Scratching is the nature of ragdoll cats and cannot be changed. However, ragdolls tend to scratch sofas especially, and newly bought sofas soon become covered with marks, which is very troublesome. As a ragdoll cat owner, you should first respect your cat’s nature. Secondly, to help your ragdoll live more harmoniously at home, you can take some measures to correct the bad habit of scratching the sofa.

　　1. Regularly trim your ragdoll’s nails.

　　Ragdolls scratch to sharpen their claws, so regular trimming reduces damage to furniture and prevents scratching people.

　　2. Provide your ragdoll with something she can scratch.

　　This is the most important principle. Since a ragdoll’s nature cannot be changed, while forbidding her from scratching certain places, you must offer an alternative spot for claw sharpening — this is very important!

　　You can prepare a scratching board especially for her (preferably made of natural materials like sisal rope or wood), fix it upright, and train the ragdoll to use it. If necessary, use some catnip to attract her to scratch there. Nowadays, commercial scratching boards sprayed with catnip are available and most cats like using them.

　　In addition, some natural material grass mats are favorites of certain cats, such as the woven grass mats available at IKEA. Some cats will consciously use these to scratch.

　　3. Prepare a water spray bottle to discipline her when she scratches the sofa.

　　Ragdolls are very afraid of sudden “attacks.” When she tries to scratch the sofa, spray her with water; the cat will be scared and run away. Using this method repeatedly creates a conditioned reflex: scratching the sofa equals sudden unknown attack, so naturally, the cat will give up on the sofa. The water spray does no harm to the cat and only serves as a warning. However, be careful not to spray water into the cat’s ears.

　　4. Spray lemon water on the places she likes to scratch on the sofa.

　　Cats dislike the smell of lemon water, and similarly, water infused with orange peels is also disliked. Other odors cats usually avoid include floral water and medicated oils. When cats smell these, they will definitely avoid scratching there.

　　If you also struggle with cats scratching your sofa, try these suggestions. If implemented, while giving your cat new scratching fun, your sofa will be safe. You can try this method on other furniture as well. (Source：PetsZone)