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From: balfanz@ihuxv.UUCP (P. A. Balfanz)
Newsgroups: net.pets
Subject: Cat Clawing
Message-ID: <697@ihuxv.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 26-Mar-84 16:16:08 EST
Article-I.D.: ihuxv.697
Posted: Mon Mar 26 16:16:08 1984
Date-Received: Tue, 27-Mar-84 01:35:53 EST
Organization: AT&T Bell Labs, Naperville, IL
Lines: 24

I am very much opposed to having a cat declawed.  But cats will scratch
the furniture, drapes, etc. due to instinct behavior (of keeping
their claws sharp for hunting) that has not left the domesticated cat.
So if you don't want "kitty" clawing up the house, give him/her/it
something they are allowed to scratch on.  I've found that a 2-foot piece
of 4X4, covered with a piece of carpet, held vertical by a base is
sufficient.  Even without the carpet, a cat is happy.  And, if "kitty"
needs encouragement to use the scratching post, rubbing catnip on it helps.

For my cats I used the training method of; whenever I caught the cat
scratching on something they weren't suppose to I would: 1) grab them,
2) speak a harsh "NO", 3) take them over to the scratching post, 4) put their
front paws on it and go through the motion of scratching while giving the
cat praise.  I can't remember exactly how long the training process took,
but I believe it was only one or two weeks.  The training started when
I got the cats as kittens.  And, I can proudly say that all three of my
cats (the youngest is 13) religiously use the scratching post instead of
the furniture.

I can't say that my methods will work for everyone, because you must be
patient (don't beat the cat to a pulp) and understanding of "where the cat
is coming from" (natural instincts).  But to those people who don't want
to be patient and understanding I can only say, "WHAT THE H*LL ARE YOU
DOING HAVING A CAT FOR A PET ANYWAY?" (or any animal for that matter!).