Cat Scratching Door

M

mrc

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Hi Mrs.C has a cat that is now drivng me nuts.

We keep our bedroom door closed so that the cat cant come in and when we go to bed we close our bedroom door leaving the cat the rest of the house to himself.


However all through the night he continually scratches at the bedroom door wakening myself and my wife up.

I have heard of a device called scat mat which you place in front of the door and when the cat walks onto the mat he gets a very small shock.

Anyone know where I can get of these units as I cant seem to locate any on the web that are available in Ireland or if any one else knows of an alternative.


PS We aren't prepared to get rid of the cat


MrC
 
Hi Mr C,

Sorry I can't help on solving the problem with the cat scratching. I would have to agree with you on the point of keeping animals off beds - unhygienic in my estimation.

Unless you have very good ventilation in the bedroom IMHO its not a good idea to close the door completely when two people are sleeping there all night.
 
sueellen said:
Unless you have very good ventilation in the bedroom IMHO its not a good idea to close the door completely when two people are sleeping there all night.
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Keeping the door closed tight could save your life in the event of a fire. If you've a window open ajar in the room keep the door closed, leaving the door open will ensure the smoke kills you before you even realise your house is on fire.
 
mrc said:
Hi Mrs.C has a cat that is now drivng me nuts.

We keep our bedroom door closed so that the cat cant come in and when we go to bed we close our bedroom door leaving the cat the rest of the house to himself.


However all through the night he continually scratches at the bedroom door wakening myself and my wife up.

I have heard of a device called scat mat which you place in front of the door and when the cat walks onto the mat he gets a very small shock.

Anyone know where I can get of these units as I cant seem to locate any on the web that are available in Ireland or if any one else knows of an alternative.


PS We aren't prepared to get rid of the cat


MrC
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Have you tried simply getting the cat a scratching pole?

It may be that rather than actually wanting to get in to the room, he has simply made a habit of scratching the door.
 
Caveat said:
Have you tried simply getting the cat a scratching pole?

It may be that rather than actually wanting to get in to the room, he has simply formed a habit of scratching the door.
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I've never found that a scratching pole worked for my cats. However what has worked is when we get out of the bed, open the door and really HISS at the cat loudly. Any cat will run at that sound. I'm not saying that the cat will never come back ..... he will always try it again ..... but after a few of these episodes he should get the message. Basic repetition works on animals just as it does on children/humans. Your cat has developed a habit of scratching at your door (another way of putting it is that he has been conditioned). You now need him to be re-conditioned to realising that his scratching DIRECTLY AND IMMEDIATELY results in a loud hiss that he doesn't like. So you have .... scratch ...... HISS ..... scratch ......HISS ..... eventually even a simple animal will work out that if he doesn't want to hear the loud hiss he shouldn't do the scratching! Each of my three cats learned this lesson very easily. One (the most persistent of the three) still chances her arm once in a blue moon, but at least it's not every night or every week.
 
thanks for the replies...

The cat has a scratching post which he never uses... so I reckon the HISS will be given a bash tonight!


Will let you know how I get on.
 
I would consider those scat mats cruel and would never recommend using one.

Have you tried closing the cat into another room with his bed, food, water and toys - the sitting room or the kitchen - so that he can't come & scratch the bedroom door?
 
We have 3 cats and have the same problem. The only way we can get them to stop is to open the door and quickly spray them with water. They get such a shock that they don't even see it coming.
This is how I have tought my cats-and it has worked.

Good Luck
 
Bluetonic said:
Keeping the door closed tight could save your life in the event of a fire. If you've a window open ajar in the room keep the door closed, leaving the door open will ensure the smoke kills you before you even realise your house is on fire.
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Hang on - nobody accused the cat of being an arsonist! :eek:
 
Think I might be on to a winner with the HISSING...

The cat probably looks at me and thinks "what a prat"

Ah well, anything for a nights sleep
 
mrc said:
Think I might be on to a winner with the HISSING...

