How to protect leather sofa from kittens???

[fluffyncupcake]

I have two adorable little kittens that are sooo full of energy. They love to climb (especially on our furniture).  Any suggestions to protect our things from claw marks?

 

[mani]

Ah... the eternal question

For starters, I'd cover the precious stuff (like your leather lounge) until your kittens have learned good scratching habits.

Learn how to trim with nails, and get them used to you doing it.  If they have a bad experience first up, then it will be very difficult in the future.  Most importantly, never clip near the red part of the nails.. just the while curved nail.  Here's a good article, which tells you how to go about it, and also addresses the issue of declawing, which this site is very opposed to:

http://www.thecatsite.com/a/how-to-best-take-care-of-cat-claws

Get scratching posts... there are lots of good ones on the market.  Make it as tall as a fully grown cat standing on her back legs with legs extended.  Dangly, attractive toys are a great idea.  Have a couple of them, in areas where the cats like to be and play.  I like to put them in front of a window, so it's a bit like climbing a tree and then looking out at the view.

When your kittens scratch, make a loud noise... "no", a hiss (like their mum would make), hand clapping etc is often enough to distract them.

Good luck!

 

[fluffyncupcake]

Thanks for the tips!  My husband and I were looking into something called "Soft Paws" have you ever heard of them? What do you think?

 

[sivyaleah]

Mani gave you excellent advice but I'd like to add, having a leather couch myself, that it will be impossible to prevent all claw marks although they will be less with good manners.  It's just that even walking on the couch leaves impossibly small pin point holes in it, like you almost can't see them but they are there.  The cushions on mine still look fine (3 years on) but, the "ledge" of it where they tend to walk to look out the window, is totally full of these small holes.  Nobody really can see them unless you look closely, so I don't stress out about it.  Plus, we got the couch before we got the cats so not much could be done about it.  Ours are great at using their personal scratching surfaces (we have several kinds) but you know, stuff will happen with pets and you just have to learn to live with a certain amount of it.  We also have a cat blanket at one end which they enjoy laying on - which prevents them from walking too much on the cushions.  We also leave a lot of pillows around on it - which they also utilize (I swear Casper lays in wait for me to get up so he can steal my spot!) so less walking on it also lol.

As for the soft paws, I have no experience with them although I believe they work fairly well, but fall off after a while so you need to keep an eye out for that.  Really, keeping them trimmed, having good alternative places for the kitten to scratch, and not being too fussy about your home is the best advice I can give.

 

[tulosai]

Mani gave you excellent advice but I'd like to add, having a leather couch myself, that it will be impossible to prevent all claw marks although they will be less with good manners.  It's just that even walking on the couch leaves impossibly small pin point holes in it, like you almost can't see them but they are there.  The cushions on mine still look fine (3 years on) but, the "ledge" of it where they tend to walk to look out the window, is totally full of these small holes.  Nobody really can see them unless you look closely, so I don't stress out about it.  Plus, we got the couch before we got the cats so not much could be done about it.  Ours are great at using their personal scratching surfaces (we have several kinds) but you know, stuff will happen with pets and you just have to learn to live with a certain amount of it.  We also have a cat blanket at one end which they enjoy laying on - which prevents them from walking too much on the cushions.  We also leave a lot of pillows around on it - which they also utilize (I swear Casper lays in wait for me to get up so he can steal my spot!) so less walking on it also lol.

As for the soft paws, I have no experience with them although I believe they work fairly well, but fall off after a while so you need to keep an eye out for that.  Really, keeping them trimmed, having good alternative places for the kitten to scratch, and not being too fussy about your home is the best advice I can give.

 A cat is going to bang up a leather couch at least a little and there is nothing you can do about that... the best advice is a good attitude.  To minimize the damage though the advice you've been given is excellent.  Also, if you ever 'catch them in the act' immediately say 'no, that's what your scratching post is for!' and pick them up and transport them to the scratching post.  Also, have a post or two RIGHT by the couch. When my kittens loved to scratch on a couch I had, I literally put two scratching posts right next to it and it did cut the problem in half.

Good luck!!

 

[sivyaleah]

I do have to add, that overall - I've found that the cats have way less interest in the leather couch than any fabric sofa I ever had or anyone else's house I've been with that has cats.  Years ago, I had a cat and had one of those microfiber couches.  First, the cat hair stuck to it like glue.  Second, it stained terribly from everything she dragged onto it.  And third, her claws would get stuck in it no matter how much we trimmed them.

