Best Scratching Post Ever?

chgojcs

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Okay, all you knowledgable cat lovers, educate me. Have some minor scratching issues with our two "kids" (a chair, my pants on the floor, simple, but annoying, stuff) and the title of this post is my question.
As we have decided not to declaw them, I want any and all opinions about what is the best scratching post of all time. I know that some opinions may vary, but I know I can trust you wonderful catesite.com posters.
Also, what has worked for you to actually get them to use the thing, and deter them from scratching your stuff and only use the post.

Thanks.
I await the brilliance.
 

denice

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I can tell you what I have and what my two cats use. I have a fairly tall sturdy post with rope wrapped around it. I also have a carpeted four tier cat tree that they also use like a scratching post. My little girl cat turned out to be a horizontal scratcher and I was having some problems with her clawing at the carpet on the floor. I got a turbo scratcher with the replaceable cardboard center and the ball that rolls around in a channel outside the cardboard center. The toy nature of it got her interest and she now uses that rather than the carpet. I have been fortunate, the problem with the carpet that was easily solved is the only problem with inappropriate scratching that I have had.
 

miss mew

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Our 2 cats love their turbo scratcher (it's the only one they will use)

It's a circular plastic ring with a track on the outside for a ball and a round cardboard insert on the inside.
 

breal76

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Our cats love love love our wicker laundry basket. So much so that when they finally shred a whole in it, we just replace it. Would have never thought that for a scratching post, but it makes them happy.
 

sandtigress

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Different cats tend to like different kinds of scratching posts. My two use the sisal rope on their cat tree, so that's upright and really solid. They also use a replaceable cardboard scratcher that I got for 5 bucks from Target - that one lies flat on the floor but it also has attachments to hang it upright on the wall or from a door knob, or at an angle. Catnip in the cardboard one gets their attention - the sisal they just started using no problem.

This is the cardboard one I have - http://www.worldwise.com/smscmisy.html

Its really cheap and you can replace the type of insert in it according to what your cat will use. For someone who doens't know what their cat will use, I think that might be the best way to go. Anyways, that's my suggestion, hope it helps!
 

reddicequeen

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I found that since my cat is so long he never much cared for the upright scratching posts and instead liked my tall speakers. I bought a cat tree * a really sturdy one* and he uses that now I used Feliway on the speakers and he quit using them to sharpen his nails. He also likes the turbo . The baby does whatever HE does...
 

momofmany

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My cats like anything that is at least as tall as their body at full stretch. The favorite post is a 3 foot tall post made of a tree branch with the top half wrapped in sisul rope. Next favorite is any of the tall cat condos that have long areas to stretch out on.

You can redirect them to the posts once you get them. Entice them by rubbing catnip on them, but if you see them go after furniture, stop them, carry them over to the post and rub their paws on it. It helps a lot if you kneel down with them and rub your fingers over it like you are scratching it. Cats learn by example after all.
 

arlyn

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My most loved 'scratching post' around here is a huge cardboard box lol.
Anything sisal covered is a close second.
 

jennyr

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Try a big sisal door mat - cheap and repaceable, and my cats love it. I also found they love raw unpainted wood (found out the hard way since they scratched on a door waiting to be installed and painted), so I keep a plank in the hall, leaning against the wall. They all use that.
 

epona

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Radar likes to scratch horizontally, so I got an offcut of carpet - the kind with the rough natural fibre backing - and put it upside down on the floor. He now more or less leaves the carpet alone, unfortunately he had already put a hole in the (fortunately ancient and tatty already) hall carpet
 

katiemae1277

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another vote for the Turbo scratcher, I also have an alpine scratcher, which is basically that corrugated cardboard set at an angle..... and like Jenny, mine like wood as my door jambs will attest
 

twstychik

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Only Wickett has claws and he basically claimed a particular rug as "his" so I let him have it. He still occasionally uses the carpet or couch but most of the time he goes to the rugs which he knows he's allowed to scratch on. I'm gonna get a turbo scratcher refill to put in the ball track I already have so he has another place to go. Because he claimed it I didn't have to do anything to get him to use it escept not scold him when he's on it.
 

carolpetunia

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Corrugated cardboard is always a favorite around here -- especially if it's affixed somehow, so as to give plenty of resistance.

By the way... BLESS YOU FOR NOT DECLAWING!
 

beandip

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The favorite here is raw unpainted wood, like momofmany said. They have some 4x4 posts (upright) to dig into and they love it. It can get messy (wood shavings) but it keeps them busy.


The turbo scratcher is good too.
 

abymummy

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I'm amazed that the little ball in your tubo scratcher still exists!!! Mine disappears (I've got 4!!!) after about...4 hours!!!

I too have both horizontal (the turbo scratches) and the vertical cat tree that's covered in sisal!
 

deljo

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My oldest cat Sweetie used a wicker hamper, which of course is now ruined, but was 26 yrs. old. I bought a sissal rope post which is about 22 inches, not tall enough and she will not use it unless I scold her for wanting to scratch on furniture. The youngest cat,Juno likes a floor scratcher, but both of them use a pack of unopened corrugated boxes that I got from the post office to mail things in. Its about 6 inches thick and approx. 3 ft. tall.Go figure. I do clip the nails about every 2-3 weeks. My plan when I got the first cat was to declaw, but when I found out what it entailed I said no way would I subject the cat to that mutilitation.
 

reesespbc

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Originally Posted by katiemae1277

another vote for the Turbo scratcher, I also have an alpine scratcher, which is basically that corrugated cardboard set at an angle..... and like Jenny, mine like wood as my door jambs will attest
Reeses uses the SmartyKat SuperScratcher http://www.worldwise.com/catscratcher.html She has the wider one though. She went nuts for it immediately and uses it daily. I don't even rub the catnip on it, I just give it to her as is and she loves it. I had one previously and I did put catnip on it, but once one side is used up you can flip it over and when I did catnip went everywhere. Then she rolled around in it and got it all over herself. Very messy
The only other thing is that she likes to chew the sides for some reason. I have pieces of carboard all over my living room now


*edit* I Forgot..it's cheap too, the large one is only $10. I got it based on a recommendation from a friend who said that she's never seen a cat who didn't like it and she was right!
 

lionessrampant

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The residents at the no-kill, cgeless shelter I work at highly reccommend this one: http://www.esmartcat.com/shopping/ultimate.php

They also like to scratch their cat trees.

Some like vertical and some like horizontal. At my house, we have one of the above posts, one tree and 2 floor scratchers; one sisal and one cardboard. They never touch my furniture.

To keep them off of things, you have to make those things undesirable, so putting something better out is only half the battle. Things cats DON'T like to put their paws on include double sided tape and things that smell weird. TO a cat, vingegar and citrus rank high on things they don't want their paws (which have scent glands in them) to smell like. Someone suggested diluting vingegar in water and putting that in a spray bottle and spraying that where you DON'T want them to scratch, and steeping cat nip in hot water (just like you'd steep loose-leaf tea in hot water) and spraying that on things you DO want them to scratch.
 
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