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Cat scratching carpets

post #1 of 39
6/24/11 at 7:24pm
Thread Starter 
I'm at my wit's end and don't know what to do. One of my two cats won't stop scratching the carpet in my apartment. They have both vertical and horizontal posts, and both cats use them, but this one also will not stop with the carpet. It's not one place, it's like he sprints somewhere, stops, and scratches 5 or 10 times, then runs away. If I cover one area, he just does it 6" away. So, it's not a particular smell on a particular spot unless my whole apartment has that smell; it's not lack of an appropriate place to scratch. Everything I've found on line talks about giving them a scratching post, which I've done. He just doesn't seem to have any incentive to limit his scratching to one place, he really likes digging in the carpet, and I'm tired of picking up pieces he's pulled out knowing I am going to get absolutely screwed by my landlord when I move out.
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post #2 of 39
6/27/11 at 4:44am
I had this problem with one of my cats. He has always been the difficult one! Two things...

1) Don't chase him. Clearly he thinks it's a game..that's why he sprints to the next spot! You have to flat out ignore him. That's a lot easier said than done given that you would be ignoring the destruction of your personal property. Worked for me though.

2) Some cats are picky about what they scratch. Sisal rope, carpet, even wood. If he wants to scratch carpet, give him his very own piece of carpet to scratch. It can be a piece you throw on the floor or you can get a scratching post that is wrapped in carpet. Put some catnip or whatever he likes on it to show him it's his. I have 3 cats that each like to scratch a different thing. I made them a cat tree that has all 3 kinds of posts and it has been wonderful!

Good luck
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post #3 of 39
6/27/11 at 5:56am
Thread Starter 
I'm actually not chasing him. I'm sitting on the sofa and all of a sudden I hear him run and then scratch, so if it's a game, it's one he's making up in his head. Often I am in another room and can't even see him, I just hear it happening.

He has a carpet to scratch; I bought one of those carpet remnants from the store that I wouldn't care if he wrecked. He has no interest. I've put catnip on it - no avail. He doesn't seem to have any incentive to scratch a particular piece of carpet rather than just doing it wherever and whenever he wants, in the same way that a dog who isn't housebroken would have zero incentive to not just poop wherever he wants - if that makes sense. I've put the carpet over the spot where he is scratching - and he moves it, or he goes to one of the other 10 spots he likes to scratch. I guess he scratches the "appropriate" carpet once in a while, just like a broken clock is right twice a day, but since he doesn't care about catnip, I'm at a loss for how it becomes in his best interest to scratch one particular piece of carpet rather than doing it anywhere he wants.
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post #4 of 39
6/27/11 at 7:08am
Try spraying the spots with Feliway on a daily basis. Keep his nails trimmed to reduce the amount of damage he can do to the carpet.
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post #5 of 39
6/27/11 at 8:42am
Do your scratching posts have sisal, wood or carpet on them? If they have carpet, he simply does not understand the difference between scratching on the post carpet and scratching on the floor carpet. To him it's all the same. Giving him his own remnant to scratch will again not help him make the distinction between scratching on the remnant and scratching on the floor.

We have sisal and wood scratching posts and this has worked well for us.

I agree with trimming his nails on a regular basis, this will help.

