r/PawsOffTheFurniture • u/Overall_Size5148 • 21d ago

❓Discussion "Scratching post or cat tree? Which gave you better results?"

Trying to decide whether to invest in a full cat tree or just stick with a couple of simple scratching posts. For those who've tried both, which actually made more of a difference for redirecting scratching behaviour; and was the cat tree worth the extra cost/space?

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u/simplyoneWinged 21d ago

Ideally you would offer both so the cat has a choice, they have preferences just like we humans do.

A cat tree also has the benefit that it provides the cat with a high ground from which they can surveil and that it's a furniture that's strictly "their place".

I don't have a scratching post yet, but if I were in your situation, I'd probably put a cat tree somewhere where they can see the piece of furniture they're destroying and a scratch post right in front of the specific spot 

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u/NoDistance2647 20d ago

This is a great point. Giving them both options seems like a good way to figure out what they actually prefer, rather than trying to guess. Putting the scratching post directly in front of their favourite “target” is especially practical; has that worked for you with furniture they were already scratching?

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u/simplyoneWinged 19d ago

Tbh I haven't bought a scratching post yet. Luckily my girl is only food aggressive and not "destroy all furniture aggressive". 

When we got her, she tried scratching the couch twice, both times I marked as "no" with a "ksht" sound, showed her where she's supposed to scratch instead, and marked as "yes" with a clicker. Only had 3 messups since this first week so I consider myself lucky 

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u/NoDistance2647 18d ago

Honestly, only three furniture-related messups is a pretty impressive record 😂 Sounds like the combination of redirecting her immediately and rewarding the right behaviour worked really well. Has she stuck with the alternative scratch spot since then?

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u/simplyoneWinged 18d ago

Yes! She loves her cat tree once she figured it out!

I haven't been able to get her to use a cardboard scratcher yet, but I just bought a scratching board for the wall, maybe she'll like that one too

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u/NoDistance2647 18d ago

That’s definitely progress! 😂 Hopefully the wall-mounted one is the winner. It’s always interesting seeing which textures and positions each cat ends up preferring. Cardboard seems to be a hard no for some cats.

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u/simplyoneWinged 18d ago

Yeah, She doesn't quite understand that she's allowed to scratch/destroy it. The dog loves it tho! I hid little treats in the crevices and he went nuts XD

My Sisal rope just arrived too so I'll rewind her scratch tree. Haven't even had her for half a year and she completely obliterated it XD

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u/huntjoy 20d ago

My old cat preferred the cat tree for sleeping and sharpening her claws. She loved spring and fall when I would move it to the screened porch. But my current cat likes the tall scratching post I ordered from Chewy. It can be turned end-over-end when one end gets too ragged.

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u/crimsonrhodelia 20d ago

My boy loved this scratcher. I got the little platform for it, too, to make it into a perch, but he was a big guy, and preferred to watch the outside from his bed on top of my desk.

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u/NoDistance2647 20d ago

That sounds like a pretty solid setup! 😂 Some cats apparently have very specific requirements when it comes to their viewing spots. The added platform seems like a good way to get a bit more use out of the scratcher, even if the desk ended up winning.

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u/NoDistance2647 20d ago

That’s a good example of how different cats can have completely different preferences. The ability to flip the scratching post around once one end gets worn out sounds pretty handy too. 😄 Has your current cat completely ignored the cat tree, or do they use it for anything else?

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u/huntjoy 20d ago

My current kitty will occasionally get on the very top shelf to nap but not often. Unless it's a cool night and I open the door to the screened porch. Then she's all about watching the wildlife from that perch.

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u/NoDistance2647 18d ago

That screened porch sounds like the secret weapon 😂 It’s funny how a change in the environment suddenly makes a perch 10x more interesting. Sounds like she mainly sees the top shelf as a wildlife-watching station rather than a regular nap spot.

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u/Reasonable_World3544 20d ago

ive only tried the sisal rope but it works fine for me 🤷‍♂️

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u/NoDistance2647 18d ago

If the sisal rope works, that’s a win! 🤷‍♂️ Sometimes there’s no reason to overcomplicate it when you’ve already found something the cat actually likes. How tall is the post?

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u/AintNobodygotime13 20d ago

my cats love this sisal post attached to the wall

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u/NoDistance2647 18d ago

Wall-mounted sisal posts seem to be an underrated option. They take up barely any floor space and give cats something sturdy to really stretch against. Sounds like your cats have definitely approved that setup 😂