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Our new "Sratch Mat" is a total hit!

post #1 of 13
2/27/10 at 4:22am
Thread Starter 
Went to walmart last night & bought a Smarty Cat brand "Scratch Mat" for the babies, it is made out of a sisal/wicker looking material. It has a back on it, with a zipper so you can put nip in it and not have a huge nip mess all over the carpet.

Anyways, it was a total hit! Bella jumped on it & scratched as soon as I put it on the floor, and would not let the others near it. If they got near it she would bop them on the head . She got up to drink water & the others got to check it out, they all love it.

I like this thing because it just looks like a little accent rug, and it's not in my way like a scratching posts. Also, the main reason I got this instead of anything else is because I wanted something to prevent them from scratching at our new carpet. So I did not want anything made out of carpet, that would teach them that it is ok to scratch carpet. The only non carpet things that had was these and the cardboard scratchers, these look like they last longer. I plan on getting 3 more and sewing them together to make a big mat.
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post #2 of 13
2/27/10 at 4:26am
I'll have to look into them. I'm sure it would be a hit with my babies too!
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post #3 of 13
2/28/10 at 1:12am
Quote:
Originally Posted by KatKisses View Post
it is made out of a sisal/wicker looking material. It has a back on it, with a zipper so you can put nip in it and not have a huge nip mess all over the carpet.
This was the first scratch mat I got for Holland right after I adopted her, before I was able to get her a scratching post. She used it right away when I first brought her home, and although she prefers her scratching post these days, she will still spend some time with her original scratch mat. Especially when I refresh the nip...
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post #4 of 13
2/28/10 at 1:22am
I have one of those in front of the bedroom litter box. Siri prefers it over other scratchers and always has a before bed scratch on it.
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post #5 of 13
2/28/10 at 5:24am
Wow! I look at those every time I go to walmart but have never been able to make up my mind to get one.

how do they stay flat? I thought they would ruck up, and not work well. Mazy loves a flat sisal scratcher and hers is dead.
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post #6 of 13
2/28/10 at 11:22am
Mine has some tiny rubberized beading? on the back of it and is heavy enough to stay down. Plus the cat usually sits on it while scratching. This isn't to say that it can't bunch up or move, though.
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post #7 of 13
2/28/10 at 12:09pm
It's so nice to find something they like!
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post #8 of 13
3/1/10 at 5:59pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mystik Spiral View Post
This was the first scratch mat I got for Holland right after I adopted her, before I was able to get her a scratching post. She used it right away when I first brought her home, and although she prefers her scratching post these days, she will still spend some time with her original scratch mat. Especially when I refresh the nip...
Mine seem to love it as much as their cat tree so far. Might be because it's the 'new toy.' lol.



Quote:
Originally Posted by strange_wings View Post
I have one of those in front of the bedroom litter box. Siri prefers it over other scratchers and always has a before bed scratch on it.
No way I could put it near the litter box, I am pretty sure Poodle or Bear would try to drag it into the box while frantically trying to cover their litter. I am afraid to put it near the food/water for the same reason, toys always end up on their plates because they try to cover the food & save it for later. That is sweet that she uses the scratcher before bed.



Quote:
Originally Posted by otto View Post
Wow! I look at those every time I go to walmart but have never been able to make up my mind to get one.

how do they stay flat? I thought they would ruck up, and not work well. Mazy loves a flat sisal scratcher and hers is dead.
They are kinda heavy, sometimes they pull it up but they just let go of it, it goes back flat, and they try again. A couple of mine have even got under it, just checking it out & being silly.



Quote:
Originally Posted by strange_wings View Post
Mine has some tiny rubberized beading? on the back of it and is heavy enough to stay down. Plus the cat usually sits on it while scratching. This isn't to say that it can't bunch up or move, though.
Yes, mine has the rubber nubs on the back too.



Quote:
Originally Posted by Trouts mom View Post
It's so nice to find something they like!
It is! I buy a lot of stuff that they don't even care about, it's nice when you get something they actually use.




Here are a couple pics for those who are curious:


Poodle is the model... lol.




This is the back, it has a zipper/pouch so you can put cat nip in it with no mess.
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post #9 of 13
3/1/10 at 6:28pm
That looks like the exact same one I have, leopard print and all! Poodle is very beautiful, btw.
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post #10 of 13
3/3/10 at 3:59pm
Thread Starter 
I almost didn't realize that there is different colors, until the leopard print one stood out to me.
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post #11 of 13
3/4/10 at 4:48am
Mine has brown suede trim. And there's a log over the edge of it and directly in front of that litter box (hey it was handy, clean, and the cats enjoyed it till they got bored of it) that keeps it from being moved much. Plus no one ever uses the bedroom box - five litter boxes for seven cats and they only use about 3 1/2 of them.
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post #12 of 13
3/9/10 at 10:55pm
I've just discovered that Holland is very into having her mat moved around. She hadn't paid it much attention for months, but when I moved it to a different room, all of a sudden it got "cool" again. I don't know if it's because she's finally reacting to the catnip pouch or what, but the last couple of days she has been bringing her toys to "the mat" and staying there with them.
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post #13 of 13
3/10/10 at 2:37pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by strange_wings View Post
there's a log over the edge of it and directly in front of that litter box (hey it was handy, clean, and the cats enjoyed it till they got bored of it) that keeps it from being moved much.
lol, I didn't even think of using something to hold it in place, that is a good idea!



Quote:
Originally Posted by Mystik Spiral View Post
I've just discovered that Holland is very into having her mat moved around. She hadn't paid it much attention for months, but when I moved it to a different room, all of a sudden it got "cool" again. I don't know if it's because she's finally reacting to the catnip pouch or what, but the last couple of days she has been bringing her toys to "the mat" and staying there with them.
Mine like it when I move theirs around too, lol. It's almost like they think it's 'new' again.
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