A question for the cat owners out there

[missroserose]

First: We have a beautiful and comfy new sofa! Yay, finally somewhere to sit!

However: We have two (non-declawed, obviously) cats, who made a real wreck of our last one. That wasn't a big deal, since we got it from some neighbors who were moving and sold it to us cheap, but this one we paid full price for and fully intend to keep for the next decade if we can. Plus, the frame is upholstered in leather, which looks pretty awful when scratched.

So...what kind of deterrents have you used in the past? I know that we need to have alternatives available; we have a couple of scratchers around and are considering getting them a cat tree. One cat doesn't mind having his nails trimmed, but the other won't sit still for it. As for the couch itself, my various Googlings have found double-sticky strips (which seem the most promising) and a couple of sprays (whose efficacy seems to vary from feline to feline). A motion-detecting noisemaking device is less desirable, since [a] this is likely to be a heavily-trafficked area and [b] we don't mind if they want to sit on the couch with us, we just don't want them scratching it.

Has anybody tried any of these? Is there anything else that's worked particularly well for you in the past?

Comments

[cyranocyrano.livejournal.com]

Did you discourage them at all with the old couch? My experience with cats is that within a couple of months they will at least know you don't want them to do something if you scold them/squirt them/chase them around the house when they do it. This doesn't mean they never do it, but it does mean that usually they only do it to get your attention.
Definitely give them something that it's okay to scratch. Maybe even powder it with catmint. We did have a spray that we used, but it was to keep them from chewing on the power cords. It did work, though.

[flewellyn.livejournal.com]

I've found that cats seem to hate citrus. The smell of it makes them recoil.

Might work to rub orange oil on the sofa?

[errant-variable.livejournal.com]

Flewellyn has the best idea I've seen so far... you might also try giving them a scratch-friendly sleeping area on the couch (a blanket folded a couple times). Past that, showing them the couch is comfy then promptly evicting them might work while you're home but may not hold so much force while you're working.