I want new sofas. I don't want my cats to destroy them. Ha ha ha

[BrandNewShinyThings]

Any hope whatsoever? My sofas are disgusting and need replacing.
Boy cat is a devil for shredding one particular corner. Girl cat likes lie on the floor next to the sofa and pull herself along the length of it using claw power. A bit like spiderman but in horizontal cat form.

I don't know if this work for cats you would have to check, you can buy bitter apple spray and spray the things you don't want them to destroy. I used it a lot when my dogs were young x.

Getting two cheeky boy kittens later this week. Hoping they hate velvet..... Will get catnip and a scratch post....

I have a sofa and armchairs all in removable washable fabric covers.
DCat has never shown the slightest interest in ripping them, or the carpets. She was a rescue cat - I got her when she was six. Her own scratching post came with her, which she used to destruction. I replaced it with a similar model, and she happily continues with that.
I make it tempting by playing with her when she uses it - I have a toy bird with real feathers on a string that I whirl round her post for her to attack while scratching, and a fake mouse that squeaks convincingly, ditto. She enjoys a good scratch in between kicking and biting six bells out of the toys! Presumably the sofa is far less fun and can’t compete as a target. She also has free access to outdoors, and will sometimes strop her claws on tree stumps.
I wonder if sofa rippers are bored and resentful, or were not trained by previous owners? Or do cats just vary, and some will always rip where they shouldn’t?

@BrandNewShinyThings

Oh look what I found on Amazon!

Did you order this, OP? Wondering how useful it is?

Leather sofa here... well more like suede now as each end has been scratched to a furriness that is hard to describe😮

I bought that wide sticky tape, for the carpet that just sticks under my bedroom door. Scratchy cat has detached the bottom edge of the tape and pulled the carpet to bits from the bottom part of the carpet, bits of fiber all over the house, handfuls of it!! Just in case that's a waste of money I save anyone else from - it may be fab for furniture but don't use it for carpet

my cats are bloody buggers for raking the furniture, my chair in here is basically like shredded wheat on the arms.

the chesterfield has a square that is raked and shredded just on the out side under the pouffy arm bit

the other sofa has just suffered on the arms...it's a beigey dralon sort of affair, it's an amazingly comfy sofa bed so I don't think we'll ever get rid of it.

Just before christmas we got a large Lshape sofa for the other sitting room ...bargain of the century from the auctions...and it was immaculate and pretty much still is, I did put throws on all the corners and backs for the first few months but they really do not seem to be the least bit interested in going for that
the only scratches on there are from someone sitting on a charger plug, on the giant square pouffe/table thing. :o

so really to sum up...no one knows why they do it, or when and if they will start!

Did you order this, OP? Wondering how useful it is?

No, as we are still dithering trying to find a sofa we like. However DH did make the valid point that if we buy a scratcher to go on the sofa we are just encouraging the habit, whereas really we want to break it mission impossible

Depends on the fabric. We have suede sofas and not a scratch from the kittens.

Yes @BrandNewShinyThings, I did wonder about that encouraging rather than breaking the habit.

I know of two people who have had leather sofas which have been torn to shreds by cats.

We have a kitten and I have covered our leather sofa and dinning room chairs with throws. I'm not keen on the look, but the kitten hasn't scratched them.

Getting two cheeky boy kittens later this week. Hoping they hate velvet.....

Neither of mine seem to enjoy scratching velvet, they've left the (velvet) sofa and armchair alone. Just the odd experimental pluck. It's a magnet for pet hair though.

They've concentrated their efforts on the carpet, which is mullered, even though they have a really tall and sturdy cat station/scratching post.

I bought a velour/fake velvet throw thing this week. Not really my look either but looked better than an old sheet . The cat hates it. So, I think (fingers crossed) I, have, at least, an idea of what to look for next time.

Reading through this thread with interest. I’ e always had cats and they’ve never bothered too much with the furniture. Then I bought myself a long-coveted comfy armchair to read in, and the younger of our two cats has decided it’s his scratching post. Anti-scratch spray hasn’t deterred him at all (and he still happily sleeps on the chair). I think I’ll try water spray as a deterrent and catnip spray on his scratching post.

My house is pretty shabby as it is so I was really hoping to preserve that chair... said cat has also destroyed the only wallpaper in the house. It’s lucky he’s cute, the little bugger.

Small update - our velvet sofas are holding up well! We covered them after a couple of days with old duvet covers as one of the kittens had diarrhea and walked it everywhere and they do like to scratch/pull on them. BUT they look ok. A quick google told me velvet is ideal as the threads are so fine there’s not much for them to pull.

The Eames style chairs with a pleather seat pad however 🙈 but they are old and mostly hidden under the table.....

We have two sofas one a herringbone weave and one a much tighter smoother fabric. Dcat has never had a go at the tighter one.

She also shows little interest in scratch posts but absolutely loves scratching the coir doormat - in case that helps anyone!

One idea for anyone with a new sofa - you could try taping foil to the sofa as cats hate it - just for the first week or so, it might be enough to put the cats off the sofa even once the foil comes off?