If your cat is scratching furniture, door frames, carpets, or even walls, they are not being naughty. They are trying to cope.
Understanding the link between scratching and stress is the first step to fixing it for good.
Cat Scratching Explained: Stress, Territory, and How to Stop Destructive Behaviour
Scratching is one of the most misunderstood cat behaviours. While scratching posts and sharp claws often get the blame, the real driver behind excessive or destructive scratching is very often stress.
Why Do Cats Scratch?
Scratching is completely natural for cats. It serves several important purposes:
- Marking territory using scent glands in their paws
- Relieving stress and frustration
- Stretching muscles and keeping claws healthy
- Self-soothing when they feel overwhelmed or unsafe
In a calm, secure environment, scratching is usually predictable and manageable. When stress enters the picture, scratching often becomes excessive, targeted, or destructive.
When Scratching Becomes a Stress Signal
Scratching is a form of communication. When it escalates or appears suddenly, it is often your cat’s way of saying something is wrong.
Common stress-linked scratching behaviours include:
- Scratching furniture they previously ignored
- Scratching near doors, windows, or entry points
- Scratching vertical surfaces like walls or cupboards
- Increased frequency or intensity of scratching
- Scratching paired with other behaviours like spraying, hiding, or aggression
This type of scratching is rarely about claw maintenance. It is about your cat trying to regain a sense of safety.
What Causes Stress-Related Scratching?
Cats are highly sensitive to changes in their environment. Even small disruptions can trigger anxiety and lead to scratching as a coping mechanism.
Common causes include:
- New pets or people in the home
- Neighbourhood cats visible through windows or doors
- Moving house or rearranging furniture
- Loud noises, building work, or fireworks
- Conflict in multi-cat households
- Changes to routine or time left alone
Some cats are naturally more sensitive, especially rescues, indoor cats, or older cats.
How LOAFD Helps Reduce Stress-Related Scratching
LOAFD is a science-backed calming diffuser designed to tackle stress at its source.
It works by releasing synthetic feline pheromones, the same calming signals cats naturally use to mark safe spaces and feel at ease. When these pheromones are present in the home, your cat feels more secure, reducing the need for stress-driven behaviours like scratching.
By creating a constant background sense of safety, LOAFD helps:
- Reduce anxiety and tension
- Minimise territorial scratching
- Support calmer behaviour in multi-cat homes
- Make scratching more predictable and appropriate
When stress levels drop, destructive scratching often reduces naturally.
When a Calming Diffuser Is Most Helpful
LOAFD can be used both proactively and reactively. It is especially effective:
- In multi-cat households with tension or competition
- When scratching has suddenly increased
- During changes like moving house or redecorating
- If neighbourhood cats are causing territorial stress
- As ongoing support for indoor or anxious cats
For best results, diffusers should be used continuously rather than only after problems appear.
Other Ways to Support a Cat That Scratches
Alongside LOAFD, these steps can help reinforce calm behaviour:
- Provide scratching posts in quiet and visible areas
- Place posts near where scratching already happens
- Maintain a consistent daily routine
- Offer vertical space like shelves or cat trees
- Avoid punishment, it increases stress and makes scratching worse
If scratching is severe, sudden, or paired with other behaviour changes, a vet check is always a good idea.
Final Thoughts
Scratching is not a bad habit. It is a natural behaviour that often becomes destructive when stress enters your cat’s world.
By understanding the emotional side of scratching and addressing anxiety at its root, you can protect your home and help your cat feel genuinely relaxed.
LOAFD is designed to make that process simple. A calmer cat scratches less, settles more, and feels safer in their home.
Helping cats feel happy and loaf more. Because a happy cat means a happy home.
