Do Ragdoll Cats Scratch Furniture?


Do ragdoll cats scratch furniture?

Nobody wants to come home after a long day of work only to find that your favorite couch has been terribly scratched and is practically destroyed. This is one of the things that you will need to consider when you plan on adopting ragdoll cats.

Are Ragdoll Cats Destructive Scratching Furniture?

Scratching on furniture is something that you will have to expect when you adopt a cat, not just ragdoll cats. However, you should keep in mind that there are more than a few ways to dissuade your Ragdoll cat from scratching on furniture.

So even if you adopt a cat, scratched furniture is not necessarily a guarantee.

To do what you can to prevent your new ragdoll cat from scratching on your furniture, you are going to want to have a firm understanding of why cats will scratch on furniture in the first place. Once you know why your cat is behaving the way it is, you will have a much easier time preventing your cat from doing it again, as you will have a better idea of what it wants from you.

Why Do Ragdoll Cats Scratch?

Ragdoll cats, much like other cats, will have more than a few reasons why they scratch on the furniture of your house. Some cats do it out of boredom, because they do not have enough stimulation from their environment, so they will find a way to entertain themselves. This entertainment just so happens to come in the form of tearing apart your favorite chair.

Other times, cats will do it to mark their territory. Cats are quite territorial creatures, even the more mellow breeds. Cats also have scent glands in their paws, and there are times when the scratching is not meant to do damage so much as it is meant to spread their scent onto a piece of furniture in the house.

Finally, there is just the simple fact that cats need to have something that they can exercise their claws on. Their claws are constantly growing and, much like people will keep their nails neatly trimmed, cats need to be able to sharpen their claws so that they can expose the new claw underneath the layer of an old claw. In a strange sense, when cats scratch on your furniture, it is their way of trimming their claws down and keeping them neat.

Now that you have a better understanding of why your ragdoll cat might choose to scratch on your furniture, you will also have a better idea of what you should do to prevent your cat from doing it again. Many of the solutions that you can use for preventing your cat from scratching will cover all of the reasons why a cat may feel the need to scratch, so you won’t have to worry about trial and error when solving this kind of problem.

Redirecting Your Cat’s Claws

The most straightforward solution that you can do for your ragdoll cat is to purchase a piece of cat furniture that is specifically designed for scratching. As you will notice when you look at the items of any pet store, there are countless items that are designed to help cats have a better area to scratch so that your furniture can stay protected.

The most common item that you can purchase for your ragdoll cat is going to be a standard cat tree. These cat trees are typically made with braided rope, cardboard, or other similar material that will feel good on your cat’s claws. You will need to replace the used cat tree every so often, when it has been entirely scratched to pieces, but it will be well worth it to keep your furniture safe.

Cat trees will not only provide a comfortable and appealing place where your cat can “trim” its claws and keep them neat, but most cat trees are actually somewhat fun for your cat to scratch. The different textures of cardboard or braided rope can feel good on your cat’s paws, making it want to scratch there more often when it is bored. On top of this, many cat trees will come with perches, layers, and toys attached to it, so that there is even less of a possibility that your ragdoll cat will get bored with it.

More questions about Ragdolls and scratching

How Do You Protect Your Furniture?

If your cat still shows an interest in your furniture, you can consider making sure that you make it as unappealing as possible to your cat. There are specialized furniture guards that you can hang on the sides of furniture and there are also sprays that are not dissimilar to anti-chew sprays for dogs that will prevent your cat from wanting to claw your furniture.

Can You Teach a Cat Not to Claw?

You can absolutely teach your ragdoll cat not to scratch on furniture and other items that you don’t want your cat destroying. As with teaching an animal anything, it will take some time and effort, but it will be worth it when you don’t have to think about buying new furniture because yours has been destroyed.

What About Declawing a Cat?

You should never, ever declaw a cat because it is scratching furniture. Declawing a cat is not the same as a permanent nail clipping. Anatomically speaking, it is the equivalent of cutting off your finger at the first knuckle underneath the nail. There are special claw-protecting shoes that you can put on your cat instead.

Do ragdoll cats scratch furniture?

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