Can my cat break the Coolcatss carton?

Why does your cat scratch and does it have a plan to destroy your furniture? These and similar questions are frequently asked on the internet, as well as various techniques or tricks devised to stop him from doing so. But no, your cat doesn't scratch because it has an evil plan, nor does it do it out of pleasure, but out of necessity. Out of a behavioural need, i.e. a behaviour that he needs to express in order to be well, physically, emotionally and socially.

That he does it with your sofa or your bed is simply accidental, as these are the prominent objects he finds in his territory, the territory where you have introduced him and where he must look for all possible ways to find himself as best he can. All animals have their needs, as do adults and children. And if we want to share our life with them, the least we can do is to try to get to know them in order to satisfy them accordingly. If from the first moment a cat comes to share your life with you you don't provide it with a suitable place to scratch, it will probably do it with your sofa, simply because it needs it, because that's what it has to do.

What does a cat want when it scratches?

Basically three things: marking their territory, stretching their muscles and loosening the outer layers of their claws. In addition, scratching may increase in situations where there are changes in the cat's usual, safe environment, e.g. another individual in the house (cat, dog, person, baby), changes in furniture, other cats in the neighbourhood. The marking is olfactory, by means of pheromones from the glands in the interdigital spaces of their paws, and visual, with the vertical stripes produced by scratching. It is used to leave essential messages in the organisation of their territories, especially in multi-cat households. They do this in prominent places and in areas of passage and on the periphery of the territory. Stretching is usually done when they wake up, which is why scratching posts are placed near sleeping areas. The sofa is therefore an ideal place for scratching: it has prominent corners, it is in a passageway and resting area, it does not move when scratched, it is always in the same place, it has a pleasant fabric. So if you want to stop him scratching, you need to provide him with places that are just as ideal as the sofa and, more importantly, from the start, because once he scratches in one place he is much more likely to continue scratching there. The more he scratches the same object, the more both signals (olfactory and visual) are accentuated. Conversely, if you prevent him from carrying out this behaviour where he wants to or can, he will become more motivated to scratch elsewhere, become frustrated and stressed, and thus scratch more. This may lead to other problem behaviours, such as urinating outside the litter box or aggression.

What are cats' favourite surfaces for scratching or clawing?

Cats like to scratch on a variety of surfaces: cloth, cardboard, wood, fibres such as jute, sisal or wicker. They may scratch vertically or horizontally. Cats should be given several options so that they can choose according to their individual preferences. Cats also bite as part of their hunting and exploratory behaviour and prefer softer, more deformable materials such as cardboard, large toys that they can grasp with their paws or certain types of wood.

Coolcatss is ideal for your cat

Remember that the ideal scratching object should be stable, not move when the cat uses it, tall enough to stretch, the direction of the fibre should be the same as the direction of scratching, the material should be according to your preference (try several), and it should have both vertical and horizontal options. Cardboard scratchers, both horizontal and vertical, can be a good option. So, yes, your cat can break, scratch and bite the cardboard Coolcatss, and it would be totally normal and also ideal and necessary. But don't forget that it's up to your cat to decide.