Pets bring a lot of joy to an apartment or home. But sometimes their behavior can become annoying and even irritating. For example, some cats love to scratch furniture and wallpaper, which needs to be trained not to do. No one would like a shabby apartment.
Why do they do this?
There are several explanations for this habit, and together they paint a very clear picture:
- Your pet has been a predator since ancient times, and clawing is a hunting skill that needs to be trained.
- By scratching furniture or wallpaper, the animal perfectly exercises its muscles.
- Even bears in the forest mark their territory by scratching trees, and cats try to keep up.
- Sometimes this is how they relieve nervous irritation.
- The cat takes great care of its appearance, so it simply does a kind of cat manicure.
How to wean
There are several proven methods:
- Cats are terrified of loud noises. Keep a rattle or jar of coins handy: if you catch your furry friend doing this, rattle it, and it'll run away.
- You can stop misbehavior with your voice or loud hissing.
- Cats don't like the smell of vinegar or citrus, so spray frequently damaged areas with this mixture.
- In the relevant stores they sell sprays that also have an unpleasant smell for the animal.
- Some people hang a balloon at the scene of the supposed "crime." The cat scratches it, causing it to pop, creating a powerful effect.
- Buy or make a scratching post from tree bark or a board.
If the habit remains
Cats are stubborn creatures. If you can't break the habit, finally buy special nail caps and trim your pet's nails more often, but carefully. When you leave, close the door tightly to the room where your pet is acting this way.
Don't scold your pet after it's already scratched something; it won't understand the reason for your anger. Express disapproval during the destructive behavior.
Try to communicate with your cat more often, then it will learn to understand your displeasure just by the intonation of your voice, and you won’t need to scare it away or punish it with anything.
