# Caspar is ruining my expensive carpet!



## Richarm (May 3, 2009)

Hi there!
My name is Marion and it's the first time i've ever joined a forum.
i need someone's help desperately! 
I had an expensive living room carpet put down recently and my cat Caspar is slowly ruining it! He has a vertical scratching post which he uses regularly. i bought him a horizontal scratching mat but he doesn't use it at all. Initially i would catch him scratching the carpet during the day and used a water spray on him. Now i never catch him scratching during the day but he scratches it at night! And he doesn't do it in one particular spot, he does it in various places. i don't want to lock him out of the house at night or in a single bedroom (he's always been free to come & go through his cat door)and can't lock him in a room downstairs as i have no internal doors.
Have thought of buying the Feliway spray or diffuser but have read that it's best for vertical scratching (rather than horizontal). Apart from this frustrating habit he's developed he is a PERFECT cat (well i would say that!) in everyway and he seems a genuinely happy & contented one!:


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## animalia (Feb 2, 2009)

Sounds like he's marking the carpet! pretty normal for a cat on a new thing i'm afraid! I would still encourage you to use the Feliway diffuser AND the feliway spray! treat each room with the spray and put one diffuser upstairs and one down or if you have a large house and it's only one story put one on each side of the house. I would also suggest giving him a new litter box in the room with the new carpet that is being damaged the most. A couple of scratching posts are good to have in a house, not just one. Maybe put a couple round the house and put some cat nip on them and give him lots of praise when he uses them. Try to encourage the use of them with play time and cat nip. Also try to put them in entry ways. They tend to like to use them at the tops of stairs, near your front door, near your bedroom door.  See how you get on with that for now. When you get the Feliway spray the spots that have been most damaged too.  Good luck!


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## Janee (May 4, 2008)

> Maybe put a couple round the house and put some cat nip on them and give him lots of praise when he uses them. Try to encourage the use of them with play time and cat nip.


Totally agree. I bought a very cheap door mat from Wilkinsons - it isn't sisal but some sort of very rough plasticy thing - cost about £2.00. Rubbed catnip in on first day and both have used as horizontal scratching mat ever since (12 months)

My other suggestion may be more tricky - there is a car boot sale market which also has traders. There is an off-cut carpet man and I bought strips of 5 ft* 18 inch carpet off cuts (but were all different shapes). They were bound on the edges so did not look out of place. This too diverted the scratching to this strip. You could ask at carpet shops if they sell the samples???


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## IndysMamma (Jan 15, 2009)

our local carpet shop sells carpet samples (from the books) at 20p each!

them with catnip spray on it keeps my boys off mums new carpet


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## Guest (May 3, 2009)

get a dog:thumbup:


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## Janee (May 4, 2008)

borderer said:


> get a dog:thumbup:


Wrong forum, Borderer. Inane comments just keep coming from you :blushing:


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## Guest (May 3, 2009)

Janee said:


> Wrong forum, Borderer. Inane comments just keep coming from you :blushing:


love you too :thumbsup: :arf:


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## Richarm (May 3, 2009)

hi, it's been a mad week so apologies for the silence. i did really appreciate all who responded to my plea for help and after some thought i've decided the best course of action in the first instance is to get a couple of carpet samples as perhaps Caspar will turn his attention to some new carpet!? I'm doubtful about the benefits of the Feliway diffuser or spray in Caspar's case as he's a very contented cat and also uses the vertical post no problem. But if all else fails i'll try the Feliway products. 
Cheers!


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## IndysMamma (Jan 15, 2009)

I find a little catnip spray/powder on the carpet samples helps orientate the cats towards them rather than the actual carpet


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## Richarm (May 3, 2009)

ok, will try that too! thanks!


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## Mochali (Sep 29, 2008)

Get a scratch post and when he is seen doing it...gently take him from the carpet to the post and make him scratch the post, retraining him


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## Richarm (May 3, 2009)

hi, the problem is, i never catch him scratching the carpet cos he does it at night! Caspar has a scratching post which he uses all the time but it's obviously not enough! they say....cats need to scratch horizontally as well as vertically. hoping to get some carpet samples & catnip spray this weekend!


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