US owners, it was declawing first (thankfully outlawed here) and now these, and it makes one wonder, why have a cat if you can't cope with scratching, which is a normal and acceptable feline behaviour

 

[RandomWiktor]

My own cat used to scratch the heck out of our rugs, and was unresponsive to scratching posts, even with catnip. Spraying or loud noises did work... if we were around. The second we left home, he'd have fun shredding everything since no one was there to yell.
So, we came to a compromise. I keep his nails trimmed short at all times, and he still scratches, but his short, blunt nails don't do any damage anyways. It works very well. Granted you have to really keep on top of it, since cat nails grow so fast, but it is a nice way of letting cats do what they enjoy while simultaneously protecting your home from damage.

 

[lljdma06]

If you trim the nails regularly and keep them very blunt, as RandomWiktor says, you won't have damage. That means a cut and file, almost like a weekly manicure.

I agree with you KathyM, and would never declaw or use soft claws. Cat's scratch, period. It's what they do.

Got to love them anyway!

 

[Bloo]

I had one cat (the one in my avatar) who scratched everything in sight and ripped it to pieces. Nothing worked - and as I was still working as a veterinary nurse at the time - had the chance to try just about all products on the market ! I had a further problem that I could absolutely not clip his nails - not even with assistance. He would turn into a vicious monster - even with the help of someone. And this was from kitten age - and I consider myself an expert nail clipper even !
I also had the problem that he was an indoor cat the poor chap - I had to rehome him in the end and sent him to live with my mom (all the way in South Africa! where he could roam around and scratch as much as he likes).

Some cats just won't stop - but you can often reduce it to a minimum with training - or the use of double sided tape !