Good luck!
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post #6 of 39
6/27/11 at 9:03am
Since you already have scratching alternatives, I guess I would agree with keeping nails trimmed, or trying Soft Paws. They're a great invention. Or, can you get a cheap area rug to cover most of the floor space? Maybe he'd scratch that to heck and you can just toss it when you move.. Good luck!
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post #7 of 39
6/27/11 at 9:17am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by katachtig View Post
Try spraying the spots with Feliway on a daily basis. Keep his nails trimmed to reduce the amount of damage he can do to the carpet.
Trimming his nails hasn't helped; he still gets huge piles of loose carpet pieces that come up. And, I'd have to douse almost my entire apartment with feliway; it's not even discrete specific spots; it's like anywhere in 10 square feet in front of the door, anywhere in front of the kitchen, anywhere in the hallway, etc. I'm not sure that spraying my whole carpet every day is a viable (or affordable - I have no idea what it costs) option?
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post #8 of 39
6/27/11 at 9:18am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by DarkMavis View Post
Since you already have scratching alternatives, I guess I would agree with keeping nails trimmed, or trying Soft Paws. They're a great invention. Or, can you get a cheap area rug to cover most of the floor space? Maybe he'd scratch that to heck and you can just toss it when you move.. Good luck!
I can't; I'd have to get so many and I could never get the sizes to cover all of the places he might scratch. I've put smaller pieces of that plastic carpet guard down, thinking it was specific areas, and he just moves it.
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post #9 of 39
6/27/11 at 9:21am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by LoveWhiskers View Post
Do your scratching posts have sisal, wood or carpet on them? If they have carpet, he simply does not understand the difference between scratching on the post carpet and scratching on the floor carpet. To him it's all the same. Giving him his own remnant to scratch will again not help him make the distinction between scratching on the remnant and scratching on the floor.

We have sisal and wood scratching posts and this has worked well for us.

I agree with trimming his nails on a regular basis, this will help.

Good luck!
The post is mostly sisal, and he scratches that a little bit, but I agree with the thing about the remnant. He will never associate that "this particular square is ok," and since cats unlike dogs have no vested interest in making their people happy with their behavior, I feel like no amount of me saying "bad" or "good" or whatever will do anything about it.

His sister always goes to the post or the Emery Cat scratcher in the kitchen. He doesn't seem to ever use the Emery cat.

I also suspect that part of the appeal is that real carpet has resistance to it. A carpet piece will move and pull up when he digs his claws into it, so that might not be so fun for him. That would lead to the same problem with an area rug.

Unfortunately for four years I had hardwood floors and this was never an issue until the latest place; I can't remember if he did this when I lived in an apartment with carpets when they were kittens because its' been forever.
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post #10 of 39
6/27/11 at 2:35pm
From what you have described, I do not believe you will ever have complete success with eliminating carpet scratching. It obviously feels good, and although there are alternatives, he likes it and its everywhere.

As such, I would give up on behavior modification and try soft-paws. There are limitations to them, in particular if you have a very lively cat and don't have a helper to put them on every three weeks or so. But they should at the very least greatly minimize the damage.
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post #11 of 39
6/28/11 at 3:35am
Thread Starter 
Pretty discouraged if gluing something on my cat's feel every few weeks is the only answer. I ordered a set but I have real reservations about this, because a) I don't have anyone to help me hold him down to sit still long enough to glue something on, and b) I've read some really scary things on Amazon about people whose cats didn't shed off the caps and ended up having to have them removed at the vet's, infections, etc.
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post #12 of 39
6/28/11 at 3:53am
Hi all,
I am having the same problem with my cats. They always do the same thing. Even I had remove the carpet as I know that they won't stop scratching.
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post #13 of 39
6/28/11 at 6:10am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by ankydas View Post
Hi all,
I am having the same problem with my cats. They always do the same thing. Even I had remove the carpet as I know that they won't stop scratching.
I wish I had that option - unfortunately I rent. It's starting to get to the point of making me just generally angry at the cat all the time. Just such a stupid stupid destructive habit, and not something that belongs to me to destroy.
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post #14 of 39
6/28/11 at 8:31am
Quote:
Originally Posted by juliel View Post
I wish I had that option - unfortunately I rent. It's starting to get to the point of making me just generally angry at the cat all the time. Just such a stupid stupid destructive habit, and not something that belongs to me to destroy.
The Soft Paws might help. This is probably a dumb suggestion but it did help me with 'Bitz and her scratching. I bought a couple of those corrugated cardboard scratching "beds" that lay on the floor. I sprinkled catnip on them and she went bananas over it. That is all she scratches on now and she also sleeps on them sometimes. I add catnip to them about once a week and I have a supply of the replacement inserts when she tears up the old ones. I've never used the Soft Paws but I've heard good things about them.
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post #15 of 39
6/28/11 at 10:54am
Quote:
Originally Posted by juliel View Post
Pretty discouraged if gluing something on my cat's feel every few weeks is the only answer. I ordered a set but I have real reservations about this, because a) I don't have anyone to help me hold him down to sit still long enough to glue something on, and b) I've read some really scary things on Amazon about people whose cats didn't shed off the caps and ended up having to have them removed at the vet's, infections, etc.
They do have downsides. You can use small human nail scissors to remove them if they don't fall off on their own though, a little snip is all it takes. It can also be challenging if the cat is a long hair and has very fluffy kitty toes as we found w/ a friends when I was recruited. As the nail grows out, they can form a harpoon too in some fabrics, but if your kitty is calm, you can get them in bulk online to where they are inexpensive and its really just superglue. Regarding infection, I would wager they used massive amounts of glue, as otherwise the nail naturally sheds and with it anything glued to it. When they are on though, they definitely work very well. Regarding the catnip reaction, I've found kitties don't seem to respond to it until they are at least a year old, and even then it seems like a quarter of cats it just doesn't really interest them so that may be one of the attraction issues if that strategy wasn't working out.
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post #16 of 39
6/28/11 at 12:17pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by NutroMike View Post
The Soft Paws might help. This is probably a dumb suggestion but it did help me with 'Bitz and her scratching. I bought a couple of those corrugated cardboard scratching "beds" that lay on the floor. I sprinkled catnip on them and she went bananas over it. That is all she scratches on now and she also sleeps on them sometimes. I add catnip to them about once a week and I have a supply of the replacement inserts when she tears up the old ones. I've never used the Soft Paws but I've heard good things about them.
I have one of those cardboard scratchers. The other cat uses it, the problem one doesn't care one bit about it. Or about catnip.

