Cat - Cats and Scratching -- Training Your Cat

So you have a cat that loves to scratch. Well, there is nothing wrong with that as it is natural for cats to love to scratch furniture and other objects. So what do you do if there is destructive scratching? For example, when your $5,000 sofa is the object of your cats claws? Well the simple answer is train them to scratch appropriate items. Cats scratch for a variety of reasons. Some cats scratch furniture to burn energy or to stretch. After all, who doesn't like to stretch now and again. Scratching also helps remove the dead outer layer of claws, similar to humans clipping your finger nails. Another possibility is territory marking as scratch marks are a visible sign and scent glands (in the paws) add olfactory smells to say this is my spot/territory/area. As scratching is natural, it is not right to punish your cat for what it instinctively does. Punishing your cat for scratching only makes him or her more likely to be more aggressive and fearful of you as the trust between you can be destroyed. It also does not help because your cat doesn't know any better if they have not yet been trained to scratch another item. The best form of punishment, should you feel it's absolutely necessary, is to make a loud noise or squirt it with a squirt bottle if you catch your cat in the act of scratching the wrong object. However you must have given the cat an alternative to scratch beforehand or the cat will not understand. If the cat learns to associate the noise with you, then the cat may stop scratching while you're present, but probably resume once you're gone. This is why training your cat to scratch scratching posts and other proper objects is so important. Now that you know why your cat scratches and what not to do, you can train him or her to scratch appropriate objects and not your prized furniture. The first step involves seeing what objects your cat likes to scratch. What type of material is the object - is it smooth, coarse, rough? The height of the object and how high up the cat scratches is also important information. Is the object flat or upright? Finally, knowing where it is located is another important step - sleeping area, entrance area of a room, etc. Observing the characteristics of items your cat likes to scratch means you can find or buy a similar item for your cat. Put whatever stationary object you end up getting - a scratching post, a rope, a log, etc. - very close to the object you do not want your cat to scratch. However, make sure it will not fall over or otherwise move as your cat uses it or else your cat will not use it again. Then cover up the item your cat scratches with something he or she does not like - some material (double-sided tape or aluminum foil works well) or a non-harmful odor that he/she doesn't like (try citrus). Your cat should now work its way to the new object as it resembles what your cat likes and will start scratching it instead. As your cat starts scratching his or her new object, you can slowly move it to a new spot. However, only move it a couple inches each day as your cat won't like sudden changes. Best results can be achieved when the object is as close as possible to what you do not want your cat to scratch. As a reminder you do not want to remove whatever covering you have put on your valuable furniture, drape or object for many weeks, even up to a month! When you do start removing your coverings, do so gradually to reinforce in your cat that he or she is not supposed to scratch it. A final piece of advice on training is to start when the cat is young as it is easier to train a kitten than an old cat. Regardless of age, a cat can always be trained if you put in the time. Congratulations! You now know how to train your cat to scratch objects you want, not your $5,000 sofa. By Arthur Royal Technicial Writer for Only Petcare http://www.onlypetcare.com Article Source:http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Arthur_Royal Cat - Raccoons, 'Possums And My Cat Spike! Raccoons have no manners! They're slobs and the one staring at me didn't seem to really care about the niceties of eating. Bits of dry cat food were soaking up water from where it had been sloshed out of the water bowl. The bag of food I'd laid on a table was now torn open and about 10 pounds of cat chow was strewn across the floor. This particular raccoon had come in through the pet door into the garage and was happily eating leftovers from my cat Spike's dinner bowl. He obviously had no fear of me, because he kept eating as I walked over to the work bench. Even though he appeared to half tamed, I was trying to keep a little distance between me and the raccoon. Spike has a bed in the garage, in the house and on the deck. Whenever and wherever the mood strikes him to take a nap, he's not very far from a comfortable pillow. He has become adjusted to seeing raccoons and possums enter his garage at all hours of the night. Tonight he was sleeping on the bed that used to be my work bench before he took it over. He was now peering over the side of the cardboard box that was his bed, at the raccoon that was making a mess of his eating area. I heard a noise from the outside of the door as another animal entered the garage through the pet door. This time it was a possum! This fella seemed to know his way around for he immediately walked over to the food bowl and began staring at the raccoon. Each kept their eyes on each other, ignoring Spike and me. The raccoon won the staring contest for the possum casually backed up and hid under a table at the corner of the garage. There he remained until I left the garage. Spike got tired of the show and went outside through his cat door. The real name of this critter is opossum. But down here in the south we just call it a 'possum. They are really, really fond of cat food, but will eat almost anything; rodents, insects, frogs, road kill, grains and fruits. 'Possums are rather lazy, so if there is available food in a garbage can or cat food in a garage they will find it. While their appetites knows no bounds, they are cowards and will rarely attack any animal bigger than them or any animal that might fight back, including cats. Oddly enough Spike seems to get along with both the varmints who have invaded our garage. We live in the city, but fairly close to wooded areas that are homes to a variety of animals including, 'possums, raccoons, foxes, and coyotes. Our city's growth is slowly taking over the wild animal's habitat, making the aroma of a trash can irresistible to critters who want a free lunch. As a result, raccoons and 'possums have no great fear of man! Don't leave a food source available to any of these varmints because they will find it sooner or later. If they can't find food in your back yard, they will just move on. I may have to try trapping the animal, but that didn't work out very well last year. I used a gage-like trap that is supposed to close the entry way into the cage when the animal tries to eat the canned cat food in the back of the cage. It's very humane. Of the five raccoons we had last year, none were caught. I did catch Spike...twice. I've never accused him of being smart! If you have a 'possum get into your house, the best thing to do is to put a can of cat food just outside the door and let the animal go to the food. Then slam the door shut! They may scare you by hissing and snarling, but that's just their defensive mechanism. It's sort of scary when they bare their fifty teeth, but more than likely if you back away, they'll never hurt you. One good thing about confrontations with a 'possum is that they hardly ever get rabies. I really hope they'll leave soon. Spike and I would like to get our garage back.