Redirecting a Ragamuffin kitten's scratching

A 16-week-old Ragamuffin just starting to scratch — this is honestly the best possible time to get this right. Scratching is completely normal; your kitten isn't being destructive, they're maintaining their claws and leaving scent marks. The goal isn't to stop it, it's to redirect it onto something appropriate before any strong surface preferences form. Kittens at this age are highly impressionable, so whatever post you introduce now is likely to become their default habit for life. To point you toward the right thing: is your kitten scratching vertically (climbing up chair legs, the sofa arm), horizontally (flat on the floor, on a rug), or both? And what surface are they going for — fabric, wood, carpet?

That corner-of-the-sofa behaviour is really telling — she's drawn to the vertical sisal-like texture of the fabric and she's using the corner as a brace. That's classic. The small size right now doesn't matter much in terms of what to buy, because Ragamuffins grow into substantial cats — they can hit 4–5 kg or more — so you want a post tall enough for a full adult stretch, ideally 60 cm or higher, with a really stable base. A wobbly post at this age will put her off scratching posts for months. What's your living space like — do you have room for a freestanding post, or would something that attaches to the wall or sofa corner work better?

In that case I'd go with the Feandrea Cat Scratching Post — the 71 cm sisal version. It's tall enough for a full adult Ragamuffin stretch, the base is wide and weighted so it won't wobble or tip when a small kitten starts climbing it energetically, and the natural sisal rope is exactly the texture that suits fabric-scratchers. It's one of the better-built posts at this price point — the sisal doesn't shred into thin strips quickly, which matters because a deteriorating post often puts cats off. Place it right next to the sofa corner she's already using, and if she goes for the sofa, gently move her to the post rather than scolding. At 16 weeks, positive association builds fast.

You can, but honestly at 16 weeks you probably won't need it — kittens this age are naturally curious and will investigate a new textured object quickly. If she needs a nudge, sprinkling a little dried catnip on the base is fine, or you can dangle a toy near the top of the post so she reaches up and touches it. The real work is placement: position it where she already wants to scratch, not in a corner of the room away from her usual spots. Once she's used it a few times and left her scent on it, it becomes hers and she'll return to it automatically.