Cat problem

[nic]

I'm making a sofa cover for a family where lives an elderly and much loved cat who is a furniture destroyer. The husband asked if there was some way of buffering the new cover against dear James. He isn't going to change his ways now.
We thought that a pad made from offcuts of the cover (a sturdy cotton canvas) attached to the corners of the arms might be the answer. I thought from just under the hem of the armcap to nearly the floor, and about four inches each side of the corner. A pad with wadding in it? Then when one side has been destroyed it can be turned over. It would have to be fairly firmly attached, and I can't get past safety pins through what's left of the upholstery. I expect the cover to outlast the cat, so not velcro( which I don't think would be firm enough,anyway).
How thick a pad? Is this going to work? Why do I indulge my customers? Will their next cat also kill sofas?
I know you can get sticky stuff from Lakeland which is supposed to stop them clawing, but I don't think that's an option here.
Any thoughts?
Apart from the woman (me) is an idiot.

[enid]

Re: Cat problem

Reading your last through a haze of champagne, red wine and a chinese, its wedding anniversary, and apart from smiling at the 'niceness' of your thought pattern re the 'cat'. I have not got a suggestion. I doubt that velcro would hold and perhaps safety pins might be a better suggestion, you are really indulging your customer. Is that not what its all about????? I take it that the cat sits and chews? the arm of the chair. Whatever you make will be destroyed, but thick arm covers could be the answer.

I do like your as they say, attention to detail.

Enid

[thecurtainmaker]

Re: Cat problem

Hi Nic,
I don't think you should use safety pins from a H&S point of view. Velcro may hold if you staple the hook side with long leg staples. Is it just around the bottom of the sofa that the cat attacks? I can't think of any way to stop it really.

[Tam]

Re: Cat problem

Tell them to get a dog and sit it at the end of the sofa that the cat chews ! Sorry not much help am I! Cant think of anything else that'll help sorry !

[nic]

Re: Cat problem

I see what you mean about H&S, and safety pins. I think I might have to anchor a padded piece to the loose cover fairly permanently,but removablely, so it can be turned, and then replaced, eventually. James is ancient, and he claws the corners of the sofa. The dog is smaller than he is!
I'll be doing this on Monday, and I'll let you know. What about tape on the corners of the pad, tied to tape coming from the armfront, under the armcaps, at the top, and round the castor at the bottom? Then, when the cat has departed to the scratching post in the sky, the tapes on the cover could be removed.
What a palaver!

[susie c]

Re: Cat problem

my cat does this and I've come to the conclusion that you either have a show house or you have a well loved happy home with cats and kids and all that goes with!

[thecurtainmaker]

Re: Cat problem

I agree with Susie, if you have a cat that scratches the furniture, you will have damaged furniture. But if you can come up with a way of maximising the use of the new cover, then go for it. Tied on sounds the best way.

[Barcoded]

Re: Cat problem

My cats did this......then I sat a carboard cat scratcher just to the side. When covered in cat nit, the scratcher got all the attention. Have they used cat behave spray? The furniture still got attacked, but much less

When were the cats claws last looked at?

GOOD LUCK, basically they need a new cat. Dont they declaw cats in America? Did I say I have two cats?

[nic]

Re: Cat problem

It's occurred to me that simply adding a pad to the corners of the sofa might just put him off, and he can sharpen his claws on something else.(The dog? the children? the doormat, like our boy does?)American declawing is barbaric, and I have seriously annoyed many American women by saying this.
Cat is well looked after, not to say indulged, scratching post is a good idea, claws very healthy(not as impressive as our boy's), an d he's too old to try behaviour modification techniques.
He's not going to last forever, I just need to offer a defence for the sofa cover for a while. and I think, with your input, my thinking might have been influenced to do that.
Of course, we won't know whether it's worked for some time...
Thank you all, anyway.