apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

I was excited when I got my first piece of cardboard cat furniture - my cats LOVED the Kittypod - but my girlfriend and I were less than excited by the amount of mess we had
to clean up every day. We've recently started buying new furniture and the Kittypod was not enough of a distraction to prevent any scratching on the new couch. Cue ominous music.

Thankfully, I found a much better solution - Softpaws. They're a plastic claw cover that you superglue on. I'm about two weeks into my first pack of them and I will never go back. I still discourage the cats from scratching but they are more or less unable to damage the furniture now. The only downside is that the Kittypod gets less love!

I thought cats scratched as a necessary way to clean their claws, to keep the cuticles growing over them...

Nathan, you sound like a script for a commercial! Softpaws wouldn't fly with my cats. They're psychotic and I can't even touch their paws.



I'm gonna go buy this lil cat scratcher. I've got a few cosmic-catnip ones around the house, and my cats love 'em, but i had to doublestick tape them to the floor because they moved around so much the cats got nervous ahah...and the cats still scratch everywhere else, but whatev. They're cats.

argh, I would not want something glued to my fingernails. Can the cat still latch onto the scratching post with softpaws attached? Scratching is such a natural necessity for cats it makes me angry when humans try to alter it for their own benefit. Don't even get me started on declawing...

That said, this looks really great! The video on their homepage is really cute too. I worry about having to clean up the cardboard but I'm interested to see how it fairs against our current Sisal scratching post. As long as kitty has a nice, new post and I clip his nails weekly we're all happy. Granted, all cats are different.

Hehe, I love these things. More importantly, cats love them. Whether it has "walls" or not, I've found that cats tend to scratch a kitty-shaped indentation in the middle of it, then happily lie in it (probably in a catnip-induced stupor).

They are really messy though - little cardboard bits everywhere.

actually, the cardboard doesn't bother me as much as that carpeting/sisal contraption that sheeded carpet fibers and rope all over the place. PLUS, my kitty got a claw stuck in a staple on one of those things! i much prefer the cardboard.

Cardboard scratchers are fantastic. They're inexpensive (Kittypod excluded) and you can toss them in the recycling bin after kitty has loved it to death.

about softpaws: i used these on my cat while living with an anal roommate who had leather furniture. (although my cat doesn't scratch much, she doesn't really distinguish between furniture and the many posts she has around the house.) i was totally skeptical, but found that 1)she didn't mind the soft paws at all once she got over the initial, "what the heck is on my paws?" confusion. AND 2) she was still able to scratch on her posts and cardboard. it just makes it so they can't cause any damage, especially on leather or fabrics with a really tight weave. so if someone is really concerned with having their furniture damaged, i totally recommend them.

how about simply cut their nails? i do that every week, it works. and they are used to it... well.. now...

This is absolutely the best Scratcher / Lounger ever. . . Its' stylish & clever design looks brilliant in my home.

My two cats fight over this scratcher that I ordered on-line. I already need another one to appease them both. Does anyone know where can I purchase one locally in Los Angeles ? Thanks !

P.S. What is the orange kitties name in the photo ? She's adorable. . .

I see these advertised in the back of DWELL mag all the time. I like the shape of them but I hate the box color and print.

P.S. I used to use SoftPaws for my kitty because there is no way she was going to scratch the LeCorbusier sofa. But she uses the cheap $5 cardboard scratcher from Target and loves it. She never comes near the sofa because she knows better. She's trained. I no longer even need the SoftPaws.

If you repeatedly deter them from something, they won't mess with it. You have to train them like you have to train your kids.

ArtdeptTV:
Kitty's name is Coco, she's a fawn abyssinian that I got from a breeder once she had been 'retired' (after 7 litters!). Now she doesn't have to live with a bajilliion other cats and she's much happier, though it's taken her some time to get used to having the place to herself!