How to Prevent a Cat From Scratching Leather Furniture

Scratching is a natural behavior for cats. It helps to acuminate their claws, stretch out their muscles, and keep them entertained. Of course, this is disastrous in the home, specially if yous own leather furniture. Cats don't specifically target leather, but they don't avert it either. Even imitation leather can fall victim to a cat, which leads to an expensive and unsightly problem.

To deter cats from scratching leather piece of furniture, start by offering more than scratching posts. You lot may need to buy different models, sizes, and textures to make them more appealing to the cat. After that, begin grooming the cat to never stride on the leather furniture, using positive reinforcement. You can safeguard your leather with protective covers, such as scratch guards, drib cloths, or slip cloths. That can be topped off with anti-scratch sprays or your ain smell-based deterrents.

Trimming your cat'south nails will help prevent it from scratching upwardly the leather by accident. Even walking over your furniture could exit tiny pocket marks, so keep your cats away from the leather whenever you can. Leather tin't exist completely repaired, but you can mask the damage. Using a colorant on small scratches will help disguise little pocket marks. You may somewhen accept to supersede entire areas of the leather for straight scratches or have it reupholstered.

Practise Cats Like Scratching Leather?

At that place is no definitive research to say if cats unmarried out leather to scratch. Some people claim that the polish texture is pleasing to their claws. Indeed, cats volition intentionally sharpen their nails on the sides of leather couches and armchairs if given a chance.

Others say that cats will avert leather because of that very texture. Your individual cat may target your fabric sofa long before it goes for the leather recliner. While cats tend to like some resistance in their scratching posts, any object will do if they're bored or out of options. Even a cat that'southward avoided leather in the past will resort to information technology if there are no bachelor scratching posts.

Overall, there is no one breed of cat that avoids or targets leather. Also, there's no way to tell if your cat will have a preference until you lot test it out with a slice of leather. It is natural for cats to acuminate their claws on different objects. It cannot be fully trained out of them, nor is information technology good for you for a cat to never scratch upwards items.

Why Exercise Cats Scratch Leather Article of furniture?

Cats scratch leather furniture as a way to maintain their claws. The gentle resistance that information technology provides can:

Sharpen the claws
Strengthen the joints that hold the nails inside the cat's paws
Stretch out muscles in the true cat'southward paws

Considering of that, scratching will fifty-fifty serve as a class of exercise and enrichment. In the wild, cats use trees, discarded bark, and other objects they find to acuminate their claws. Rather than letting them get tedious and potent, cats regularly employ them then that they're primed and set for hunting when needed.

In your business firm, cats don't take these natural materials. Instead, they use anything upright, potent, and with a texture that gives them some resistance. In some cases, this will include your bedding, defunction, carpets, and of course, your leather furniture.

The Periodical of Feline Medicine and Surgery surveyed true cat owners about their cats' inappropriate scratching. According to their findings, 81.5% of cats scratched chairs or other furniture, and 64.seven% scratched carpet. Therefore, an overwhelming majority of cats tend to scratch not only leather merely all types of furniture. This is likely because it mirrors trees they would notice in the wild.

Cats may also scratch up your leather by accident. Although felines tin can retract their claws, these nails frequently sally when they are jumping or climbing. This gives them extra stability and makes the creatures nimble, merely it spells bad news for your effects. A cat springing from ane sofa to the next may accidentally leave hook marks backside. Even if they're negligible at commencement, after a few weeks, there volition be no hiding the presence of a cat all over your leather.

Do Cats Scratch Faux Leather?

Some owners believe that cats just target real leather. Supposedly, the texture and smell feel more natural. This encourages cats to scratch up authentic hide like they might find on carcasses in the wild. Unfortunately, research is uncertain if cats are drawn to leather, and then real or fake doesn't make a divergence.

Your true cat may target your faux leather equally readily equally proper leather. Your true cat may also dislike the scent, texture, and feeling, therefore giving it a wide berth. Sadly, you can't invest in simulated leather every bit a loophole for dealing with a cat in the firm. It would be a crapshoot in whatsoever case.

In fact, real leather and faux leather are very similar in texture. Even if your true cat did purposefully target leather, this isn't guaranteed to scare it off.

There are advantages to faux leather over real leather, though. Faux leather is much cheaper. Perhaps you absolutely love the aesthetic in your habitation décor but don't want to throw several thousand dollars away just past sharing it with a true cat. In this example, faux tin can lower your replacement costs.

Besides, faux leather has many of the aforementioned advantages as real leather. It'south like shooting fish in a barrel to clean and won't collect a lot of fur. That can make tidying upwardly a pet-friendly domicile much simpler, fifty-fifty if the furniture gets clawed up anyway.

How to Protect Your Furniture from Cats

Since leather furniture tin be very expensive, it is important to protect it from cats. Of course, there is no way to entirely cat-proof your sofas and chairs. Cats may scratch upwardly leather even past accident, merely by walking on it. A certain corporeality of damage is guaranteed.

