Our cat companions are part of our family so learning to understand them is a part of cat care, for they speak to us in a language we often don’t comprehend.

When a cat scratches on the furniture she is communicating to the other members of the family that this is her territory and that this is where she belongs.  We humans tend to react negatively because we don’t want our furniture destroyed. This only tends to exacerbate the problem as the cat will associate scratching the furniture with getting attention and then seek to attract attention by scratching the furniture! The best way to deal with this is either to put up a scratching post, move the furniture, and/or to cover the furniture with something you don’t much care about.

Even more frustrating is when a cat messes in a corner or somewhere other than the litter tray. We humans fuss and fume over the mess, when this is the cats way of saying that something is wrong. The cause could be either that she is afraid to use the tray (or to go outside) for some reason or that she is ill and associates the tray with pain and is trying to get your attention to the fact that something is wrong with her.  Find out what is upsetting her and if the problem persists and you can’t find a reason, this may well have to involve a trip to the Veterinarian.

Similarly and even worse from the human perspective, is when a cat messes on the bed.  This has happened to me on several occasions and only occurs when the cat is very afraid indeed. She is going on your bed because this is the only place in her world that signals safety.  You need to act and find the cause of the problem and remove it.  Castigating the cat is more than counter productive, she needs your help badly.

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