Since cats won’t respond to physical punishments, the best way to change your furry companion's destructive habits is to use a no-yes approach to behavior redirection. Take a No-Yes Approach to Redirecting Behaviors Your cat’s claws are their most important tool. Declawing-or call it what it is, amputation-takes away your cat's ability to grip onto toys at play time, their ability to stabilize on perches, and much more. There are many reasons not to declaw your cat, including increased pain, and lower quality of life. This will create a dynamic of fear between you and your feline, without actually teaching them anything.Īnother mistake made by some cat parents is the decision to declaw their cats to stop the scratching. They don't know what they’ve done to receive this punishment, after all it is natural for them to scratch.Ĭats are intelligent, they are able to recognize the hand holding the bottle as the source of their discomfort. When you reach for that spray bottle or shout at your cat while they’re scratching a door frame it confuses them. Relying on physical or verbal punishment to break your cat's unwanted habits will strain their relationship with you. While it seems harmless enough, punishment is not a good solution to the problem. It can be so tempting to reach for that spray bottle when you see your cat ripping up your doors. If you don’t already own a post, try making a DIY cat scratching post. If you’ve had the same scratching post for a while, try rewrapping the post with fresh rope and sprinkle on some silvervine to pique their interest. Variety is the spice of life as they say. And remember, cats can get bored of scratching the same things over and over. This means the more suitable options, the better!īottom line, the most effective way to redirect Mr. Butternut Squash's behavior is to offer him something even better-more advantageous locations or textures. Indoor domestic cats need variety in texture and placement. Outdoor cats use fence posts, tree stumps, railroad ties, fallen limbs, and the like. Try offering a few different kinds of scratchers around your home and at varying heights and textures. The purrfect scratching surfaces are cardboard, sisal, wood, cork, and sometimes paper or carpeting. They need something that mimics the texture of the furniture and surfaces they like to scratch. Odds are, your cat is scratching your stuff because they don’t have enough scratch-worthy surfaces available to them. Cats stretch for physical relief (just like we do), but they’re also showing off muscle to possible invaders (kittens scratch low, adult cats scratch high). In this case, height matters too.ĭoor frames, couches, and chairs are also sturdy and allow cats the ability to stretch and leave high visual marks. That's why the corner of a couch or doorframe is so appealing. Scratching surfaces located at entrances/exits or in plain sight makes sense. This also allows them to leave messages-think of scratching like texting for cats. When cats walk into a room or patrol their territory, they announce themselves several times by scratching on surfaces along the way. Insider insight: it all boils down to placement and texture. If you want your cat to communicate in the right way, you need to understand why cats scratch a particular item. So why are they scratching up your door frames, or in some cases carpets and couches? The short answer: because it feels pawsome, and these surfaces are in the purrfect location for cats to announce themselves or leave messages.
#Cat claw marks skin
Cats scratch for a myriad of reasons: to decompress, to clean dead skin from their nail beds, to mark their territory, and to communicate. They have a natural instinct to claw at things. Why Is Your Cat Scratching Your Door Frames?Ĭats need to scratch. The most important thing to remember is cats will not respond to physical punishment, but can learn through strategic behavior redirection. While most cat owners aren’t thrilled to see little scratch marks emerging all around our home, the reality is when you let an animal into your domicile there are going to be some pesky (and sometimes destructive) habits that pop up.īut you can take a few steps to redirect unwanted scratching- on furniture, door frames, or anything else you don't want destroyed. But you know as well as I do that cat behavior is more complicated than that. Oh, how I would love to tell you there is a simple one-step solution to stop your cat from digging their claws into the door frames of your beloved home.
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