Suggestions for big cat scratchers?

Hi

I have a cat who is kinda big, he weighs 19 pounds, and is fairly big, tall, and long, not fat though, just somewhat chubby. Anyways, he often scratches the carpet in my current apartment, and I am fine with that. But, I am moving to a new apartment which only has hardwood floors, and I am afraid he will start scratching the walls and furniture. I want to buy a good cat scratcher, but I had one that was like a poll, but he couldn't use it because he is so big that it would topple over the second he would touch it. So do you have any suggestions for a very sturdy cat scratcher, for a long, tall, heavy cat?

Thanks!

How handy are you with building stuff? Or do you know someone else who can build a post for you? Since your cat is heavy, a thick (1 to 1-1/2 inch) and wide plywood base would help keep it from tipping.

If you can get a measurement of your cat fully stretched out it will help you in building or picking out a scratching post too. And if you're not handy, there's this option http://www.purrfectpost.com/

If you are interested in building a big scratching post yourself, check out this thread:
http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=135073

My cat is 15 pounds - same deal, he's not fat, just a large cat... he has a store bought post but it was really too small for him... he couldn't stretch at all - so I decided to make my own... the thread I linked has pretty much all the details of how I made my post... best thing about making your own is you can customize it to your style and your cat, plus it ends up being MUCH cheaper than buying a big honkin' post... someone in the above thread commented that the one I made would be like $40 in a store... the only thing I actually went to the store for was more sisal - the rest was sitting around the house... even if I did have to buy all the materials, it'd still be cheaper...

If you don't want to make your own, the only really big posts I can think of would be incorporated into cat trees... I know fosters and smith has a wide selection of trees - they're kinda expensive though

Also, even though they're not large, if your cat will use them the cardboard scratchers that just lay on the floor are nice. I have a 16lb cat that loves them.
They're cheap and could work until you can find or make a post.

I have one cat that likes to scratch on sisal rope posts and another cat who prefers to use carpeting. We have posts covered with both and we have a chunk of carpeting attached to a wall upstairs and downstairs. We also bought a cat stand that is covered in carpeting. The cat loves it.

I bought a scratching post on ebay like this http://cgi.ebay.com/32-Scratching-Po...QQcmdZViewItem and Riley loves it!

Its 32 inches so its tall enough for him, has carpet and rope both, because sometimes he prefers one over the other, and it is very heavy and sturdy. The only time it moves is when he runs from one end of the apartment and jumps straight on it when he's having his "crazies"

I second the cardboard scratcher option. Seb used to scratch on carpet until I decided to try these. Now, this is all he uses Get the large one, they run about $10US here at Walmart.

I have to say that I found this absolutely wonderful:
http://www.esmartcat.com/shopping/ultimate.php

Milo is a 10lb 8-9 month old psycho-energy boy (and I wouldn't have it any other way!) and he has RUN at this thing and LEAPT onto it and clung on and he climbs up it and EVERYthing and it hasn't ever tipped over.

Our apartment has some pretty uneven floors so the challenge was finding some place even enough to put it!

Originally Posted by Bonnie1965

I second the cardboard scratcher option. Seb used to scratch on carpet until I decided to try these. Now, this is all he uses

Get the large one, they run about $10US here at Walmart.

Click to expand...

I have 3 of the smaller ones (also bought at Walmart), my cats (especially my tonkeniese) really adore them. I have a problem, however, with my calico when she wants attention, she scratches on the metal closet doors and sometimes on the wall. I've tried everything to get her to stop and nothing has worked.

EDIT: This really doesn't fit in this thread as it's about big cats...both of mine are less than 10 pounds.

I found this on craigslist after searching for some tall and sturdy ones for 2 of my big 20 LB boys ... I actually talked to him on the phone and he was very knowledgeable about cats and what is safe for them and has 3 cats of his own.

http://bham.craigslist.org/art/381503976.html

He quoted me doing one with a cedar post around 50 inches tall, very sturdy for around $250.00.