I was really hoping someone would have a solution for this better than "deal with it" or "glue rubber on your cat's feet." I see myself ending up very angry, very scratched up, and with glue all over the place while kitty glowers at me from the other side of the room. It sure makes me understand why people declaw their cats.
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post #17 of 39
6/28/11 at 12:46pm
What about playig with him more. Mine get into mischief and scratch the carpet when they get board. Also, I have cat toys and two of those cloth/paper tubes layingaround all of the time. Kind of like kids neet to be entertained.
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post #18 of 39
6/28/11 at 12:51pm
I feel your pain, i used to have a cat that did the exact same thing unfortunately we never found a way to stop her doing it. Once cat's get into these habits its hard to stop them. One of my kitties scratches the wallpaper every morning and wakes me, words can't describe how annoying it is but luckily for me i hate the wallpaper anyway so it isn't such a big deal. The only thing i can suggest is keeping the kittys nails short. Sorry i couldn't be of more help but you arent alone, loads of kittys do this.
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post #19 of 39
6/28/11 at 12:55pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by LadyGananoque View Post
I feel your pain, i used to have a cat that did the exact same thing unfortunately we never found a way to stop her doing it. Once cat's get into these habits its hard to stop them. One of my kitties scratches the wallpaper every morning and wakes me, words can't describe how annoying it is but luckily for me i hate the wallpaper anyway so it isn't such a big deal. The only thing i can suggest is keeping the kittys nails short. Sorry i couldn't be of more help but you arent alone, loads of kittys do this.
Yeah, I'm not comforted by that. For the first time in 25 years of having cats I'm thinking it's not worth getting another one once I don't have this one anymore if I have to deal with crap like this. Cutting the nails hasn't helped at all, and it is a huge battle to do for no payoff- still scratches, still tears things up.
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post #20 of 39
6/28/11 at 5:11pm
Maybe this isn't the cat for you? You sound really frustrated and overwhelmed and understandably so. Would this be a situation where rehoming is the right answer?

In regards to Soft Paws, I did have a bad experience with one of my cats not shedding his. We did go to the vet and it was cut off. Though alarming, it didn't do damage in the long run. Now I know to just check to see that they shed on their own. The other two cats had no trouble at all. The cat who did not shed the claw cap has very long hair and the glue became stuck in the hair. I would think that a short haired cat wouldn't have the same experience.

