Cat Scratchers & Scratcher Beds

They're not doing it to spite you. Furniture happens to be the most appealing thing in the room — positioned in the middle of family activity, made of materials that resist their claws (woven fabric, leather), tall enough for a full stretch, and stable enough to lean into.

Cats scratch to mark territory (visually, plus scent from glands in their paws), to maintain their claws, to stretch out after sleeping, and as a stress release. None of it is optional behaviour — the goal isn't to stop the scratching but to give them somewhere better to do it.

Our cat scratcher behaviour guide goes deeper into how to redirect it, but the short version is location matters more than people realise — a scratcher next to where they sleep almost always beats one tucked in a corner.

Sisal rope and dense corrugated cardboard are the two surfaces most cats reliably take to. Sisal lasts longer; cardboard is cheaper to replace.

The charity International Cat Care puts it well — the material has to "resist the pull from the cat's claws." Soft carpet or fabric loops give too easily; cats can't sink in properly and many give up and go back to the couch. Tightly-wound sisal or honeycomb-structure cardboard both pass that test.

If your cat already shreds rugs, lean cardboard. If they go for the corners of the sofa, lean sisal post.

For vertical posts, aim for at least 60 cm. Most adult cats are 45–55 cm long from nose to tail base, and they want to scratch fully extended on their back legs — so the post needs to clear their full standing height with a bit of room to spare.

Cats over 5 kg or large breeds usually need 75–90 cm. The Makesure Nino's 83 cm setting is built for exactly this. Posts shorter than that look like an oversized board to a Maine Coon.

Horizontal scratchers don't have a height requirement, but length does matter — they need to be at least your cat's body length so they can stretch out across the surface.

Three things, in this order: position, reward, patience.

Position: put the scratcher where the bad scratching is happening — not in the laundry. If your cat scratches the lounge arm, the scratcher goes next to the lounge. Cats are extremely territorial about scratch locations, and moving the post to a "tidier" spot is why most posts go unused.

Reward: when your cat uses the scratcher, follow it up with a treat. A few freeze-dried cat treats placed on or beside the post helps build the association — within a couple of weeks, most cats shift over.

Rule of thumb: at least one per cat, plus an extra for multi-room homes. Same logic as litter trays — give them options in the rooms they actually spend time in.

Mix forms if you can: one vertical post, one horizontal board, one scratcher bed. Cats often have strong preferences between vertical and horizontal scratching that only become obvious when both are available.

A multi-storey home should have scratchers on each floor. Cats won't always travel up or down to find the right surface — they'll just pick whatever's nearest, and that's often your couch.

When it stops doing its job for them. A heavily-shredded cardboard scratcher, or a sisal post with the rope hanging off in chunks, isn't providing the resistance your cat needs anymore — and they'll drift back to scratching what does work (usually your sofa).

Most cardboard scratchers last 3–6 months for a single cat with a moderate scratching habit. Sisal posts typically run 1–3 years before the rope wears through. Heavy scratchers and multi-cat households shorten both.

A replacement post or a fresh cardboard pad costs less than re-upholstering a single chair. The maths is straightforward.

Almost always one of three things. The post is too short and the cat can't stretch fully. The post is unstable and wobbles when they push. Or it's in the wrong location.

VCA Hospitals' guidance on scratching behaviour highlights placement and texture as the two most common reasons cats reject a scratcher. A perfect post in a quiet spare room loses to a cheap board in the lounge.

Move the post first — that fixes the majority of cases. If that doesn't work, try a different material; a cat that ignores cardboard might take to sisal.