How to stop a cat from scratching the furniture

ByMy Cuddles Cat

By the MCC team · 6 min read · Reviewed for accuracy

Here’s the reframe that changes everything: your cat isn’t being bad. Scratching is a biological need — it sheds claw husks, marks territory with scent glands in their paws, and stretches their whole body. You can’t stop a cat from scratching. But you can absolutely move it off your couch. Here’s how.

Step 1: Give them something better to scratch

A cat scratches the couch because the couch is there and tall and sturdy. Beat it by offering something more appealing:

  • Tall and stable. Cats want to stretch fully upright, so a post should be at least as tall as your cat standing on hind legs, and rock-solid (a wobbly post gets ignored).
  • The right material. Most cats love sisal rope or sisal fabric. Some prefer cardboard. Offer both and see what wins.
  • Both orientations. Some cats are vertical scratchers, some horizontal. A flat cardboard pad plus an upright post covers your bases.

Step 2: Put it in the right place

This is where most people go wrong. A scratching post hidden in a back corner won’t get used. Place it:

  • Right next to the furniture they’re targeting. Redirect at the scene.
  • Near where they sleep. Cats love to scratch-and-stretch right after a nap.
  • In social, central spots. Scratching is partly territorial; cats want to do it where the action is.

Step 3: Make the post irresistible (and the couch boring)

  • Rub or sprinkle catnip on the new post to draw them in.
  • Reward them with a treat or praise when they use it.
  • Temporarily make the couch unappealing: double-sided sticky tape, a textured throw, or foil on the target spot. Once the habit moves to the post, you can remove these.

What not to do

Don’t punish or spray your cat — it creates fear and stress without teaching the alternative, and stressed cats often scratch more. And please skip declawing; it’s an amputation, banned in many places, and causes long-term pain and behavior problems. The humane, effective path is always redirect, not punish.

The lazy-genius shortcut

A cat tree with sisal-wrapped posts solves two problems at once: it gives them vertical territory and a legitimate scratching surface, often pulling them off the furniture entirely. Pair it with a flat scratcher near the couch and most cats make the switch within a week or two.

Start here

Browse sisal scratchers and posts in our Towers & Scratchers and Toys & Enrichment collections — U.S.-shipped in 2–5 days, cat-approved or your money back.

Stubborn scratcher? Tell us your setup and we’ll suggest a fix.