Siamese Cat

　　Scratching is a cat’s natural habit, so making it stop scratching is impossible. For kittens, their claws are their most powerful weapons, so they must often scratch to remove old keratin layers and keep their claws sharp. Furthermore, scratching also serves to show their strength and increase scent marking. Cats have scent glands inside their front paws, so scratching also helps leave their scent. When training cats, scratching is the most difficult behavior to manage. Therefore, training should begin before the kitten starts clawing furniture.

　　Cats have the habit of scratching immediately after waking up and like to scratch objects around their cat bed to stretch and relax their forelimbs and paws. Therefore, when training their scratching behavior, wooden boards or posts should be placed near their bed whenever possible. As the cat grows, the size of the posts or boards should be increased accordingly, and later these can be fixed on the walls near the cat bed.

　　First, a dedicated scratching tool must be prepared. Although many types are sold on the market, making one yourself is also quite good. Place a thick wooden post about 70 cm long and 20 cm in diameter or a wooden board about 37 cm long and 20 cm wide near the cat bed. Initially, it can be placed horizontally to allow the kitten to climb up and down easily and find the part they prefer to scratch.

　　If the kitten does not scratch, the owner can gently stroke the cat’s head with their hand while pressing its head down slightly, encouraging it to scratch the post or board, but the action must be gentle. After the cat scratches the post or board, the glands on its paws secrete substances that get rubbed onto the wood. Attracted by the scent of its own secretion, the cat will then perform scratching on the wooden post or board.