What can I do about my cat clawing the furniture?
Think first about preventing the damage, then about redirecting this natural behavior and only last about punishment. I suggest that, when possible, you plan the furnishing of the cat's household and avoid buying furniture or wallpaper that has a nubby or coarse texture. Cats love to destroy needlepoint footstools, wicker, raw cotton and grasscloth (among other things). If you already have "inappropriate" furnishings, consider temporarily moving them to a non-cat area, or covering them with something like plastic during the retraining.
Give your cat the "perfect" scratching post and help her develop a habit of using it. A perfect scratching post is sturdy, catnip-scented and coarse-textured - covered with bark or sisal, not carpet. See, for example, Felix Katnip Tree.
Help your kitty develop a ritual of scratching. Do not carry her to the post and drag her feet across it. If you offend her in this way she may refuse to approach the post, especially when you are around; instead, encourage her to follow you to it. Make interesting "scritchy" noises by scraping your fingernails against the sisal, or draw a toy up the post. As the kitty follows the lure, she will discover the attractive texture of her post. Kitties love rituals, and they like to scratch after meals and naps especially.
If prevention and redirection haven't been completely successful remember that to use punishment correctly it MUST happen every time the behavior happens, MUST happen at the time of the misbehavior, and should NOT seem to be done by a human. Try using a motion sensitive alarm (available from pet product catalogues or Radio Shack) attached to the item in need of protection. See SSSCat, for example. Or, try one of the commercially available “sticky” tape products that will make the surface not just unrewarding, but even unpleasant to the cat.
If you have conscientiously tried all of the above and you have one of the rare cats who still insists on using the back of the couch as a scratching post, consider reading “Why Cats Paint” to learn to appreciate feline art forms. Also consider using Soft Paws available from your veterinarian. Wearing these soft acrylic nail caps, your cat will continue to scratch, but will do no harm.
