Dear Sinéad, Siouxsie and Thomas:
Hi! You gave great advice to my roommates Lily and Sheba a while back, and now I have a question about myself.
I love to scratch up the stairs -- the ONLY location in the house I am not allowed to scratch. I can scratch to my heart's content on either my scratching post, my kitty shelf, a special piece of carpet especially for me, the couch, but not the stairs. However, the forbidden fruit must be tasted -- daily! I am praised and sometimes given treats whenever I scratch in the right spot, and admonished on the stairs. They even moved the scratching posts so that one is at the top and the other is at the bottom of the stairs, so that if I'm in that area and need to scratch, I can go to either of them.
I know I am not allowed to do this. It's very loud, so when the humans are home they always come to me and tell me "NO." They usually don't even have to. When I hear them coming or see them, I run, because who wants to get in trouble? But I still don't want to stop. I love it, and I don't know what this "money" they fuss about is, so who cares if they have to give a little to the "landlady" because of what I've done to the carpet? You know? I've also shown Lily how wonderful it feels to scratch on the stairs, and she's started doing it more often too.
Anyway, I heard my mama talking about spraying us with water for our transgressions once, and she had said that she thinks it's a bad idea because 1) she would prefer to reinforce us for doing good things rather than punish us for doing bad things (something about applied behavior analysis), and 2) she thinks it's a bad idea to make us associate water with bad things. But because I have not ended my stairs-scratching love affair, and am in fact spreading it to the other cats in the house, I know she's beginning to consider it.
What should she do? What should I do? Do you think I'm going to start getting sprayed, or is there a better way she can teach me not to?
Thanks for your help, guys. You do a wonderful service to cats everywhere.
Purrs,
Leo
Sinéad: Leo, Leo, Leo .... honey, you know better than to scratch the stairs. You even said so yourself!
Siouxsie: We know it's really tempting to do something that feels good, even if our humans don't like us to do those things. But even though we cats are clearly the highest form of life on this planet, sometimes we have to make compromises in order to keep our relationships with our human servants harmonious and pleasant for all parties involved.
Thomas: Your mama is right in thinking that squirting you with water isn't the best thing to do to help you "kick the habit" of carpet scratching. We do have a few ideas that might help you and your mama get you out of this bad habit. But you have to do some work, too. You have to want to change, Leo. Not just for your human's sake, but for the sake of all feline-kind.
Sinéad: Absolutely! You wouldn't want your mama or her friends to think that cats are bad housemates because they scratch things up and wreck your home, right?
Siouxsie: Now, we're not entirely sure what's making the carpet on the stairs so attractive to you. But if you're scratching in one particular spot, maybe some other cat or dog marked its territory there and you're scratching to cover the odor of that other animal's urine with your own.
Thomas: If this is the case, your mama should buy some enzyme cleaner and clean the spot where you're scratching. Two cleaners in particular, Nature's Miracle and Anti-Icky-Poo, come very highly recommended by sources who know.
Sinéad: Then, if that doesn't work, your mama might think about putting something on the spot where you are scratching that smells yucky to cats -- but hopefully not so yucky to humans. Most cats don't like citrus smells very much, so you could try some orange or lemon oil.
Siouxsie: Some experts recommend using double-sided tape as a deterrent to scratching. We know we wouldn't like to feel that icky, sticky stuff all over our paws!
Thomas: But we're not sure if your human would think that double-sided tape is too much of a mess when it comes to cleanup. Our human doesn't like it very much, and whenever she has to use double-stick tape, she makes lots of growling and hissing noises!
Sinéad: If your human does decide to use the double-stick tape, she should put it on the area of the stairs where you like to scratch, so when you dig your claws in, you get a pawful of sticky ick.
Siouxsie: You say you have two scratching posts and plenty of other places to scratch. Do you use those at all, or are you only scratching the stairs? Maybe there's something about the texture of the carpet on the stairs that you like better than the texture of your scratching post.
Thomas: Is your scratching post all raggedy? If so, it might not be working as well to help you groom your nails and exercise your tendons and muscles. Maybe your mama could buy you a new scratching post, with carpeting that has a texture similar to the stair carpet you love so much.
Sinéad: Mama says if she can't afford a whole new scratching post, she can get a carpet remnant or sample pretty cheaply at any flooring store, and attach it (tightly, like with nails) to the old scratching post. Then she should make your scratching post extra tempting by rubbing catnip on it.
Siouxsie: Or if you don't like catnip, she could sprinkle some of your favorite treats around the new post.
Thomas: And when you use the scratching post or some other "OK" place to scratch, maybe you can get her to give you a treat.
Sinéad: But your mama shouldn't go overboard with the treats! Otherwise you'll get fat, and that wouldn't be healthy.
Siouxsie: You should also let your mama give you a manicure periodically. If she trims your claws every two weeks or so, you won't do so much damage to the carpet because your nails won't be quite as sharp.
Thomas: There's a detailed instruction sheet on how to trim your cat's claws at the About.com cats forum.
Sinéad: We should say for the record that we absolutely hate having our claws trimmed! We put up with it for Mama's sake, but we only allow her to do one paw at a time. What can we say? It adds spice to our lives to struggle and fight and look at Mama with that "why are you torturing and humiliating me in this manner?" expression.
Siouxsie: Thomas is a real expert at the Claw Trimming Wriggle. Mama says she doesn't have enough arms to hold him and trim at the same time.
Thomas: She says Hindu gods don't have enough arms to hold me when it's manicure time! Ha ha ha haaaa!
Sinéad: The point is, manicure time might be a bit of a trial, particularly at first. But as you get more comfortable with it and you learn that your human isn't trying to kill you, nail trimming should get easier for everyone.
Siouxsie: Another option for your mama to consider is Soft Claws. They're really cool designer nail caps that come in a bunch of different colors. We've never used them ourselves, but we know lots of humans who have used Soft Claws on their cat friends. They say that they're pretty easy to apply and that the cats don't mind wearing them.
Thomas: Soft Claws come off by themselves after a while, because as our claws continue to grow, old claw sheaths separate from the main body of the claw. So they need to be reapplied periodically. But it might be easier for you than allowing your human to trim your claws.
Sinéad: Good luck, Leo. We sure hope you can break yourself of the habit of scratching that stairway carpet! We know your mama will help you as much as she can.
Got a question? Need some advice? E-mail Sinéad and Siouxsie at advice@paws-and-effect.com. None of the advice in this column is meant to be a substitute for regular veterinary care.
