My cat is now certifiably insane.

[Gryffindor_Bookworm]

I have a cat (for the first time), and I've been at a loss as to how to keep him from sharpening his claws on the chair I inherited from my Grandmother.

A friend suggested buying a scratching post, but he wouldn't use it.

Another friend suggested sprinkling it with catnip.

Oh. My. GAWD.

He was dropped off at the vet as a kitten and never knew any world but that cage until I got him (he's about 14 months old), so this is, I'm fairly certain, his first experience with catnip ever.

Holy. Shit.

Suffice it to say, he is scratching the shit out of the scratching post. LOL. Let's hope he's getting it into his little animal brain that scratching the scratching post = very fun and scratching Grandma's chair = no fun at all.

[NYC]

1. Good luck with your cat.

It was good of you to adopt him.

[demnan]

2. Do you have a small sock?

Put some catnip in a small sock and tie it up. He'll be up to his eyeballs in antics.

Another thing you can do with a cat is to clip the tips of their nails. If you start with them young it's easier to do that.

[CRK7376]

3. We have 2 types of

scratching posts. One is upright covered with carpet and rope and completely ignored by our 4 cats. WHile the cheap cardboard box scratching pad makes them insane. You can see their smile of anticipation/satisfacton when they hop on the cardboard and start shredding.

[radfringe]

4. I have heard that

if you spray furniture and other "No-SCRATCH" zones with vanilla extract they won't use it... they don't like the smell and won't go near it... Haven't tried this, so I can't vouch for it's effectiveness

scratching isn't just to "sharpen" the nails, it's also a way to leave a scent (cat's paws have scent glands in them and scratching transfers the scent.) it's also a "comfort" behavior.

on a "humorous" note: a friend of mine had a cat that would scratch the back of the couch. When the cat did that, my friend would pick up the cat and put him outside. Now when the cat wants to go out -- he scratches the back of the couch.

[zanana]

5. I love that feline logic!

"Well, let's see now... When I scratch the back of the couch, he lets me go outside..."

I was once in the process of training my puppy to "eliminate" outside. I had read somewhere that, as soon as a puppy starts urinating indoors, you should pick it up and run with it outside. That way, supposedly, the puppy learns to associate urination with being outside. Well...you guessed it. After a while, he'd pee then run like hell through the pet door. He'd look toward the house and I swear he was smiling.

[radfringe]

7. best "housebreaking" technique for new puppy

it does work -- but takes time and attention...

You will need 2 weeks of "solid time" with the new puppy. With a treat hidden in your pocket - every hour you take the puppy outside to the place you have designated as Pee-Pee Plaza or "doody-drive". If the puppy does his business -- lavish praise and give the treat. If there is an accident in the house, clean it up and ignore the puppy, no yelling or swatting with newspaper...

Unfortunately, not many of us have the 2 weeks or so of time to spend in constant vigilence - so you may want to combine this with crate training or barricading the pup in a "safe" area when not home. Takes a longer time period with crate or safe area

With chewing on shoes and other "no-no" items -- I take the item shake it at the puppy with firm "NO's" and then tie it around it's collar for a couple of hours. When I take the item off, I quickly give the puppy an acceptable chew toy, and then praise the pup if he plays with it.

[DebJ]

6. I've also been told..and it worked for my daughter's cat..that if

you keep clipping their nails regularly, this helps to discourage clawing things. But you have to start this young.

I was always afraid to trim my cats nails! Lost several pieces of furniture, too, but then, I didn't know this would help.

[Cuban_Liberal]

8. Ours goes absolutely BONKERS with catnip!

'Demented' would be an accurate description of him on catnip.

:P