By: Ivan Wang

Imagine you walk into your home, and the first thing you see is that your house is a mess! Furniture is messed up and scratched, and so are the curtains. The culprit is none other than your cat. So, why does this happen and more importantly, how do we stop it?

Well, an international team of scientists have researched which factors influence your cat’s scratching behavior. Using data from cat owners in France, they found that the following factors impact a cat’s scratching: having children in a home, personality traits such as aggression, and the cat’s activity levels.

The researchers came to the conclusion that stress was the main reason why cats scratch things. For example, young children might increase the stress levels in cats, which increases their chance of scratching things. Another example is long periods of playtime. When cats are playing they get stimulated and constant stimulation can increase their stress levels, which in the end leads to more scratching.

So, how can one stop or at least reduce the amount of scratching our cats do? Well, the first thing one can do is to have shorter play sessions. This is because they mimic successful hunts which will help reduce the cat’s stress. The second thing one can do is place scratching posts near places they rest often or pass by a lot. The last thing one can do is provide lots of spaces for them to hide in and high places to observe their surroundings. Even though one can’t fully eliminate our cat’s scratching habits there are always ways one can reduce it and stop it from causing damage to our furniture.

Sources used:https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/articles/c3g6ey2d85eo

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