Cat Won't Walk Across New Area Rug....???

[sweetblackpaws]

I just received my new rug that is shag style, thick and soft since I have balance issues and worry about falling. One of my cats won't walk on it. Is this normal? I love the rug and not even sure I can return it even if I wanted to.

It is polypropylene, but very soft. I know natural is better, but I could not afford a silk area rug and the cotton ones were so thin.

Have you experienced this? Did your cat take to the rug?

If she doesn't like it, I will get rid of it. But I really need it in case I fall. The rug has NO odor.

 

[Etarre]

My cat Gwen did this when we got a new rug for the living room. She got over it in a few days, and eventually loved flopping on it and rolling around. I'd give it a few days and let your cat work up her/her courage a bit.

 

[sweetblackpaws]

I am glad to hear that Gwen likes the rug now! I thought she would LOVE a shag rug. The others seem to like it. I will definitely give it a few days!

 

[susanm9006]

Yes, it’s normal. It is something new looking, feeling and smelling in her environment and it may take a while for her to trust it. Just ignore her behavior and act as though nothing out of the ordinary is going on.

 

[sweetblackpaws]

Ok, I'll just leave her be. I was going to sprinkle catnip on it, but I didn't in case I was going to try to return it.

 

[rubysmama]

You know, it could be worse. She could be using it as a giant scratching mat. I know my Ruby would be.

You do know, though, the first time she does walk on it, will probably coincide with her hacking up a furball. Or at least it would in my Ruby's case.

How do I know this? Well, I had a cute little mat by my bed, and shortly after I adopted Ruby, it started having missing threads. Then it got thrown up on. Then it got thrown out.

 

[sweetblackpaws]

Oh, I am sure there will be many furball hackings to clean up!

As for the scratching, I wouldn't mind - actually, I like to keep at least one jute or seagrass rug for that purpose. It's like having a giant scratching pad, and they are fairly inexpensive.

But no one has scratched the polypropylene one yet.

 

[susanm9006]

Yes, it could be worse. One of my cats was a prolific, and I always thought purposeful vomiter. Bring in a new rug, bedspread or piece of furniture and guaranteed she would puke on it within twenty four hours.

 

[AbbysMom]

Abby does this with new rugs and also does this with the runner in my hallway whenever I wash it. She normally gets over it in a few days.

 

[JulesB86]

Totally normal. We bought a new couch recently and it took 1-2 days for our kitty to take to it. She even hissed at it when she was sussing it out

 

[Etarre]

Even moving objects around can be cause for alarm...I moved the laundry drying rack out of the spare bedroom into the hallway last week and Juniper did a full 'stalk and startle' with it before figuring out that it was the same rack that she's seen every day.

 

[sweetblackpaws]

Oh, dear! Well, at least she hasn't hissed at it, lol!

She has walked across it a few times less gingerly. I think she will be okay.

It is funny, she prefers the old, paper-thin viscose rug (which I kept for her just in case). You can feel the floor right through it, even with a rug pad.

 

[sweetblackpaws]

Ok, she still does not seem to like it, although she will step across it if she has to. I think I need to return it or donate it. I don't want her to be afraid of the rug. I had no idea of this reaction.

 

[PushPurrCatPaws]

sweetblackpaws , have you tried putting an "island" for her in the center of it (or along an edge of the rug)?

My suggestion is to use something the size of a placemat, or the flat side of a cardboard box, even a folded towel... put that near an edge of, yet on, the rug (or in the center of the rug once she gets more brave or desensitized to it). She can sit on the cardboard/towel/placemat, in the middle of the "scary rug". As she finds that there is a safe spot for her to sit while on the rug, maybe she'll get more used to walking on it to reach that "island".

Cats love to sit on things.

 

[sweetblackpaws]

That is a very good idea - she does like to lay on towels. I don't want her to fear the Scary Rug.

 

[sweetblackpaws]

Oh, dear - according to this article, shag/thick pile rugs are the WORST because cats can misinterpret the long fibers as grass, or a place to scratch and go poo.
That hasn't happened yet, though! Not my smartest move!

How to Choose a Rug for a Cat-friendly Home | Meow Lifestyle