Even still, there are safeguards you can put in identify. This can reduce the corporeality of harm and discourage cats from totaling your leather on purpose. It's a proficient middle-ground when you don't want to replace all the furniture or watch it go destroyed.

Trim Your Cat's Nails

If your true cat scratches the leather seat cushions merely by walking on them, then the trouble may be that its nails are also sharp. In that issue, trimming your true cat's nails will help reduce the amount of damage it can do by accident. The tips will be dulled, so even if they emerge when the cat jumps, they won't pierce the cloth as easily.

As a bonus, the cat volition be less able to scratch other objects or fifty-fifty y'all (unless it's trying). To trim your cat's nails, utilize:

A pair of nail clippers designed especially for cats (which is helpful if your true cat squirms)
Normal nail clippers (if you accept a good hold on your true cat)

Cats will make a fuss when you're trimming their nails. The best time to exercise information technology is while they are sleeping or just afterwards a nap. They will be far more docile at these times. Here's how:

Gently printing on your cat's hand until the individual boom pops out.
Only cut the abrupt bespeak of the claw, and don't become too deep.
To be safe, always cut the very tip – you need the claw dulled, afterward all.
Avoid the quick at all costs. The quick is a darker section near the base of the nail.
Trimming your cat'southward nails should never hurt, so if the true cat is crying out when y'all press downwards with the clippers, yous're cut too high up the smash.
Keep the cat very still as yous make the trim to avert missing the mark.

Information technology may seem like a hassle to trim your true cat'southward nails. Still, it will dramatically reduce the level of wear and tear on your leather furniture. You lot can update the trim whenever you find they are sharp again. This is unremarkably every 2 weeks or so.

how do i stop my cat from scratching my leather furniture?

Don't Allow Your True cat on the Furniture

Patently, if the true cat is unable to touch the leather, information technology cannot impairment it. This is easier said than done, of grade. Cats tend to go wherever they please, and it isn't piece of cake to maintain a shut heart on your furniture at all times.

The good news is, you tin can railroad train a cat to stay off certain furniture with a reasonable success rate. Information technology won't be 100%, but it tin give your leather a ameliorate lifespan. To train your cat not to jump on the furniture:

Provide an alternative lounging spot for your cat that's well-nigh the furniture.
When your true cat jumps onto the leather, pick information technology up or shoo it off gently.
Try not to affright the true cat, as it may dig in its nails equally a reflex.
In one case the cat is off the leather, place it in the designated spot.
Reward your true cat with praise, mentum scratches, and a care for if possible.
When yous meet your true cat using the designated spot without your help, advantage and praise it.

Over time, your cat volition realize it can obey you, receive good things, and all the same go a prime lounging spot. Information technology doesn't need to sacrifice much. Staying off your leather recliner is a modest price to pay.

Of course, your cat may revert if you're not watching. It may likewise need its grooming updated every few months. Nevertheless, it does slash the corporeality of fourth dimension the true cat spends on your article of furniture by a wide margin.

Merely be certain to avert negative reinforcement whenever you can, such every bit yelling, hit, or scaring the cat. At the very least, your cat is more probable to scratch up the leather by accident as information technology retreats from y'all.

Provide More than Scratching Posts

Cats volition choose quality over quantity. A scratching post that'due south the correct size, texture, and fifty-fifty scent will be a far amend choice than your leather sofa. If your cat keeps intentionally scratching the sides or back of your furniture, then it may feel it's out of options.

Even if you take scratching posts already, they may be worn-downwards or placed in the wrong spots. Maybe your cat doesn't want to traverse to the back bedroom to stretch its claws.

Likewise, the cat may not have enough scratching posts and is using your leather every bit a substitute. According to The Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery, cats don't scratch inappropriate surfaces as much when more scratching posts are added into the home.

In the to a higher place study, researchers determined that most cats preferred rope-based scratching posts. However, geriatric cats preferred rug-based. With that in listen, your true cat may need more than specific posts to be happy. Try buying a few dissimilar kinds and placing them throughout your house. When the true cat is spoiled for choice, your leather should become a distant, easily ignored temptation.

If your cat doesn't requite up on your leather piece of furniture afterwards all that, yous may demand to train it to employ scratching posts. Some cats are wearisome learners, while others won't recognize them every bit a toy. Endeavour redirecting your cat to the new scratching posts every time information technology touches your leather. If it complies or starts using the posts every bit a part of its routine, praise and reward it.

Spray to End Cats from Scratching Furniture

Cats have powerful noses and are deterred by sure smells. If you coat your leather with these aromas, the cat will remember twice about budgeted. You tin can purchase "true cat scratch sprays" or "anti-scratch sprays" online or in pet stores.

You tin besides try making your own spray. First by mixing a solution of water with vinegar, essential citrus oils, garlic, or peppermint. These scents are stiff and offensive to cats but won't harm leather. A light misting over your furniture every few days should drive the kitty off. Over time, even if you lot no longer spray the odor, the cat should know to steer clear.

