American Shorthair cat

　　Scratching is a natural instinct for American Shorthair cats and cannot be changed. However, while they do not scratch other places, they especially like to scratch sofas. A newly purchased sofa will soon be covered with scratches, which is very troublesome. As an owner of an American Shorthair cat, you must first respect the cat’s nature. Secondly, to ensure the cat lives harmoniously at home, you can take some measures to correct the bad habit of scratching the sofa.

　　1. Regularly trim the American Shorthair cat’s nails.

　　American Shorthair cats scratch to sharpen their nails. Regular trimming can reduce damage to furniture and also prevent scratching people.

　　2. Provide things that the American Shorthair cat can scratch.

　　This is the most important principle. Since the nature of American Shorthair cats cannot be changed, when you prohibit the cat from scratching a certain spot, you must provide another place where the cat can scratch. This is very important!

　　You can specially prepare a scratching board (preferably made of natural materials such as hemp rope, wood, etc.), fix it vertically, and train the American Shorthair cat to scratch there. If necessary, you can use some catnip to attract the cat to scratch. There are also scratching boards sprayed with catnip available on the market, which most cats enjoy using.

　　Additionally, some grass mats made of natural materials are also favorites for some cats, such as the craft woven grass mats available at IKEA. Some cats will instinctively scratch on them.