Got rid of the wee beast.
Worked like a charm.

I bought a large, black leather couch a year ago, right after my -also black- cat shreded one of my roomies' black jacket to pieces. He likes to lie on black things...
My strategy involved staying a whole weekend sitting on the couch and giving him a very authoritative "no" every time he approached the couch. Did this for 48 hours and it works still. Other people have tried to encourage him to go on the couch and he doesn't dare unless there's some sort of fabric on top of it, or jumps directly on them, without touching the leather.

I had a cat who was using its claws on my furniture. When I moved, I got my good furniture out of storage, and didn't know what I was going to do. I got one of those cat scratchers that are flat, about one inch thick cardboard. I put it beside a chair. I watched the cat as she jumped into the chair and starting scratching her nails. I literally picked her up in mid scratch and put her down on the cardboard scratcher. She finished her scratching, and has used it ever since! I am so proud of her. She learned on one attempt. It surprised the hell out of me. She RUINED a set of decorator only dining chairs. It will cost a fortune to recover them, so I am just throwing them away.

http://www.softpaws.com/ are wonderful.
However, I find that telling my cats NO, and being consistent is good enough. They're happy to cooperate when it's clear what the rules are. There are places they can scratch, and places they can't.

Team decor - that's pretty wasteful. Why don't you donate them or sell them on craigslist? Someone might want to recover them.

I haven't gotten around trying citrus fruits on furniture yet (mild spray diluted with water I gather), but based on my kitty's reaction the few times I've offered him a piece of orange, I think it's safe to say that they might work. Or spray the kitty with plain water when it has been caught in action plus be firm while saying no. Often, distracting my tiger kitty solves a problem, so instead of allowing him to scratch the sofa, I start playing with him.

Not all scratching posts are equally good. I had one in Denmark that he wouldn't use at all, because it was too light. When he attempted to "climb" up along the stem, it started sliding due to a light weight. The one I have in Finland now is much sturdier and also the rope is of much better quality. Spraying the scratching tree with catnip once in a while has definitely proved to make it more interesting.

Try putting low tack, double-sided tape on all the areas the cat likes to scratch. It like setting a booby trap, the tape catches on its paws and freaks it out. After a few times, the kitty associates the couch with bad memories and learns to stay away.

I'm with poster # 1- no kitty, no scratching. Only way to guarantee.

My old cat has destroyed many couches in his day. We bought new couches a year ago, and just so happened to pick out the microfiber. He hasn't tried to claw at the couches a single time! He just has no interest in the material. We also put a scratching post next to the couches and he always heads straight to it before hopping up on the couch.

I love my cats. IF they ruin a piece of furniture, I'd replace it. But get rid of my cats?? NEVER!

I think really, it's cats or nice furniture. To each their own on what they prefer. But my little monsters aren't moving out any time soon so though it may not be the best couch ever, my ikea sofa can get a new cover whenever it starts looking too dingy and scratched up. I also keep a cardboard scratcher w/ catnip next to the couch. I replace it every month or two. They love the thing and can shred it up to their hearts' content.

I've found that any leather or vinyl furniture is just asking for trouble. They LOVE the way it feels to tear into it. I had a great mid century chair in an awesome teal vinyl that they absolutely destroyed.

I actually think that tweedy and nubby fabrics hold up better than others, as they can take a few stabs here & there and not really show it.

My cat responded well to plain old water in a spray bottle, and eventually all I had to do was make the psssst noise and she would stop. I also got her a little cat house, took her to it, put her paws on it and showed her to scratch THAT. Each time she would attempt to scratch something, I'd make the pssst noise, grab her, put her on the house and now that's ALL she scratches.

I hope those people saying to get rid of them don't have pets or kids - you don't deserve them. If you value your possessions over a life - you are too selfish to care for anything but yourself and your couch.

I never understood the tin foil/double-sided tape thing for furniture. You may not have a torn up couch but you do have a couch covered in foil or tape...doesn't look good either. Do the cats just learn to stay away from it and eventually it can be removed?

I cured my cat of scratching using a technique my brother-in-law told me about. Whenever I saw her start to scratch something she wasn't supposed to be: I gently picked her up, brought her to the scratching post and physically held her paws and moved them in a scratching motion on the post until she started to struggle. Then, simply let her go of her paws, let her run away and wait until the next time she started scratching the couch again.

It worked like a miracle. But, it did require patience and took more than a few weeks of working with her on it. Eventually she stopped scratching anything but the post altogether.

