Anyone who has a cat knows that this is a pet that uses scratching every day, and for a wide array of different reasons. For instance, cats do that to play, stretch, and mark their territory. Because they do that frequently, the cat’s claws are always sharp. Just talk with any person who has this animal as a pet and you will see that these people have scratches on their hands frequently.
Since this is not an option for cats, it is a necessity, it’s not uncommon to see them use it destructively. When we say that, we mean that they will damage your furniture, walls, cables, clothes, etc. In a situation where you have more than just one of them, you will see that this damage can be much more severe. If you are interested in checking some of these consequences, look for them online.
Especially if you don’t tend to them in the way, you can expect this to happen in the most severe ways. One of the reasons we believe is often overlooked is that they want to attract the attention of their owner. You would want to prevent this from happening. Thankfully, there is a way you can do that. So, we would like to talk about how you can do that.
The Main Techniques
Now, we would like to talk about the most significant techniques you can implement to prevent this from happening.
“No” Technique
The next thing we would like to talk about is the “no” technique. It is a way of preventing this from happening by buying some materials that will discourage your pet from scratching everything in your home. For instance, you can cover all the critical spots with tin foil. Furthermore, you can use some plastic, which will be non-sticky, to protect the furniture from scratches. There are two downsides to this technique. For instance, it can be quite hefty and it will make your homes less stylish.
“Yes” Technique
Now, we would like to talk about the “yes” technique. It means that you will allow your pet to scratch, but only on certain surfaces or posts. There are a lot of different types of products that can provide you with enormous help with this. You should take a look at some nail posts, and surfaces. Thankfully, these are quite popular and you will have no problems coming across them. You just need to look for these online.
How to Implement the “Yes” Technique?
Many people make the mistake of believing that they will prevent scratching by discouraging their cat from doing that. However, we can say that this is not something that will provide you with long-term benefits. If we know anything about cats, it is that you cannot make this animal do something it doesn’t want to do. So, the best tactic for you is to come up with a way to teach it where it should do it.
The best thing you can do by far is to obtain one of the surfaces or objects where this would be allowed. At the same time, you need to have in mind that not all of these would be appropriate. Since your pet has a mind of its own, it will not listen to you if it doesn’t have any kind of pleasure from it. Now, let’s talk about what you should do in this case.
Provide Certain Materials
One of the most obvious things you can do is buying scratching posts, who are made of certain materials. Among the most interesting materials, you will find wood, cardboard, and upholstery. Furthermore, you will need to consider the position. The reason is that some cats are more interested in vertical posts, while some others prefer horizontal posts. For you to make this kind of decision, you will need to know your pet’s preferences, which is a question of experience, of course. If you would like to take a look at some of these, be sure to check mainecoonhawaii.com.
Encourage Your Pet to Use These
As you can presume, making your pet using these is not an easy task. It depends on every cat, but all owners agree that this is not something you can achieve overnight. That’s why you should implement a couple of factors inside it. For instance, you should place it in a certain part of the room, the one your pet prefers for some reason. It’s not a mistake to put it in the location where it sleeps. That way, you encourage it from scratching any other surface in the house or apartment.
Scratch Spray
One of the most effective ways you can trick your cat into not scratching is to buy scratch sprat. We are talking about a product that will trick your pet into believing that the territory has already been market. Therefore, you will save yourself from a lot of headaches. What is particularly interesting about it is that your pet will not manifest this activity in some other way. So, you are safe from any side effects.
Declawing Your Pet
One of the things many people do is declawing their pet. While this may seem like the easiest thing to do, it needs to be said that you should avoid it. For those who don’t know, we are talking about a process that removes the bones from a cat’s toes. Despite the obvious signs that your cat wouldn’t be happy with this outcome, it is not uncommon to see that it can refuse to use the litter box. In some severe cases, it could bite its owner, which can be more dangerous than many people know.
The Bottom Line
A vast majority of people in the world love to have pets. However, it needs to be said that this can be too much sometimes. Especially because you will need to have the responsibility to keep it healthy. As you can see from this article of ours, cats need to scratch if they want to be as healthy as they can be. So, we provided you with some of the most significant ways you can make this happen without any risk.