The cats are great pets. They love to play, they love to cuddle 
when you are watching TV or sleeping, and they purr for no 
reason other than being near you. But they also love to scratch. 
Unfortunately, the things they love to scratch are often the legs
of your antique table, your upholstered sofa, or your expensive 
carpet.

Although many humans do not appreciate when their cats 
scratching, you have to know that kittens and cats do not 
scratch to make us angry, they just need to scratch. Scratching 
is a natural hardwired behavior in cats, just like breathing and 
purring, and every cat owner must know WHY THE CATS SCRATCH. 

In the wild, cats scratch around their immediate environment 
to signal their presence to other cats and to claim the area in 
question. The marking takes two forms: visual and olfactory. The 
visual is in the form of clawing marks and is so obvious that 
even we humans can recognise it. The olfactory mark is subtler, 
involving the release of pheromones. These are substances 
secreted from the body to be picked up by the number of the 
same species, causing them to alter their behavior.

Scratching has additional function too. It removes the nail 
sheaths, outer layer of dead cells from the claw. You might 
thing your cat scratches to sharpen her claws, but it more 
likely it provides her with a form of physical therapy for 
the muscles and tendons of her paws.

There are two groups of target for every cat. The first one is 
when your cat target one or two areas in the home, usually near 
important territorial areas such as: sleeping area, litter tray, 
hunting or play areas. The second one is your cat undertake more 
widespread and destructive scratching in highly visible sites 
such as: doorways, windows, prominent furnishings - like sofas.


WHAT YOU CAN DO IF YOUR CAT SCRATCHING YOUR FURNITURE?

1. The easiest but the most painful method for cat is declawing. 
   Faced with cat scratching problems, many people consider 
   declawing surgery. But many veterinarians believe declawing 
   is a painful and unnecessary surgery and refuse to do it for 
   humane reasons. Instead, they advocate training your cat to 
   use a scratching post.

2. Make sure there are multiple scratching opportunities. Cats 
   often like to scratch after eating and sleeping, so be sure 
   there is something to scratch near where they eat and sleep. 
    A scratching post is an excellent investment for your cat. 
   It will allow her to scratch, stretch and exercise all at 
   once.  If you want to provide your cat not only with 
   scratching surface, but and places where she can climb, 
   perch and sleep you should consider cat tree.

3. Cover the furniture with something your cat does not like: 
   double sided tape, some plastic or aluminium foil. Some cats 
   dislike the feeling and sound of foil, and most cats hate 
   things that stick to their fur. Double-sided sticky tape used 
   in carpet installation works well, but be sure the tape won't 
   harm your cat or furniture.

4. Keep your cat mentally stimulated and offers her plenty of 
   opportunity for exercise, and she will has less opportunity 
   to be destructive in your home. If your cat is frustrated 
   and bored, she may scratch your furniture or tear your 
   drapes. Give her enough play time. Cats are motivated by 
   smell, sound, texture and movement. The toys you use should 
   aim to cover all these aspects. Discover your cat's 
   preferences by presenting a variety different sized toy made 
   from different materials and watch her reaction to gauge her 
   preferences.

5. Cutting the nails regularly may help keep a cat from 
   scratching the furniture, or at least reduce the damage done 
   by its scratching. Get your kitten used to having its nails 
   clipped while it is young, praise her while you clip the 
   nail and reward her with a treat.

6. Booby trap the furniture with a soda can with some pennies 
   in it, so that if cat scratches, it makes a noise.

7. Use a doorknob alarm on your curtains. When pinned to the 
   drapes, the alarm will sound every time your cat tries to 
   use curtains as a ladder.

8. Consider a window perch for your feline friend. It will give 
   your cat hours of entertainment - especially if you place a 
   bird or squirrel feeder in the garden outside the window. Be 
   sure the window is closed so your pet won't fall out.

9. When you catch your cat scratching furniture, try squirting 
   her with a water pistol or squirt bottle and use a firm 'no'. 
   Of course, this won't stop your cat when you are not around.

10. If your cat is gaining access to a high bookcase by leaping 
   from a nearby chair, move the chair. Without her launchpad, 
   your cat will no longer be able to reach her perch.

11. You can also try taping inflated balloons to the problem 
   areas. When your cat pops one with her claws, she will avoid 
   scratching there again. However, try this only when you are 
   at home, so you can pick up the balloon pieces before your 
   cat tries to eat them.

12. There are training devices that keep cats off forbidden areas
    by making annoying sounds. They are available at pet supply 
   stores, catalogs and websites.

13. If your cat still scratches in appropriate places, use some 
   sprays like bitter apple or actual orange peels, which are 
   good deterrents.


All forms of physical punishment should be avoided since they 
can cause fear or aggression toward the owner, and at best, the 
cat will only learn to stop the scratching while the owner is 
around. 

It does not matter which method you will choose to prevent your 
furniture destroying, every cat owner mush know that it is 
impractical and unfair to expect cats to stop scratching 
entirely.