I don't know how taxing this technique would be if you had multiple cats, but it worked for me with my one.

You should try Slobproof With Crypton furniture--- its stainproof, slobproof and pet proof. www.slobproof.com

I can't say enough good things about feliway spray and plug ins.

start simple by making sure your scratching post is sisal; cats much prefer those over the carpet ones.

Microsuede saved me. Our cats can't get traction into it. Leather is the worst, because while they don't scratch it, they gouge holes in it just be running across the chair backs.

I have some pieces posted it tight, heavy cotton fabric (think Ikea fabrics) and that seems to work well too. Anything slightly loose or textured = watch out. No tweed for me either!

Sigh, Ansela. You're right and everything but...It's not like you're bringing that cat up to pass its exams and get a good job in the professions. They're fluffy and lovey and funtimes! Litter train them and teach them to do the paw thing, fine, but special cushions and no scratching, well, who can be bothered? Apart from you, er, obviously. Sorry.

My cat scratches the hell out of one arm of one sofa, the arm next to his scratching posts (succession of) that he steadfastly refused to touch. Actually my sofa is a weird transformer type sofa (bed/recliner/chaise longue/sofa) and the arm he scratches has its own separate slipcover for easy replacing so it's not a problem. I say this like I have ever replaced it but of course I have not.

Can you recommend your upholster?

My kitty knows she's not supposed to scratch there so she does it when we aren't looking. We alternate between sticky tape and foil. That works mostly, but occasionaly I will find if I take it off for a while, a few new loops pulled up from our tweed couch. I take a needle and pull the hoops back down. This was our only worry about getting her, but she's soo loving and wonderful, we wouldn't give her back for anything!

She's only into the cardboard scratch pad when I sprinkle it with catnip, then she eats it off, scratches it, and then goes to scratch the carpet in the bedroom (which is designated hers) and doesn't bother with the scratch pad until I drown it in catnip again.

I notice the two times I have caught her on the couch scratching it's when she's super duper excited and playful. So when I see her get rowdy I distract her and play.
We're working on it, and I know she learns, but she's awful sneaky!

I wholly disagree with the argument about having nice furniture only without pets. I never realized how lonely and lifeless our pretty place was until we got her. Now we have life, love and prettiness all over!

I think I may have been blessed with an amazing cat, but Abbey Cat has never really scratched on anything other than her cardboard scratcher, and an old laundry basket that she liked so much we turned into a bed for her. Once in a blue moon when she is frisky she will run around the couch and grab it with her claws, but if I spray that 'kittie furniture repellant' that I got from Petco on the couch she won't do it again for at least a year. I think I've just got a good kittie!

Those who say getting rid of a cat will solve the furniture problem clearly have never had an emotional attachment to a pet...maybe they didn't have pets growing up. Your pet is a part of your family, not some disposable trinket. You don't throw your kids out when they write with markers all over the wall, color on the tv or throw the phone into the toilet. Obviously a child is more detrimental to a family than a pet, but you don't get rid of an animal for their natural instincts. That's just crazy talk.

i put my kitty out on the curb with his kitty box and a sign that said 'free' but he kept following me back in the house. meowing and purring. after this went on for about a month, I put the couch on the curb with the free sign. it never came back. ;)

seriously, my boyfriend is making some scratching posts with sisal rope. I plan to put them right next to the areas my little furball likes to scratch. we'll see what happens.

I use softpaws www.softpaws.com. Nothing in my home is scratched up. The cat doesn't mind the claw covers. It's a win win situation.

Soft Paws are awesome! If you're clipping the cat's nails anyway, you might as well put the claw caps on them. No cat enjoys the claw clipping process, and it will save you a great deal of clipping to have the caps on.

My cat never scratches anywhere except on her scratch mat. I've had cats my entire adult life and the only one who scratched, quickly stopped after a few good training sessions (my loud shouts combined with hand clapping - puts the fear of God into them), although there are those who don't respond. But would I get rid of my child if he/she threw up on my bed? Not. It's a trade off,you value your things, or you value your heart and the majority of the time you can value both. IMO anyway.

My cat loves to scratch on the couch only to get my attention. He knows I will immediately pay attention to him even if it is to yell at him to stop. He is a smart little furrybutt and I put off buying a new couch because I'm scared he will claw a pretty new one.

