Do they make sneakers for cats?

September 22nd, 2007

I knew it would happen, but just not this soon. We’ve had our new coffee and end tables for a mere 200 hours. Been enjoying them. Until I moved some books aside on the table and shrieked.

The damage: Coffee table. Three fresh claw marks. Lovely.

The perpetrator: Lucky, the soon-to-be pawless cat. Where’s that rotary saw?

If anyone knows how to conceal scratches on wood, I’d much appreciate hearing from you. We don’t want to make things worse by using the wrong product on it.

While I’m at it, anyone want a spastic cat who never sleeps and doesn’t understand the meaning of "For the last time, get off the table!"?

p.s. Our new couch and chair are coming on Wednesday. I’m sure I’ll be reporting back on the damage to those in no time at all.

Stumble it!

18 Responses to “Do they make sneakers for cats?”

regan Says:
September 22nd, 2007 at 9:22 pm

I there’s only one thing I know about concealing scratch marks. Put some sort of coaster/little blanket thing that you can put on your table.

And I’ll take the cat.

Kathy Frederick Says:
September 22nd, 2007 at 9:26 pm

@ Regan, Guess where you’ll always see a pile of books?

If you take Lucky, you have to take Shadow, too, now that I think about it. They go together as a pair.

Peter Says:
September 22nd, 2007 at 9:38 pm

Hi! from Sydney, Australia. Just did a google search and found this. Easy directions with pictures. Hope it helps.

http://www.ehow.com/how_10040_fix-scratches-furniture.html

Regards Peter McCartney

Kathy Frederick Says:
September 22nd, 2007 at 9:44 pm

Hi, Australia! Thank you for sending that link. Gee, who knew crayons would be so helpful?

I’m going to let my husband try his hand at it. That way, I won’t be the one to possibly make it worse.

I remember thinking when we shopped for tables we should go for the rustic look, so the inevitable scratches wouldn’t be so noticeable. But we went with a smooth-top. We are so stupid.

Kitty Says:
September 23rd, 2007 at 7:15 am

Awww … sorry about your coffee table, but Lucky is so cute!

I’ve heard about putting little gloves on each cat claw. Ask your vet (I mean, Lucky’s vet, but you get the meaning). This doesn’t hurt the cat, and s/he can still scratch things with it. It “muffles” the scratch, so your furniture remains perfect.

oh, and cats hate the scent of lemon. put a wee bit of lemon juice on furniture that you wish Lucky to avoid.

Hope this is useful! 😀

Kathy Frederick Says:
September 23rd, 2007 at 10:04 am

@ Kitty,
I’ve seen these claw coverings somewhere and remembered thinking “how do they even get them on a cat?” I can barely clip their nails safely. I don’t know. There’s something called Soft Paws that looks interesting. Here’s a funny question from their website. I want to know two things: 1) Iguanas scratch things with their claws? and 2) Why is the best color black?

15) Can Soft Paws® be used on ferrets, rabbits and iguanas?

Yes. Soft Paws® work great on ferrets, rabbits and iguanas. Use the following guidelines for sizing:

Ferrets: Use kitten size.
Rabbits: Use Soft Paws for dogs, size small.
Iguanas: One foot and less (without tail) will probably wear kitten. Over a foot will probably use Soft Paws for dogs, size small. These caps may need to be trimmed at the base so they are shorter to provide a better fit. The best accepted color for iguanas is black.

bobbarama Says:
September 23rd, 2007 at 12:11 pm

Here’s a little trick I figured out on my own. Works great.

Fly paper. Either that or get a wide roll of masking tape and stick it to paper, sticky side up. Put it on anything you don’t want your cat on. He figures it out soon enough. After a while, after the cat is trained to avoid the furniture, you can remove the tape.

Oh, yeah, you might want to try to be in the house when the cat gets stuck the first time or two.

Hysterical. Sorry. What I meant to say is that she’ll need help getting unstuck.

🙂

Kathy Says:
September 24th, 2007 at 12:04 am

@ bobbarama — Lucky is very stupid. He would think fly paper was a toy instead of a deterrent. But thanks for the idea. It would work for normal cats, I’m sure.

P.O'd Naked Blogger Says:
September 24th, 2007 at 1:17 pm

Having been at the whim of several cats in my life, let me remind you that it is the Cat’s home, and you are merely a room mate. Good luck putting on the kitty gloves. Please post your before and after pictures of you and the cat!-
Carrie in Seattle WA, but formerly of Fogelsville

Kathy Says:
September 24th, 2007 at 4:05 pm

@ Carrie — We are well aware our cats run our house. I laughed to myself as Dave would try to shoo the cats off the new tables. It’s a pointless exercise, since they’ll go right back on them when you turn your back or go to work.

As for putting tiny coverings over their claws, I would expect to wind up as bloody as when I try to give them medication. I’m the pill-giver in our household, but only because I get less injured than when Dave tries to do it.

JD Says:
September 26th, 2007 at 9:44 pm

Well, I can see everyone beat me to the furniture crayons and Soft-Paws! I had to check out your “cat” category first, as our household is also ruled by cats (sadly, only one cat now, but that will change soon, I think). Lucky is beautiful and I love that expression on his face. “I’m about to do something kind of bad, I think”

Kathy Frederick Says:
September 26th, 2007 at 10:35 pm

JD, thanks for dropping by! I laughed when you said what Lucky’s expression looks like. He always looks like that. He doesn’t blink. He’s either in spaz mode or sleeping.

kev Says:
September 27th, 2007 at 2:27 am

I’ll give you the same advice I gave my parents for their cats-on-the-furniture problem:

Your cats can’t lay on your furniture if you beat them to it and lay on it yourself.

corivus Says:
September 27th, 2007 at 4:49 am

I think either your vet or petsmart (if you have one near by) will carry those, and both should have people who can put on the soft paws product. I have an appointment next weekend after my wonderful Siamese decided she didn’t like being on the ground and climbed up my roommate’s back.

Kathy Frederick Says:
September 27th, 2007 at 9:59 am

@ Kev — Good advice. ‘Cept they just lay on you anyway, like you’re not even there. One of them insists on laying on my chest when I’m trying to read. She does it backwards, so I have cat butt in my face. Do you know how hard it is to read that way?

@Corivus — I can’t see any cat going for the Cat Paws thing. I’d think they would just chew them off. At least Lucky would, since he’s a chewer. Besides, thanks to Kev’s comment about cats dying under recliners, scratches on the furniture are no longer our biggest concern.