This isn't a perfect solution. Some cats don't heed the scent, and others will overcome it when bored enough. That makes information technology best when paired with the other methods in this list.

Piece of furniture Protection from Cats

If yous don't mind the look, you lot can attempt covering upward your leather furniture with a scratch guard. These can exist used independently or (if y'all're extra conscientious) paired with a drop cloth or sideslip cloth.

Leather Scratch Guard

Scratch guards are composed of a sheet of sparse plastic. They can be stuck or mounted to the sides and corners of your leather article of furniture. Depending on the make, they volition strictly adhere to the furniture with thin tape or be mounted with little pegs. No matter the case, they create a barrier that's more difficult for your cat to pierce with its nails.

Since these guards only attach to the sides and corners of your leather, they cannot protect the cushions. However, most cats target the corners and sides, as they're the virtually abrasive parts of a sofa or chair. That makes them first-class for sharpening claws, just all the joy is taken out of it with the thin plastic.

You can buy these sheets or make your own by putting heavy-duty record onto your piece of furniture. They may need replacing if your cat is persistent, or they may last for years. No matter the case, one downside is that they are unsightly to some people, even if they're see-through.

Drop Cloth or Sideslip Textile

A drop textile or slip cloth covers the full length of your furniture. This non only protects information technology from dust but also scratching claws. If you're concerned about aesthetics, this is the least invasive choice. With a tight enough fit, yous may hardly notice the comprehend (and note the audio equally you sit down or move).

Unfortunately, these won't protect the sides of your furniture every bit much. The thinner material is less resistant to a dedicated true cat, and the corners will still be a prime target that your true cat puts effort into. Still, if you lot pair it with preparation and stiff-smelling deterrents, it can keep your furniture live until the true cat learns meliorate. It too works great against accidental scratches if your cat walks beyond it.

Do Cat Claws Ruin Leather Piece of furniture?

Whether or not cats prefer leather, we know for sure that cats tin can inflict irreparable damage on leather. That has to do with the porous nature of the material.

Dissimilar material fibers, leather has very lilliputian tension and can't "squish together" to seal or mask holes. Any blemishes, scratches, or tears will remain prominent and obvious. For owners, this ordinarily leaves a binary option: choose to own a cat or choose to ain leather article of furniture.

Leather also has different coloring in its layers. For case, a tiny scratch on black leather could reveal the paler shades beneath, making the impairment obvious. If the cat manages to go downwardly into the stuffing, that color deviation volition be difficult to ignore. This makes even tiny blemishes a huge problem.

While information technology'due south possible to "repair" leather, this unremarkably involves replacing big chunks or coloring the damaged areas. This can make the scratches harder to detect with the naked middle, but leather tin't be fully repaired. The leather aesthetic is likewise very unforgiving when it's damaged.

Although a fabric sofa that's been scratched can merely await aged by a few years, leather can go from "brand new" to "trashed" in an afternoon with a dedicated cat. Besides, the scratches may aggrandize equally you sit down on or move the article of furniture since leather is very pliable. It doesn't take much pressure for a thin crack to expand beyond the entire arm or cushion. With that said, some scratches are more damaging than others:

best way to stop your cat from scratching furniture

Directly Line Scratches

These are found virtually normally on the sides of leather piece of furniture. Cats that are sharpening their claws will bury the nails deep within the textile and pull down. This creates long, sharp lines that oft overlap, especially if the cat has been busy for a while.

These types are the hardest to repair. At the very to the lowest degree, you will need to replace large chunks of the leather. The scratches are very likely to aggrandize and "fray" over time.

Stubbed Holes

These are most usually found on seat cushions or the dorsum of the furniture. Cats may extend their claws gently every bit they walk to remain stable. This lets the nails create piffling pocket-marks as they walk. If you lot happen to scare the cat, it may create larger holes or "tear-drop" holes. This happens when the cat extends its claw further and is pulled out with forcefulness equally the cat runs.

These scratches are unremarkably accidental. While "repair" is a strong word to use, these can be more hands repaired. Applying a colorant volition assistance mask the damage. Equally long as it'southward not exacerbated, your leather furniture may appear more often than not undamaged.

How to Repair Leather Damaged by Cats

Every bit mentioned, leather tin't be "repaired" as you might look. The holes or straight-line scratches can't exist sewed back together as yous might exercise with fabric. Instead, you'll be trying to isolate the damage and colour it until it'southward hard to encounter visually. Your primary options will include:

Using a re-coloring balm on the affected areas
Using a repair kit to supplant chunks of the leather with new pieces
Hiring a professional to reupholster the furniture for you

Cats tin can't be entirely stopped from scratching leather furniture. Even so, yous tin discourage your true cat from ruining your favorite chairs and sofas with the above tips. If you train the cat while it's young and use protectors over the article of furniture, you may even buy the décor several years before it shows serious vesture.