The cat probably looks at me and thinks "what a prat"

Ah well, anything for a nights sleep
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Unfortunately for your case cats are extremely quick learners - he'll cop on very quickly that you mean him no harm, and will pretty much ignore the hissing after a short while.

One thing I've used with great success to stop scratching is a product called Feliway, which is a synthetic feline scent - you spray it onto the surface you want them to stop scratching, and they really do stop scratching at it - often, when a cat scratches something he's just scent marking - they have a lot of scent glands in the pads on their paws. Feliway makes him think he/another friendly cat has already marked it, so no need to do it again. Your vet will have it.

If you keep coming to the door when he scratches, even to hiss at him, he'll just think it's a game - after all, as far as he's concerned, any attention is better than none, so he'll work out that by scratching the door you invariably give him attention, ergo he'll keep doing it - like I said, they're smart buggers ;)

Other than that, you should give serious consideration to getting a second cat - that'll keep him occupied which will lessen his dependence on you for nocturnal entertainment - you have to remember that they're nocturnal animals - he probably sleeps all day (an adult cat will sleep for 16-18 hours per day) which means he's full of beans at night.

Take a look at the Feline Advisory Bureau or [broken link removed] for loads of useful feline behaviour info.
 
Our cat used to try to get into our room at night and during the day too, would sneak in to lie on our bed at any opportunity.

A sharp "NO!", tap on the nose, and brisk removal from the location eventually sorted this out.

He doesn't even bother trying to get into our room these days.

A lot of people assume cats cannot be 'trained' the way dogs can - it's not true - they can be trained but they're just so much less subservient and eager to please than dogs ;)
 
mrc said:
we close our bedroom door leaving the cat the rest of the house to himself.
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Why has he got free reign of the house at night time?Pick one room with his own bed and leave him there at nighttime! Cats are heat seeking animals..of course hes going to be bawling outside your bedroom door,the warmest place in the house at night id say!

TabithaRose said:
I would consider those scat mats cruel and would never recommend using one.
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In agreement here! No need for this drastic action at all! Seems crazy to me hes allowed roam the entire house at night time when you've locked yourself in your bedroom! Animals learn pretty quickly who rules the roost, start as you mean to go on i.e. routine of his own room and bed at nighttime and he'll soon get the message!
 
swordshead said:
Why has he got free reign of the house at night time?Pick one room with his own bed and leave him there at nighttime! Cats are heat seeking animals..of course hes going to be bawling outside your bedroom door,the warmest place in the house at night id say!


In agreement here! No need for this drastic action at all! Seems crazy to me hes allowed roam the entire house at night time when you've locked yourself in your bedroom! Animals learn pretty quickly who rules the roost, start as you mean to go on i.e. routine of his own room and bed at nighttime and he'll soon get the message!
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As I mentioned in my post, cats are nocturnal animals - it'd be good for them to have a bit more space at nighttime (when they're at their most energetic / alert) than one room!
 
Sherman said:
As I mentioned in my post, cats are nocturnal animals - it'd be good for them to have a bit more space at nighttime (when they're at their most energetic / alert) than one room!
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Yeh i agree with you on the fact theyre more alert at nightime! But, a room with toys to play with, scratcing posts and things to climb and jump on will keep him more than entertained for the 8hrs or so you're asleep! No point in you losing sleep when your cats having a great time leggin it around your house at all hours of the night! Would it be an option to build a cat flap and let him come and go outside at nighttime? My cat (when she was alive:( ) came and went as she pleased throughout the day and night! I just think theres simpler options than resorting to shock gadgets and sprays etc!
 
hi,

The Scratching at the door, is the cat trying to get your attention , usually cos it needs to go to the toilet. The scratching is the same as the motion they use to "dig a hole" to go to the toliet.

maybe I am wrong but both my cats do this!
 
sue m said:
hi,

The Scratching at the door, is the cat trying to get your attention , usually cos it needs to go to the toilet. The scratching is the same as the motion they use to "dig a hole" to go to the toliet.

maybe I am wrong but both my cats do this!
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If theyve access to a litter tray at all times this shouldnt be the case!
 
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