Good luck. I hope you find something that works for you and your cats.
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post #21 of 39
6/28/11 at 5:25pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by howtoholdacat View Post
Maybe this isn't the cat for you? You sound really frustrated and overwhelmed and understandably so. Would this be a situation where rehoming is the right answer?
Rehoming is stressful for kitties, and there is no guarantee that the munchkin won't end up being one of the approximately 70% in shelters that are put to sleep, especially if relinquished because of destructive behavioral issues.

I would consider that an absolute last resort before scratch prevention alternatives personally.
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post #22 of 39
6/28/11 at 5:56pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ducman69 View Post
Rehoming is stressful for kitties, and there is no guarantee that the munchkin won't end up being one of the approximately 70% in shelters that are put to sleep, especially if relinquished because of destructive behavioral issues.

I would consider that an absolute last resort before scratch prevention alternatives personally.
I agree but the OP seems incredibly stressed by the suggestions that have been made. It may be in the cats best interest to live in a new place.
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post #23 of 39
6/28/11 at 7:52pm
Have you tried those corrugated cardboard floor box scratchers? They are cheap and most cats just love those. Some cats just like to scratch on the floor and the cardboard scratchers solve that problem. It is worth a try. And if your cat prefers that, I would get a few of them. All of my cats love to run around from one to the other to scratch. They even like to lay on them.
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post #24 of 39
6/28/11 at 7:53pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by tkaner View Post
What about playig with him more. Mine get into mischief and scratch the carpet when they get board. Also, I have cat toys and two of those cloth/paper tubes layingaround all of the time. Kind of like kids neet to be entertained.
I have both him and his sister, they run around all the time, usually when I am trying to teach online and need quiet, and have plenty of toys, so I don't suspect that's it. When the vet wanted them on a diet and I was using a laser pointer with them, that didn't seem to make a difference either.
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post #25 of 39
6/28/11 at 8:00pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ducman69 View Post
Rehoming is stressful for kitties, and there is no guarantee that the munchkin won't end up being one of the approximately 70% in shelters that are put to sleep, especially if relinquished because of destructive behavioral issues.

I would consider that an absolute last resort before scratch prevention alternatives personally.
That's why I'm here looking for some sort of behavioral solution. I wouldn't give him away but Im getting to the point where I'm constantly pissed at him for doing this and I'm just stuck. I'm not threatening to put him in a shelter, but I'm sick of this crap, and I want the behavior to change rather than trying to spend the rest of my life having to pin him down to glue something on his feet every few days. I know that I can want all day and it doesn't change, but I'm definitely feeling less love for the cat every time I find a new pile of loose carpet shreds that increase the liklihood I'm going ot get charged hundreds of dollars on moving out.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Feralvr View Post
Have you tried those corrugated cardboard floor box scratchers? They are cheap and most cats just love those. Some cats just like to scratch on the floor and the cardboard scratchers solve that problem. It is worth a try. And if your cat prefers that, I would get a few of them. All of my cats love to run around from one to the other to scratch. They even like to lay on them.
Yes, as I think I've mentioned a couple times I have them and the other cat uses it a ton and he has no interest in it. I have tried pretty much every "make something else available" alternative suggested by everyone; every material; horizontal, vertical; catnip, no-scratch spray, squirting with water, yelling "no" - nothing has been doing anything. If "just live with your cat destroying your carpet" is one of two answers, along with what I suspect is an impractical solution for me to be able to blue things on him, then I just get to suck it up and be angry and frustrated for the rest of his life and be held hostage by a cat who is very sweet but won't stop this crap.
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post #26 of 39
6/28/11 at 8:11pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by juliel View Post
I have both him and his sister, they run around all the time, usually when I am trying to teach online and need quiet, and have plenty of toys, so I don't suspect that's it. When the vet wanted them on a diet and I was using a laser pointer with them, that didn't seem to make a difference either.
And, I tolerate this behavior, as annoying as it is, because i get that it's a cat being a cat and I can't imagine there's any way to "make them be quiet" because I want them to. But it's also not actually destructive, just annoying.

