Alternative to cat-nip?

I'm having difficulty getting my kittens to use their scratching posts. While they are interested in them, they don't quite know what these new toys are for. I read that putting cat-nip on the posts can help to encourage them to scratch. Unfortunately, my kittens don't seem to like the smell. In fact, they run away from it. Are there any alternatives to cat-nip? What other techniques can I use? I've tried gently rubbing their paws on the scratching areas, but they just don't seem to catch on. I want to teach them the appropriate places to scratch before they start to do damage.

Is it maybe to small the cat post ? Is is shaking when they jump on it ?
If they don't feel save on the post they wont use it .
I have a cat tree over 6 feet tall and all of my cats love it .
Where do have the post ? If it is in a area out of the way they wont bother to walk all the way to use it . The best would be if it is in a trafic area for the cats or by the window . You also can try placing a toy on the post and see if they start playing on it , make it interesting for them . If it is a hanging post or something like that , they may not like it . I have a very cute mouse scratching post on a door hanging and sure enough they don't like it at all . I have to spray catnip on it in order for them just to look at it

You can try honeysuckle or valerian but kittens often don't respond to smells that adult cats do.

How old are the kittens? They usually don't catch onto what a scratching post is for until around 8-10 weeks.

The kittens are almost twelve weeks. I have two different types of scratching posts. One is a carpeted tower that has feathers hanging off of it. The other is a circle that lays on the ground. It has a cardboard center and a ball on a track that goes around it. These toys are in the center of their respective rooms. The kittens love playing on both of them, they just don't scratch at it. They prefer to sharpen their claws on the couch.

I have spray catnip and the dried stuff that comes with the toys. The kittens really don't like the spray. It says on the bottle that it's concentrated. Is it possible that the spray is too strong for them? Would I be better off buying a catnip plant and seeing if they will respond to that?

Where can I find the honeysuckle or valerian?

My two cats didnt start responding to catnip until much later, like around 5 or 6 mos. Now they love it. LOVE it. I've added a kitten recently and you can tell the smell strikes him somehow, but its not quite the same effect as the other two.

Originally Posted by serena_p

I'm having difficulty getting my kittens to use their scratching posts. While they are interested in them, they don't quite know what these new toys are for. I read that putting cat-nip on the posts can help to encourage them to scratch. Unfortunately, my kittens don't seem to like the smell. In fact, they run away from it.

Are there any alternatives to cat-nip? What other techniques can I use? I've tried gently rubbing their paws on the scratching areas, but they just don't seem to catch on. I want to teach them the appropriate places to scratch before they start to do damage.

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Yes, there now is. There is an industry first newly on the market...honeysuckle spray and also a valerian root spray. Both are often attractive to cats that do not respond to catnip.

We bought some honeysuckle plants that smell great, I was thinking of planting them near my cats outdoor enclosure. Do you think its safe? I know they will probably eat it but wasnt sure if it was safe or not.

The most successful way for me to teach scratching post was to scratch on it myself. Right when they wake up or as soon as I came in the house, when they are likely to want to stretch, I would scratch my fingers on the post just above their reach. They would try to catch my fingers and over time they discovered the pleasures of scratching the post. Becky

Originally Posted by malynn

We bought some honeysuckle plants that smell great, I was thinking of planting them near my cats outdoor enclosure. Do you think its safe? I know they will probably eat it but wasnt sure if it was safe or not.

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No! I would have to go re-look up the information, but there are varieties of honeysuckle, and I believe all that is used in honeysuckle toys comes from using bits of stem that are safe...I think the plants/leaves/flowers themselves are toxic.

I'll go look this up and post more here in a few minutes.

Well...I'm not finding the kind of comprehensive info. I wanted...except that yes, honeysuckle is toxic but no, the cat toys are not...those are made from just 1 of 25 different varieties of honeysuckle, and use the wood of the honeysuckle only.
So no, I would not let my cat eat honeysuckle plants.

Originally Posted by zanniesmom

The most successful way for me to teach scratching post was to scratch on it myself. Right when they wake up or as soon as I came in the house, when they are likely to want to stretch, I would scratch my fingers on the post just above their reach. They would try to catch my fingers and over time they discovered the pleasures of scratching the post. Becky

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We do the same, and also if we catch them on the furniture, we stop them with a loud NO, carry them over to the post and rub their paws on it, or rub our hands on it as above. Cats like to stretch out when they scratch, so the post should be taller than their longest reach. Ours are all at least 3 feet tall.

Originally Posted by serena_p

Where can I find the honeysuckle or valerian?

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Valerian Root is an over the counter sleep aid that you should be able to find in the Herb section of any pharmacy. My cats LOVE this smell.... because it smells like Stinky Feet! You'll have to open a capsule and rub just a small bit of it into the rope.
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I found that by putting the scratching board (a cardboard one like you mentioned) close to the end of the sofa where they liked to scratch was a perfect opportunity to redirect their scratching behavior from the sofa to the board. Now I almost never see them use the sofa any more.

I will not plant those plants near where they can get to them then. I am always suspicious of plants and things that are brought into the house. Thanks for the info. All my inside plants are silk now, no real plants indoors.