Why Some Cats Scratch Furniture So Much

SPEAKER: To close out the hour, we’re going to dig into a topic that, unfortunately, I am very familiar with, cats scratching the furniture. You take one look at my dining chairs and you’ll know that I have cats that scratch. If you have a cat, you probably know what I’m talking about. Maybe you’ve purchased scratching posts or rearranged your furniture or tried to play with your cats before bed and still, you wake up to destruction.

My next guest recently published a study that tracked why some cats are more prone to scratching destruction than others and the best way to achieve a mostly intact living room furniture set. Dr. Yasemin Salgirli Demirbas is a physiology professor at Ankara University and a visiting fellow at the Atlantic Veterinary College at the University of Prince Edward Island in Charlottetown.

Welcome to Science Friday. Thanks so much for being here.

YASEMIN SALGIRLI DEMIRBAS: Thank you very much for your invitation.

SPEAKER: So first of all, why do cats like to scratch in the first place?

YASEMIN SALGIRLI DEMIRBAS: Cats actually scratch for many reasons. One of the reasons that cats scratch is, this is a physical exercise, actually, for the cats. They are stretching their muscles. They are practicing extension and withdrawal of the claws, and they are also removing the outer sheath of their nails.

And another reason and this is very important, actually, scratching is a communication way for cats. And it includes visual and olfactory messages in order to mark their environment and also, to feel safe in their own environment with their own smell, cat scratch. So this is a perfectly natural behavior.

And if they feel stressed or threatened, we see that the level of scratching increases because now they need to mark their territory for the others, because they are territorial animals, although they are social. And also, as I mentioned, feeling their own smell make them feel more secure.

SPEAKER: So there are lots of reasons for cats to scratch. And you have actually studied this academically. So what does your research find? What are the factors that increase the desire to scratch for cats?

YASEMIN SALGIRLI DEMIRBAS: We found a link between a long play duration or extended play duration and increased level of scratching. This is important because we know that play is essential for all living beings to foster a positive emotional state and in particular for cats, structured and routine play is crucial. Organized play sessions, which mimic hunting are crucial for their well-being.

Let me give an example. If we let our cats play with laser pointers for a long time, they keep chasing the red dot without any success. So at the end, they become an unsuccessful hunter, so this may induce stress. And the main reason of this stress is, of course, frustration. And you also added overstimulation, and now, our cats get hyper aroused. So optimal approach involves offering short, but repetitive and successful play sessions to them.

SPEAKER: OK, so it is good to play with your cat, but not too much without that payoff of catching something at the end, right?

YASEMIN SALGIRLI DEMIRBAS: Not too much without a context. This context is very important for cats, yeah.

SPEAKER: So another finding in your research was that cats who live with kids tend to be more stressed and they scratch more. I mean, I can come up with a few guesses as to why, but what does your research show about why this is?

YASEMIN SALGIRLI DEMIRBAS: What I can say about this is that the presence of children can definitely influence cat’s stress level, but it’s a complex situation. When you think about young children, they tend to move quickly and unpredictably. And this can be challenging for cats. If they are taught to respect and handle cats properly, they are less likely to stress the cats out. And the environment also plays an important role here. If we provide enough spaces for cats to retreat to a safe and quiet area, then they can manage their stress better.

SPEAKER: OK, so for the cat parents that are listening at home, if they have a cat that’s scratching up their couch, what do you suggest they do?

YASEMIN SALGIRLI DEMIRBAS: First suggestion from my side is that for them to understand that scratching is a perfectly normal natural behavior for cats. So we need to provide some appropriate items to let them scratch on them. And in our previous research, for example, we showed that using some pheromone products help to decrease the level of scratching. Punishments or yelling at the cat, these are not helpful. These make this behavior going worse if you punish them for a natural behavior or normal behavior, which makes no sense from their perspective.

So you increase the level of stress, so you increase the probability of this behavior. And we need to understand that companion animals and caregiver’s welfare are interconnected, and we need to respect both sides.

SPEAKER: Well, this has been so fascinating. Thank you so much for joining us.

YASEMIN SALGIRLI DEMIRBAS: Thank you so much. Thank you for the invitation.

SPEAKER: Dr. Yasemin Salgirli Demirbas is a physiology professor at Ankara University and a visiting fellow at the Atlantic Veterinary College at the University of Prince Edward Island in Charlottetown.

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