You bought your new patio furniture to enjoy the outdoors that much longer only to find your cat scratching all over it. Your cat seems to be enjoying it more than you do, it stretches and scratches to its heart content. Using its claws to rip through the weaved straw material used to build the patio furniture.
You love your cat but you dont have money to waste in replacing furniture but when can you do? Giving up your cat is not an option because the kids love the cat so much.
Since you need your new furniture to last as long as possible you decided to take some steps. Then you start thinking, how to keep cats off patio furniture?
An idea pops in your mind and you did some research and found out that cats are territorial animals and it is natural for them to scratch to mark their territory. You see, cats are born with a natural instinct to stretch and scratch.
They have scent glands in their paws, when they scratch your furniture or any other object, it leaves a scent behind. This scent is what marks their territory so that other cats are warned. Sometimes the furniture is make of materials that cats love to sink their claws in because the material is easy to scread.
Actually, some vets stated that this behavor of stretching and clawing is essential to their wellbeing. A healthy cat is a happy cat.
How to keep cats off patio furniture?
You know that cats love stretching and scratching, therefore, the first step is to distract the cat from your furniture and give it something else to scratch. For my cat I give it this PetFusion Ultimate Cat Scratcher Lounge to scratch to its heart content.
My cat seem to love it and sleep on it all the time. You can get one on Amazon if you think it is nice enough. I want for transparency sake to let you know that if you purchase this product that i will receive a small affiliate commission. You wont hav to pay anything extra.
The second thing that you can do is to mark your tettirory by splashing some scents that your cat does not like on the furniture. This product is non toxic and is a basic home product in your kitchen. This secret product is the vinegar.
Splashing your furniture with some vinegar solution may be enough to rid your self of the can scratching the furniture. Other cat parent suggest that essential oils works just as well. Cats hate citronella, lavender, lemongrass, lemon and peppermint scents.
Alternatively, you can use double sided tape or just move the furniture to another location that is not convenient for the can to use of a jumping off point to get on the window sill.
If you are going to use vinegar, which is what I used to stop may can scratching my furniture. Here is how it is done, get a small spray bottle and mix one part of water, one part of white vinegar, and one part of liquid hand soap.
Spray this mixture on the table when you are cleaning it. The cat really hate the smell of vinegar and will stay away for horse at a time until it learn not to go there. This simple homemade mixture is safe to spray on outdoor or patio furniture, including the cushions.
Why Do Cats Scratch Furniture?
- Cats scratch objects to leave a scent to mark their territory.
- Scratching helps cats keep their nails groomed.
- Cats scratching an object releases a feel-good hormone in their body that contributes to overall good health.
What Can We Do To Stop Cat from scratching Patio Furniture?
#1 Get a post for the cat to scratch
If your cannot beat the cat join them. Give your cat something to scratch. Cats likes some material over others. They especially likes materials that shred under their claws – sisal materials are their favorite. Sisal material shreds when scratched by the cat’s claws.
Use their natural tendencies for your benefit. Buy the cat a scratching post. If you would like a good one tray the SmartCat Pioneer Pet Ultimate Scratching Post, simple design, without much fuss adn is very effective. This is perfect because it is height enough for the cat the stretch. Remember that cat stretching is beneficial to their muscle tone and bone structure.
#2 Apply Double-Sided Tape To The The Furniture.
Cats are clean and do not like sticky surfaces. Applying double-sided tape to a trouble spot on your patio furniture will discourage the cat. If its scratching pole is nearby it waill scratch that instead of your lovely furniture. You can even mimic scratching it yourself for a be of moral support for your cat.
Try not to put it on place where you may sit. You do not want to sit on the stick stuff. Place it on the side that they always scratch. The Shurtape Double Coated Cloth Carpet Tape is good for this job. It is strong but can be taken off when ready without leaving any residue. These Anti Scratch Tape keeps cats away without you having to cover your entire patio furniture.
#3 Eliminate That Jumping Off Spot
Cat like to jump on furniture to then jump on another object to get to their favorite window sill. Therefore, make sure that your patio furniture is not positioned at a location that enable the cat jump onto a windowsill.
In order to prevent this you got to rearrange your furniture to eliminate this opportunity of using the furniture as a launch pad.
#4 Spray Cat Repellant Solutions On The Furniture.
As discussed before, the spray solutions of vinegar and water make the perfect animal repellent for patio furniture. This method takes some time because you have to spray the solution whenever you see your cat going near the furniture.
You just have to be vigilant and make sure you do not wait until the cat start scratching the furniture. Remember the solution is to just put some vinegar in a spray bottle with water and apply it to the problem areas every few days.
You can purchase commercial repellant sprays are available and can be purchased at your local pet stores or on amazon. This is a great way to keep cats off your furniture.
Conclusion
The basic on How To Keep Cats Off Patio Furniture is to work with your cat’s natural instinct. Provide something for your cat to scratch and distract them from your high value furniture. Stretching furniture and eating the string is bad for your cats health. Spray the lemon or essential oil where you do not wan the cat to scratch. Be patient wth your can though.
