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#21
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OT Kittens scratching sofa
Pinkee Squeeeek-a-Lotta has a round plastic thing with a ball that
goes around when she bats it, in the center is corrugated cardboard thing for her to scratch on. She scratches through/destroys the cardboard about every 6 months. The cardboard is replaceable. She and the other kittens had one to play with at the cat breeders, and we bought one for her. She's got 2 of them because the ball disappeared from the first one. It seems that the puppy took the ball out to play, we found the ball after replacing the toy. At the age of 4 she still loves it/them, tears at them every morning, I'm sure that they have saved the sofa. Bonnie, in MIddletown, VA On Tue, 13 Dec 2005 13:00:35 +0000, Johanna Gibson wrote: On Tue, 13 Dec 2005 07:52:07 -0500, "She in PA" wrote: I have three kittens one is 6 months old and the other two are 4 months old. All of them like to law at the end of the sofa. I have tried spraying them didn't work. I tried chasing them with a paper bag with noisy things in it. I just looked like a fool running around the house. Then when I sat the bag down they would go and play with it. I am getting a new sofa is there any suggestions besides getting them de-clawed\? I don't like doing that. She in PA I used a combination of 1) giving Sasha a scratching post that I actively encouraged her to use and 2) catching her in the act of clawing something and squirting her with a water pistol. For the first one, I had to take her paws and show her how to use it. Once she got the idea, and that she wouldn't be in trouble, she loved it. Cats want to sharpen their claws, so get them something that is going to allow that behaviour. For the second one, you have to run less with a water pistol than you do if you are trying to smack a cat's bum. Sadly, you can't shoot around corners, but it's very effective. I used to shake it so that Sasha could hear what was coming, and stop if she wanted, then fire away if she carried on. It got to the point where I only needed to shake it, then to the point where I only needed to reach for it.... Good luck! It was easier for me, because I only had one kitten to deal with. I always feel that 2 sort of egg each other on. They have a little "cat community" of their own. -- Jo in Scotland |
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#22
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OT Kittens scratching sofa
I have three kittens one is 6 months old and the other two are 4 months old.
All of them like to law at the end of the sofa. I have tried spraying them didn't work. I tried chasing them with a paper bag with noisy things in it. I just looked like a fool running around the house. Then when I sat the bag down they would go and play with it. I am getting a new sofa is there any suggestions Get them something else to scratch. But try several different things - our lot have no interest in the standard wound-string scratching post, but some of them love the back of a scrap of carpet and the others go for the leg of an old table we don't care about (always the same leg - one day it's going to fall over with a bang when they go right through it). Bits of sack, old towels, corrugated cardboard... try lots. One of the few things that will reliably dissuade a cat from scratching something it's taken a liking to is pure citrus oil - I got some years ago, it's an industrial type intended for ice-cream flavouring. But the smell has to be *overpowering* for this to work - on something the size of a sofa, you would be smelling lemon or grapefruit from the bottom of your garden for a year after applying it. I've only used it on small wooden areas. besides getting them de-clawed? I don't like doing that. And in most of the developed world it's illegal ============== j-c ====== @ ====== purr . demon . co . uk ============== Jack Campin: 11 Third St, Newtongrange EH22 4PU, Scotland | tel 0131 660 4760 http://www.purr.demon.co.uk/jack/ for CD-ROMs and free | fax 0870 0554 975 stuff: Scottish music, food intolerance, & Mac logic fonts | mob 07800 739 557 |
#23
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OT Kittens scratching sofa
To keep kittens and puppies off of a piece of furnitu set a
mousetrap, lay it carefully on the place you do NOT want a fur baby and cover (carefully) with one sheet of newspaper. Fur baby jumps up; mousetrap snaps; fur baby runs and hides! I've done this with both feline and canine babies with equally good results. A particularly persistent Labrador Retriever pup was treated to the mousetrap without paper cover. After the first and only time it snapped at him, just placing a mousetrap (un-set) anywhere would cause him to avoid it. One trap on the bottom step would keep him from venturing upstairs! Anne in CA annerudolph AT comcast DOT net "It's not having what you want; it's wanting what you've got." -- Sheryl Crow http://community.webshots.com/user/annerudolph3 http://www.frappr.com/rctq She in PA wrote: I have three kittens one is 6 months old and the other two are 4 months old. All of them like to law at the end of the sofa. I have tried spraying them didn't work. I tried chasing them with a paper bag with noisy things in it. I just looked like a fool running around the house. Then when I sat the bag down they would go and play with it. I am getting a new sofa is there any suggestions besides getting them de-clawed\? I don't like doing that. She in PA |
#24
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OT Kittens scratching sofa
This will sound funny, but I inadvertently taught my dog to scold the
cat when he claws at things. Pippen likes to claw at an upholstered ottoman that I have by the window. I usually just have to yell his name and he stops, but now my dog will bark and chase him away from the ottoman without me having to say a thing. My other two cats use a scratching pole. I made a "bad boy can" by putting a few pebbles in a soda can and I rattle or throw it towards any cat or dog who is being mischevious, not to hit them, but to scare them. It works great. When my big dog starts barking at things for no reason, all I have to say is, "Where's the can?" and he shuts right up. Denise |
#25
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OT Kittens scratching sofa
If they don't get the idea from the water spray pretty quickly, try adding
