Cat scratching furniture - can it be curbed?

Ok, this is the million dollar cat behaviour question.

I have 6 cats most of them are pretty good. I've got a really large sturdy cat post which the cats have used heaps (totally shredded the carpet on it and it's a very popular stop for them) but I've gotten some new dining chairs, and a couple of the cats think they've been bought as new scratching posts for them![!]

Has anyone ever had any success with re-training the little mongrels not to scratch on particular items? The cat post is only a couple feet away from the dining area, and very close to where the cats get fed, so unfortunately they unavoidably congregate there.

Does the feliway spray work? I used a diffuser before, but I understand the spray would be better for scratching problems. I don't really want gunky tape on the new furniture..so double sided tape is pretty much not a go-er. I'm not sure foil will deter my dumbest cat (oops.. did I say that out loud !!) He once decided that peeing in one of my pot plants was a good idea.. so I covered it with foil.. and he just clawed at the foil till it was out of the way so not a big deterrent for him.

Any suggestions?

Shoot them with a water pistol, thats what I did!!

why not feed them outside? And shoot them with a water squirter. if straight water dorsn't work, try a littke cayenne pepper diluted init as a furthrt deterant.

I do have a squirt bottle, the trouble is catching them in the act. By the time i get close enough to spray them they've already had their scratch...and then I'm sure they scratch all day long while I'm at work.

When I spray the dumb one... he just closes his eyes and carries on! like "Oh.. I appear to be getting wet? Ho hum..."

I've put the plastic covers back onto the chairs until i work something out. It looks lovely.. NOT!

Oh and feeding them outside won't work, cause one of them gets a presciption diet so I have to keep the other foods away from him, the dumb one has a sensitive stomach and the prescription stuff makes him throw up (!!) so I have to keep that away from him, and I've got 2 youngsters who are still on kitten food which makes the others fat so I try to ration that as well.

Bit of a zoo really !!

Rather than double sided tape, how about just wrapping some contact paper around them (around the legs like a tube) with the sticky side out?

Or (one I use for puppies) get the elcheapo wooden mouse traps from The Warehouse & wrap the metal bar well with packaging tape so it won't do any harm but makes still makes a noise. Set them all around the base of your dining suite. The cats will soon learn to give it a very wide berth!

If you've wrapped the bars properly, they won't hurt at all but will still make a noise & the trap will still spring in the air when it's set off, giving the animal a fright.

Misting bottles work better than a direct hit of water.

Bubble-wrap works well, it would be hard for a cat to remove.

This is a bit out of left field, but what about lengths of drain coil? up each leg? Not only would it not be scratchable, it would move, which they wouldn't like. It also wouldnt' be as noticeable, and you can easily remove it and put it back on, as needs must.

I've got a bottle of Masterpet Cat And dog Repellent,great stuff!Or use a natural product if you don't want chemicals. Anyway, my mum saw on a pet programme to stop pets scratching is to spray the repellent onto something like an old towel and drape it over where you don't want them to scratch,therefore you don't need to risk spraying furniture and it staining.Trouble is I haven't kept up with it,it's a matter of spraying the cloth everyday to get the most benefit I guess . Could be worth a go

Cat repellent huh.. that could be interesting. Does it reek though? Or only smell bad to the cats?

The chairs are upholstered so they're scratching on the fabric. If only I could just wrap the legs

I mean the plastic covers on the chairs keep them from scratching all right. I left them on for a week after the chairs arrived. Then i took the plastic off 2/4 chairs..the ones closest to where we were sitting in the living area, and gave that a few days, they didn't try too hard to scratch there. I then took the last 2 covers off and it's open season on the 2 chairs that are a little more out of our line of sight!

So really, they suspect they shouldn't be doing it, but they figure it we're not RIGHT THERE that they may as well have a go!

Keep the ideas coming....maybe I could try tape on the floor near the chairs. Maybe on some cardboard, that way they would stand on it if they got too close. I do know that cats aren't fond of stuff sticking to them.

I'll try putting something else 'new' there that they might like to scratch on instead while I try to come up with a cunning plan. The dumb cats loves scratching on carboard and on a cane basket we use as a laundry hamper. I'd gladly sacrifice something cheap to save the chairs!

Have you tried spraying the scratch pole with cat nip to attract them back to it.
Most posts already smell of cat nip when bought new but it disappears in time ....

Is there a brand of catnip spray that you recommend? I have some dried stuff and I rub in on the shelves and the post itself. It attracts a couple of the cats in particular but not all of them.

Here's a picture of the post from several years ago when it was only a few months old. It's home built and they love it, very heavy and solid with lots of room, the cat on the top is my stupid one, he's very big so that's a big shelf!! It's now got bits hanging off it and the long uninterrupted part of the upright post has been scratched to bits (we turn it from time to time to 'rekindle' their interest)

I'm pretty sure we need to build another one due to having more cats now, but don't know if that will resolve my problems []

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You didn't like the draincoil/pipe idea?

Sand paper. I used it to cure scratching the wallpaper and it worked a treat. wrap the area being attacked in coarse sand paper, they do not like it and will not go back to the area

And where is a picture of your new dining chairs??[]
Go to a secondhand store and get some cheap bed sheets,or rip up some old ones and spray with repellent,nasty to cats but okay for people! Spray regularly and drape sheets over when not in use. Nip the problem in the bud now!

Jen ...My youngest *Purrfectly Posh* is a blooming poop for scratching things [!][!][!]...easy peasy solution is...............................[][][]
Cut their claws[:0] .....stops them right in their tracks and no more scratches [^]
If you aren't happy doing it yourself the first time the vet will show you how ... cheaper than new furniture[]
Cheers