The same for both of my sister's couches.  The cats messed them up, even if they weren't specifically trying to.  I'm much happier having the leather since they don't seem to care for sitting on it very much, without something on top of it for them - which of course, protects it.  I guess they don't care for the texture very much.  Or at least, mine don't.

 

[mani]

Thanks for the tips!  My husband and I were looking into something called "Soft Paws" have you ever heard of them? What do you think?

I'm unfamiliar with "soft paws" but have read about people using them here.

I have a feeling that it's a lot of mucking around to put them on and you do have to keep replacing them.  I'm not sure that cats would be really happy about them, but that's just a gut feeling..

Here's a discussion of them from way back:  http://www.thecatsite.com/t/42214/soft-paws

 

[fluffyncupcake]

My husband and I will go out tonight and pick up a couple more scratch posts and put them near the sofa... They aren't really scratching their claws on it per se, but rather rough housing and climbing on the very top to lay down. I guess we'll have to invest in a cat tree

 

[laniecat]

I've had a leather sofa and two hand-me-down leather chairs since before I had cats.  I have actually never had a problem with any of my cats trying to scratch them.  I have plenty of scratching posts around, but the most important thing that has saved the leather are the Soft Paws/Claws that I use.  Even if the cat isn't actually scratching intentionally on your couch, they will leave plenty of claw marks from just running around on it, even if you keep their claws trimmed.  Soft Paws is the best alternative to declawing in my opinion.

If you're thinking about declawing, do some research on it first.  It's not the simple, harmless procedure that many Americans believe.  Here are some good sites to check out before deciding on declawing:

http://declaw.lisaviolet.com/declawdrjean2.html

http://cats.about.com/od/declawing/a/ucfeature7.htm

http://www.declawing.com/

Here's the link to Soft Paws / Soft Claws (same product, different names):  http://www.softpaws.com

The knock-off brands that they sell at PetSmart really aren't worth it, trust me.  You'll end up replacing them at least twice as often, I found.

I'm going to be brutally honest with you here, but keep in mind that, for your cats' well-being, and that of your sofa, this is really the best alternative that I've ever discovered.  Soft Paws do take a lot of work for the cats to get used to them, and you have to keep reapplying them as the cats shed their claws about every three months.  At first the cats will spend all of their time trying to peel them off, so you'll have to replace them a lot in the beginning.  You don't have to use much glue; if you fill it up with the glue it will overflow onto the cat's fur and drive them crazy, making them chew at it even more.  After a little while you'll get used to applying them though, so don't stress.

First get your kitties used to having their nails trimmed and handled.  Kitten nails don't usually need to be trimmed to apply Soft Paws, but larger claws will probably need to be clipped a little before fitting the covers on.  If the cover is too large it's easy to cut them with the nail clippers or scissors.  They come in different sizes; the "kitten" size is about the same as the "small."  The first application of Soft Claws can be tricky with some cats, so have a friend ready to help just in case you need it.  If the cat is having problems with the application, just do a couple nails at a time, then take a break before continuing the next few.

My first experience on applying Soft Paws, with my cat Lanie, was honestly horrible.  My roommate agreed to let me adopt a kitten as long as it was declawed.  I agreed, as I, like most Americans, had the impression that declawing was a normal, safe procedure.  Thankfully, a friend of mine enlightened me on the truth of declawing before I went through with it, and recommended Soft Paws to me.  I attempted to apply them solo on the kitten and was not only unsuccessful, but got quite scratched up for my efforts.  I sent out an S.O.S. to my friend and he came over to help.  I held and soothed Lanie as he showed me how to glue them on properly, and we got all 18 applied with much less effort and scratches (and angst from the kitten).  Lanie now lets me apply Soft Claws with minimum fuss - she's got to whine a little for appearances' sake, of course.

I was pleasantly surprised when it came time to cover my second cat's claws - she just chilled in my lap while I glued all 18 on her at once.  (All my cats have four toes on their back feet and five on the front.)  If your cat doesn't mind you handling his or her feet you probably won't have much of a problem applying them.

I once rented an apartment that required any cat living there to be declawed.  Before moving in I invited the manager over and showed her Soft Claws, and explained the truth behind declawing cats.  She was quite impressed, and had no trouble letting me live there with Lanie and her covered claws.

