Demirbas Yasemin Salgirli, Pereira Joana Soares, De Jaeger Xavier, Meppiel Laurianne, Endersby Sarah, da Graça Pereira Gonçalo
Department of Physiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ankara University, Ankara, Türkiye.
Department of Psychology, University of Prince Edward Island, Charlottetown, PE, Canada.
Front Vet Sci. 2024 Jul 3;11:1403068. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2024.1403068. eCollection 2024.
Despite being a natural feline behavior, scratching can become undesirable from a human perspective when directed at household items. This complex behavior can stem from various motivations, ranging from individual cat characteristics to environmental factors. This study investigates the factors influencing the increased level of undesirable scratching behavior in domestic cats, considering both cat-related and environmental aspects.
Data from 1,211 cats were collected for this study. An online questionnaire comprising three sections was utilized. The first section gathered caregiver demographics, while the subsequent section examined aspects of cats' daily routines, social interactions, environments, behaviours, and temperaments. The final section assessed the frequency and intensity of undesirable scratching behavior in cats. Scratching behavior was evaluated based on a combined scratching index.
The study suggests that the presence of a child may be associated with scratching episodes in the home environment. Additionally, factors such as play duration, playfulness, and nocturnal activity were identified as significant contributors to heightened scratching levels ( ≤ 0.05). Aggressiveness and disruptiveness also played significant roles in increased scratching behavior ( ