How can I get my cat to stop kneeding the furniture?
Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010 at
7:29 am
My cat jumps up onto the top of my corduroy couch and lazy boy chair and kneeds. The padding on the tops of my furniture is becomming flattened out where he has been doing this and it looks awful. I have given him cushions and blankets in the hope that he will leave the furniture alone but he just won’t stop doing it on the furniture. How can I get him to stop this?
He likes the feel of the cloth. Get identical fabric and make slip covers for the piece he kneeds and let him have fun. There are sprays that will discourage him from getting on the furniture as well. By the way, camphor balls do work and so does red pepper.
His kneeding is a sign of extreme contentment. Hard to stop a happy cat from being happy.
When discouraging him from using the sofa or whatever, place another piece of identical material in some place he can find it and have fun with that. Sort of carrot and stick game.
A quick swat on the rump with a loud NO will also discourage this activity. The idea is to have the cat transfer his affections to another place. You cannot take his favorite spot away as efficiently as you can help to use another spot – but with the same type of material
That is the cats normal reaction. That is how a cat shows he loves you. He will find a place where he smells your scent and it makes him feel like you are his mommy. Remember how a cat kneads whenever they are drinking milk from the mother cat? That is a sign of content.
Cats have a naturally tendency to scratch. It is part of their makeup. I did not want to declaw my cat either. I did some research on the net and found an alternative that works great. It is called soft paws. Your vet can put them on your pet for you or you can do it yourself. They cost about $20 depending on what site you go to. They are caps that you put on the nails. They are kind of rubbery. This is what you do:
1. Clip the nails just before the quick (pink part of the nail)
2. Place a small amount of the adhesive in the softpaw.
3. Slip it on the nail.
It will dry very quickly. These covers for the nails last as long as the natural shedding of the nails. Once they shed just clip the nails and replace the softpaws. They last from 4 to 6 weeks before you need to replace them. They also do not fall off at the same time. I get the colored ones so I can tell when my kitty has lost one. Since I am a Mary Kay consultant she is a Mary Kay kitty with pink nails. It is very funny when people come over the house. They think I painted her nails pink. Now if they really thought about it….would a cat really allow anyone to paint their nails? I think not. They are just too good for that. Do some research on the internet about these softpaws. They have saved my furniture, rugs and walls. And being kicked out of the house by my husband who was addiment about having her declawed. It is the perfect answer for us. Your cat may not let you put the nails on at first but give it a little time. They will try to bite them off at first but this also will go away. Just play with your kitty right after applying them and she will not even notice they are there. If you still cannot put these on your cat try the vet. These things are terrific and I will always use them. They come in many different colors so pink your favorite….your cat won’t care.
Although these do not stop your cat from scratching, when they do there is no harm to the item being scratched. These soft paws are exactly that…soft. Be careful with rugs though. Sometimes when the soft paws are ready to shed off they can get caught on the strings of the rugs getting your cat stuck. Keep an eye on any loosening soft paws and remove them as necessary.
Short of forbidding him to get on the furniture at all, you can’t. It’s his way of getting comfortable.
You might try spraying your furniture with bitter apple or something citrusy so he won’t want to get on your furniture. But don’t bet on it helping much.
Good luck.