If you don't mind tiny scratches on your sofa, you don't need to bother with Soft Paws.  If you want to keep them pristine, you'll have to cover or remove their claws - and I really hope you don't declaw your cats, for the happiness of both of you.

If for some reason your cats DO end up declaring your couch a scratching post, there are deterrents such as sprays and sticky tape, though you'd want to be careful not to damage the finish on the leather.

...I didn't mean to write a book, sorry about that!

The kitties and I wish you good luck!

 

[fluffyncupcake]

I've had a leather sofa and two hand-me-down leather chairs since before I had cats.  I have actually never had a problem with any of my cats trying to scratch them.  I have plenty of scratching posts around, but the most important thing that has saved the leather are the Soft Paws/Claws that I use.  Even if the cat isn't actually scratching intentionally on your couch, they will leave plenty of claw marks from just running around on it, even if you keep their claws trimmed.  Soft Paws is the best alternative to declawing in my opinion.

If you're thinking about declawing, do some research on it first.  It's not the simple, harmless procedure that many Americans believe.  Here are some good sites to check out before deciding on declawing:

http://declaw.lisaviolet.com/declawdrjean2.html

http://cats.about.com/od/declawing/a/ucfeature7.htm

http://www.declawing.com/

Here's the link to Soft Paws / Soft Claws (same product, different names):  http://www.softpaws.com

The knock-off brands that they sell at PetSmart really aren't worth it, trust me.  You'll end up replacing them at least twice as often, I found.

I'm going to be brutally honest with you here, but keep in mind that, for your cats' well-being, and that of your sofa, this is really the best alternative that I've ever discovered.  Soft Paws do take a lot of work for the cats to get used to them, and you have to keep reapplying them as the cats shed their claws about every three months.  At first the cats will spend all of their time trying to peel them off, so you'll have to replace them a lot in the beginning.  You don't have to use much glue; if you fill it up with the glue it will overflow onto the cat's fur and drive them crazy, making them chew at it even more.  After a little while you'll get used to applying them though, so don't stress.

First get your kitties used to having their nails trimmed and handled.  Kitten nails don't usually need to be trimmed to apply Soft Paws, but larger claws will probably need to be clipped a little before fitting the covers on.  If the cover is too large it's easy to cut them with the nail clippers or scissors.  They come in different sizes; the "kitten" size is about the same as the "small."  The first application of Soft Claws can be tricky with some cats, so have a friend ready to help just in case you need it.  If the cat is having problems with the application, just do a couple nails at a time, then take a break before continuing the next few.

My first experience on applying Soft Paws, with my cat Lanie, was honestly horrible.  My roommate agreed to let me adopt a kitten as long as it was declawed.  I agreed, as I, like most Americans, had the impression that declawing was a normal, safe procedure.  Thankfully, a friend of mine enlightened me on the truth of declawing before I went through with it, and recommended Soft Paws to me.  I attempted to apply them solo on the kitten and was not only unsuccessful, but got quite scratched up for my efforts.  I sent out an S.O.S. to my friend and he came over to help.  I held and soothed Lanie as he showed me how to glue them on properly, and we got all 18 applied with much less effort and scratches (and angst from the kitten).  Lanie now lets me apply Soft Claws with minimum fuss - she's got to whine a little for appearances' sake, of course.

I was pleasantly surprised when it came time to cover my second cat's claws - she just chilled in my lap while I glued all 18 on her at once.  (All my cats have four toes on their back feet and five on the front.)  If your cat doesn't mind you handling his or her feet you probably won't have much of a problem applying them.

I once rented an apartment that required any cat living there to be declawed.  Before moving in I invited the manager over and showed her Soft Claws, and explained the truth behind declawing cats.  She was quite impressed, and had no trouble letting me live there with Lanie and her covered claws.

If you don't mind tiny scratches on your sofa, you don't need to bother with Soft Paws.  If you want to keep them pristine, you'll have to cover or remove their claws - and I really hope you don't declaw your cats, for the happiness of both of you.

If for some reason your cats DO end up declaring your couch a scratching post, there are deterrents such as sprays and sticky tape, though you'd want to be careful not to damage the finish on the leather.

...I didn't mean to write a book, sorry about that!

The kitties and I wish you good luck!

Thanks so much for all the info! My husband keeps telling me we need to get them declawed, but I keep telling him its not a good idea... and that its humane. We're eventually going to buy some Softpaws and try them out.. I think their still a bit too young to put them on.  I'll keep this post updated on how they cope with them