The only real suggestion that anyone has put forth that I haven't tried is this glue on thing, and I just don't see that being feasible as I don't have someone to help me do this and I know how well other efforts to perform procedures go. I wouldn't be frustrated by the other suggestions if they weren't things I'd already tried, and many of them suggestions of things I've already said I had tried, so I feel like I just keep saying over and over again "I've already gotten them a flat cardboard scratcher and he doesn't like it." If it were that easy, I'd have already found that answer on the internet. But I am flummoxed as to why nobody else seems to have this problem in anything I can google; it's always just people who haven't thought that getting a scratching post might be the answer or people whose cats are scratching one particular piece of furniture. If it were that, it'd be easy for me to apply some sort of spot thing - the double sided tape, whatever. I've given a lot of thought and research to trying to solve this and the reason I haven't done the sticky claw things yet is that I just dont' see that being a feasible option.
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post #27 of 39
6/28/11 at 8:14pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by juliel View Post

Yes, as I think I've mentioned a couple times I have them and the other cat uses it a ton and he has no interest in it. I have tried pretty much every "make something else available" alternative suggested by everyone; every material; horizontal, vertical; catnip, no-scratch spray, squirting with water, yelling "no" - nothing has been doing anything. If "just live with your cat destroying your carpet" is one of two answers, along with what I suspect is an impractical solution for me to be able to blue things on him, then I just get to suck it up and be angry and frustrated for the rest of his life and be held hostage by a cat who is very sweet but won't stop this crap.
Oops, sorry, must have missed your post about the cardboard.
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post #28 of 39
6/28/11 at 11:07pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by juliel View Post
That's why I'm here looking for some sort of behavioral solution. I wouldn't give him away but Im getting to the point where I'm constantly pissed at him for doing this and I'm just stuck. I'm not threatening to put him in a shelter, but I'm sick of this crap, and I want the behavior to change rather than trying to spend the rest of my life having to pin him down to glue something on his feet every few days. I know that I can want all day and it doesn't change, but I'm definitely feeling less love for the cat every time I find a new pile of loose carpet shreds that increase the liklihood I'm going ot get charged hundreds of dollars on moving out.
And I would feel the exact same way. I don't rent, but I work very hard to have nice things, and that would definitely stress any relationship. Unfortunately, from my experience you have taken just about every swing I have ever heard recommended for a behavioral/redirection solution considering the target is carpet.
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post #29 of 39
6/29/11 at 6:25am
Quote:
Originally Posted by juliel View Post
I have one of those cardboard scratchers. The other cat uses it, the problem one doesn't care one bit about it. Or about catnip.

I was really hoping someone would have a solution for this better than "deal with it" or "glue rubber on your cat's feet." I see myself ending up very angry, very scratched up, and with glue all over the place while kitty glowers at me from the other side of the room. It sure makes me understand why people declaw their cats.
This thread has gotten long and there have been so many suggestions so far. I doubt if your cat is stressed but have you tried the phermone diffusers like Feliway? Might settle the meezer down a bit and help alleviate the carpet clawing. I don't know about your cat but mine tend to claw in the same spots most of the time. You might also get one of those cheap carpet sample things and try to redirect the scratching to that. I'm not sure about that one; might encourage the carpet scratching even more but maybe someone really good at cat behavior can help with that.
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post #30 of 39
6/29/11 at 8:16am
It doesn't seem like there is a feasible solution to your problem. From what I read, you have tried the Feliway spray, pieces of carpet, cat scratch posts. You don't want to try the Soft Paws. At this point, your options are few. Rehoming to a person with hardwood or vinyl floors could work. Also putting the cat outside. Don't get me wrong. Cats are safer inside, but that is not always possible. My cats live outside within a fenced in area with a cat fence in system in place around the top of the fence to keep them in and help keep other critters out. Is it possible for you to provide a safe place outside for the cat. I am so sorry you are going through this and especially for your cat. I am sure your cat is feeling your stress and that could be making the problem worse. Right now, I would say your cat has a miserable home life.
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