Cats look at an upholstery fabric in a myriad of ways. I’ll try to break them down simply so you can catch on quickly. First, is it a pleasing color? Does it remind us of rabbit guts in any stage of decay or more of our mom’s furry tummy when we were tiny? Second, is there a pattern on it? Does the pattern look vaguely like a running bunny or does it remind us of a bowl of our favorite food morsels in a creamy sauce? Third, what is the texture? Is it stiff or does it have bumps or raised ridges that incite the completely uncontrollable urge to lean back and sink our claws into it, or is it smooth, warm, and perhaps even slightly furry to the paw?
Texture is very important, so I will dwell a bit…leather is good, but the pebbly kind not as much. No plastic is acceptable. Naugahyde is a matter of personal taste – me and Alex, we’d prefer something else. Woven surfaces, rushing, caning, woven bark or cloth, do pose particular problems. These fall in the no-no side of the texture category. You can however work with us on this one. A case in point:
My people have several very nice, very old chairs with rushing on them. When I moved in, they just drove me nuts. I knew I was bad, but I could not control my inner demon cat. They kept the chairs out but covered them with placemats that met the above conditions. After some struggle and a good deal of gentle but firm insistence on both my peoples’ part, my urges subsided. Indeed, I often slept on the chairs with their placemats. Months later, I realized the placemats were gone. I quickly averted my gaze, heart pounding but then I realized that the urge to claw had dissipated. I could simply go over to the carpet roll and claw it a bit. I had control.
Alternatives are critical. Scratchy pads made of burnable or recyclable cardboard spiked with catnip to make them attractive can be purchased for a pittance at any decent “pet” store. We are particularly fond of a good roll of outdoor carpet. Also, I heartily recomm
end you find a good entry way mat of sturdy woven material, like sisal, and just let your furry friends wail on it. For some of the less thoughtful felines out there, it makes them feel like they are getting away with something.For the most part, my people have followed these strictures above. They did recently make a mistake, and, try though we do, Alex and I are making them pay
for it. Note the nubby quality of the weave in the photo here...I have spared you and my people any images of the "discussed areas." They are looking into some nice chemical-free, tightly woven hemp and hemp/cotton fabrics that are affordable, smooth, warm, and pleasing of color. We also looked into the very nice Knoll fabrics (many of which are chemical free)…I was particularly attracted to the ultrasuede, but it cost a lot of cat food per yard. I heard my male person explain the situation to an upholsterer (who is also a drummer and all-around cool dude). The upholsterer understood right away—“We do a lot of work for cats.”In the end, furniture upholstered with some attention to your cat is a wonderful amenity for all. We of course enjoy a multitude of surfaces, some smooth and wooden, others cool and ceramic, and most definitely we enjoy a warm down comforter with a flannel cover or a nice Persian carpet. I think I’ll go lay on the Moroccan pile for a bit…writing makes me sleepy.