My cats are very good about using their post and pad, but their fur seems to stick to my couch upholstery. Has anyone found an upholstery fabric that seems to be more fur repellant?

Am I the only monster that had my cats de-clawed? I guess so.

If all else fails, go with radioriot's idea and get them declawed.

Declawing is a very painful and serious operation for cats, and not an option to be considered lightly. People often imagine it as being the equivalent of having one's fingernails removed, but in reality it involves amputation of the bone and is much more comparable to having all your fingertips cut off at the first knuckle. The procedure is actually illegal in some parts of the US. And with all the options available to cat owners today to prevent scratching, I would really question whether its benefits outweigh its costs for the animal in question.

The tone of the following articles may seem a bit preachy, but they do provide very important factual information regarding declawing. A simple Google search will yield loads more information on the subject as well:

http://www.declawing.com/htmls/declawing.htm

http://www.petstation.com/declaw.html

(This final one has a rather graphic and upsetting image on the splash page, as well as some graphic content in the rest of the site, so please don't click it if you have a weak stomach for this kind of thing)
http://community-2.webtv.net/zuzu22/STOPDECLAWCOM/

I found that aluminum foil works for a table top, I don't want my cat to jump on. Per my apartment leasing office, if I wanted to adopt a cat it had to be declawed...so while I would never declaw a cat because I think its cruel, I adopted a cat that was already declawed. But if he wasn't/didn't have to be, I think the spray bottle would work well too, because he doesn't like the noise.

I have a cat who fell victim to the "cats or pristine furniture" issues in her first home. The couple who adopted her purchased a red leather couch while she was a teenager (it sounds like they had highly honed aesthetic sensibilities - she is a strikingly beautiful cat). They were so incensed that she didn't respect the new couch that they brought her back to the shelter in cardboard box - they couldn't even be bothered to find the carrier they'd originally taken her home in.

When I adopted her it took her a long, LONG time to become comfortable and trustful and realize that she was home. She is a sweet, non-destructive cat, and with the occasional stern reminder I've never had a problem with her over furniture.

Take-away lesson: decide whether you want nice furniture or pets BEFORE you end up with both. It might be tempting to experiment, but do you really want to be that person who returns an animal you agreed to care for to the shelter system because you like your sofa better?

Ansela - what a well trained cat you have!

Our little monster (who lives with my parents - I recently moved out) has scratched 15 lifetimes out of the brown leather couch my parents bought a while back. And the matching armchair. They just cover the sofas with throws (which, annoyingly, she likes to creep under, so when you sit down you have to be careful not to sit on a cat-sized bump.)

She is somewhat untrainable - a rescue cat, awkward and set in her ways, with a love of disobedience. She has her own footstool next to the radiator to sit on, and in fact her own room (she has claimed the airing cupboard), but she continues to scratch the couch. Still loveable though, and more important than any sofa. But it does make me think that if I ever get my own cat, it'll be one or two very young cats (still rescue cats if possible), who I can train properly from a young age. I wouldn't choose my furniture over my cat, but it would be nice to be able to have both!

The couch looks amazing! Wish that blue would work in our apartment.

One of our cats doesn't scratch anything. The other scratches- EVERYTHING. When he would start scratching furniture, from the very beginning I would move him to scratching posts, cardboard scratchers, and so on.

Now he knows I will pay attention to him when he scratches furniture. So, that worked out well for him. He trained me. He even does it when he is ready for breakfast and I'm still in bed.

For whatever reason, he scratches metal and glass as well. I find smeary cat prints in my bathroom mirror all the time.

But, with out local animal control having a euthanasia rate of 90% for cats, I don't think I'll be doing something as selfish and getting rid of him.

Crunchies- I do believe it is illegal in the UK as well.

I would never get rid of my "beasts" lol. I love them way too much. I have a microsuede couch and they only scratch it a little on one side. It's not really noticeable either.

That is not a cat lounging on the couch in the opening photo. . . it's HUGE. More like a dog in a cat suit!

We got a couch from Room & Board with thick, very durable woven polyester fabrics, and my cat doesn't really seem to be interested in scratching it. We've had it for half a year almost, and it's still in mint condition!

I also hear that cats don't go for microfiber fabrics. My friends who have cats and own microfiber couches tell me their cats don't scratch either, so I think it's true.

Also, for bepsf who commented first on this post, I'm glad your cat doesn't live with you any more. She/he deserves a better owner anyways.

And I hear "soft paws" are wonderful too!