Kitty Town Sisal Publish Scratcher, Sisal Publish (Brown)

Nice scratching post; works as designed
Update: Almost a year and a half later, I’m buying a new one of these to replace the one our cats have used heavily every day. They finally managed to tear one section up enough to warrant replacement, though the unit itself is still solid, and most of the surface is still good (except that one spot). We did have an odd experience, though: When we first got the scratching post, we rewarded our cats with treats (actually, healthy dry food) for using it. They quickly started using it to get our attention, and it became the place we’d set any treats down for them to eat. Once the one section finally started fraying, the small strands from it drifted down, and the cats ate some. We saw those in their poop, thought they’d gotten worms, and took them to the vet unnecessarily. They’re fine, and that’s probably a risk if you feed cats by any scratching post, but I thought I’d mention it in case it helps anyone else diagnose a problem. 🙂 Overall, this has proven to be a very good scratching post. This time, we’re buying the bed, too, to see if our younger cat will like it.Original Review:I bought this while training our cats to use a scratching post, because our old one was short and light, and the cats would sometimes get a claw stuck and end up carrying it with them in their attempts to get free. Eventually, the carpet started pulling away from the core, and I decided it was time to get a new one. I chose this one despite some warnings about its smell, and it’s been working fine for months now.It had a very mild scent when I opened the box, which quickly dissipated and which I probably only noticed because other reviewers had me a little paranoid. I sit right next to it when working on the computer (I work from home), and I’m sensitive to chemical smells, so I would definitely notice if this one were a problem, but it’s not.It’s taller and heavier than the old one I was replacing, so the cats can stretch upwards when they scratch, and it stays in place nicely. In fact, it’s strong enough for our younger cat to climb up the side of it onto the perch – something he frequently does when I’m absorbed in a meeting and not paying him enough attention. (He puts on a good show by climbing up, reaching down, and pulling at the toy to make it ring. My coworkers are very amused.) When I eventually need a replacement, I might get the bed option for him.BTW, for the many reviewers who’ve complained that their cats ignore scratching posts, it’s definitely possible to teach them. With our current two cats, I started by putting treats on the base of it to get them interested. Then, I gave them treats whenever they scratched it. After they got used to that idea, I started alternating treats with petting and verbal praise (in which I repeatedly used the phrase “scratching post” so they’d associate those words with the actual item). Whenever they scratched anywhere else, I’d tell them “no” firmly and then more gently tell them to go use their scratching post. The older one has the concept completely at this point and now uses the other scratching posts in the house, too; I haven’t seen him scratch the carpet or furniture in months. The younger cat still occasionally scratches something else, so I might try an approach that worked really well for a cat we had many years ago: I’d tell her “no,” pick her up and take her to the scratching post, set her down there and hold her paws while mimicking the scratching motion and praising her enthusiastically, take her back to where she was scratching and tell her “no” while mimicking the motion there, and then return to the scratching post. I still remember the “lightbulb” look in her eyes when she abruptly understood. For the remainder of her lifetime after that, she’d go to the scratching post whenever we were in the room together, scratch it joyously while looking at me, and preen while I praised her. Scratching is natural cat behavior, and they get upset and confused if they’re yelled at for it, but you can definitely turn scratching into a positive interaction for both of you.

These have been the best.
I have now ordered three of these. I have been using them for three years now and am well pleased with the quality and durability. I bought the first nearly 3 years ago and another for myself about a year ago after getting another young cat who liked the first one. I got the perch accessory for the second one and the young cat absolutely fell in love with being able to sleep and judge everyone from it. After this duration of time and three cats (2yrs, 4yrs and 8yrs) using them constantly, the post covering is showing a lot of wear, but the actual units are in excellent shape. I wish they sold replacement coverings or just the covered post itself. The base and toppers are perfect and the structural integrity of the post is still great. I am currently looking into replacement materials for the scratching cover, otherwise I will buy another one to replace the oldest. I can’t imagine not having at least one of these in the house.Another thing I dearly love about these posts is the size. They are much taller than the carpeted or roped posts that I used to use. Even my longest cat can reach up and get a good vertical stretch and scratch on these. On the shorteer posts, he had to reach out lengthwise to scratch on them. My Maine Coon wouldn’t use the shorter posts at all, opting instead for my carpeted studio speakers. With the height of these, even she uses them and has since ignored the speakers.I will never go back to the shorter scratching posts with sisal rope or carpet again. The cats adore them and they hold up much better than the others. Carpeted/rope post = useless after about 3 months. These posts are still used daily after almost three years. Excellent bang for the buck.I liked this post so well that I bought a third one and gave to my mother for her “cat room”. She also loved it, however it didn’t fair so well in her environment. The cats managed to actually break the post away from the base and crash the whole thing. Mind you that this took a home with 11 indoor cats (most of them very young and high energy/rambunctious) to break it and they only had one to share amongst them. She has since bought two more of them and they are faring much better as the cats are getting a little older and aren’t having to fight over only one of them.Plain and simple, if you have cats then you need this scratching post. You will not regret it and the fur babies will thank you.

This is my 2nd purchase with the first made a couple of months ago. I have tried other brands where the seams come apart after a few days of kitties’ scratching. If the platform rest is an inch wider, it would be perfect for my big kitties and given a 5-star rating for the product.

I barely had a chance to get this assembled before the cats were all over it. Both my senior and young cat use it several times throughout the day, and so far it is holding up well. The height of this post allows them to stretch their muscles and the woven sisal works well to help them keep their nails in good condition. The younger cat loves the cylindrical shape to ‘pole dance’ around when she gets excited, and the top perch is just a nice size for her to sit on to survey her kingdom. The post seems to be very sturdy and we have had no tip overs thus far. It’s also quite a nice looking post.