some lemon juice or vinegar to the water. When the lick the water off they soon get the message and associated it with an unpleasant consequence of what they were doing. -- Cheryl http://community.webshots.com/user/witchofthewest cawaitesATnetconnectDOTcomDOTau "Jessamy" wrote in message ... I'd move the scratching post away from the sofa - sometimes it's hard for kittens to realise that on of the two nice upright things is ok and the other is not. also try rubbing the scratching post in with catnip - it will make it more attractive ;-) I'm also with Jo about the water pistol /or plantspray set in a stream - cat's do learn fast from this. I have heard that black pepper is a good deterrent but I haven't tried it as I found out after I had my cat trained to react to me reaching for the spray. -- Jessamy In The Netherlands Take out: so much quilting to reply. Time to accept, time to grow, time to take things slow www.geocities.com/jess_ayad http://uk.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/jess_ayad/my_photos ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Yes they have a scratching post and I pick them up and take the to it. I even but it at the corner of the sofa. Is there anything you can spray on a sofa, that won't hurt the sofa, but the kittens would hate? She in PA |
#26
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OT Kittens scratching sofa
Do they have their own scratching post. If so spray their post with catnip
spray ( get at your local pet store) and then they will prefer their own post to your sofa. -- http://community.webshots.com/user/snigdibbly SNIGDIBBLY ~e~ " / \ http://members.ebay.com/aboutme/snigdibbly. http://www.ebaystores.com/snigdibbly...ox&refid=store "She in PA" wrote in message . .. I have three kittens one is 6 months old and the other two are 4 months old. All of them like to law at the end of the sofa. I have tried spraying them didn't work. I tried chasing them with a paper bag with noisy things in it. I just looked like a fool running around the house. Then when I sat the bag down they would go and play with it. I am getting a new sofa is there any suggestions besides getting them de-clawed\? I don't like doing that. She in PA |
#27
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OT Kittens scratching sofa
isn't the pepper an irritant to their nasal passages. I'd prefer the water
spray and catnip on their own post placed well away from the sofa. -- http://community.webshots.com/user/snigdibbly SNIGDIBBLY ~e~ " / \ http://members.ebay.com/aboutme/snigdibbly. http://www.ebaystores.com/snigdibbly...ox&refid=store "Jessamy" wrote in message ... I'd move the scratching post away from the sofa - sometimes it's hard for kittens to realise that on of the two nice upright things is ok and the other is not. also try rubbing the scratching post in with catnip - it will make it more attractive ;-) I'm also with Jo about the water pistol /or plantspray set in a stream - cat's do learn fast from this. I have heard that black pepper is a good deterrent but I haven't tried it as I found out after I had my cat trained to react to me reaching for the spray. -- Jessamy In The Netherlands Take out: so much quilting to reply. Time to accept, time to grow, time to take things slow www.geocities.com/jess_ayad http://uk.pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/jess_ayad/my_photos ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Yes they have a scratching post and I pick them up and take the to it. I even but it at the corner of the sofa. Is there anything you can spray on a sofa, that won't hurt the sofa, but the kittens would hate? She in PA |
#28
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OT Kittens scratching sofa
On Tue, 13 Dec 2005 07:52:07 -0500, "She in PA"
wrote: I have three kittens one is 6 months old and the other two are 4 months old. All of them like to law at the end of the sofa. I have tried spraying them didn't work. I tried chasing them with a paper bag with noisy things in it. I just looked like a fool running around the house. Then when I sat the bag down they would go and play with it. I am getting a new sofa is there any suggestions besides getting them de-clawed\? I don't like doing that. She in PA One thing I forgot to mention was that I was very strict with Sasha when she was young. I brought her home when she was 8 weeks old, and my regime was "firm but fair". She was crawling with fleas and ear mites, all feasting on her delicate kitten flesh. The first thing I did was give her a flea bath in the bathroom sink - I held her in one hand and washed with the other.... boy that stuff lathers.... I had to rinse and rinse and rinse... and she never complained through the whole thing. She is really very patient and intelligent. After that came a dose of ear mite medication in each ear. We both needed a break, so I made dinner while she looked for her real Mama Cat. I then clipped her claws (should have done that before the bath, but she was so good it wasn't necessary). I have clipped her claws every 2 weeks ever since. We have a little understanding - she can scratch her post as much as she wants, but I'm going to clip those claws every fortnight. So I'd say, get those kittens used to having their claws clipped! I bought a special little pair of clippers that grabs at the nail from each direction at the same time - so much easier than trying to use human nail clippers! I think it cost about $10 but I've had it for 12 years and it's not dull or anything. I'm sure pet shops would know what I'm talking about, and would carry them. -- Jo in Scotland |
#29
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OT Kittens scratching sofa
You can also take sheets of aluminum foil and pin it or drape it over
the spots they are using to scratch on the couch. They might try to scratch the foil once, but then that's all. And, make sure that they have their own place to scratch. The foil also works good on cords and things that kittens and puppies like to chew. LizA. Kent, WA -- with the world's most stubborn Dalmatian who learned to jump up on the counters NEXT to the mousetraps, push them off with his paw and then take whatever he wanted from the counter as mousetraps only snap ONCE.....sigh. |
#30
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OT Kittens scratching sofa
You know I've been reading all the ideas and I think every cat is
so different it might take a lot of attempts to find the right one for each kitty. It might even take a combination of fixes. We have more inside only cats these days and they just seem to take more effort in giving them a good quality of life while living with all of our decorating needs. Taria Liz A. wrote: You can also take sheets of aluminum foil and pin it or drape it over the spots they are using to scratch on the couch. They might try to scratch the foil once, but then that's all. And, make sure that they have their own place to scratch. The foil also works good on cords and things that kittens and puppies like to chew. LizA. Kent, WA -- with the world's most stubborn Dalmatian who learned to jump up on the counters NEXT to the mousetraps, push them off with his paw and then take whatever he wanted from the counter as mousetraps only snap ONCE.....sigh. |
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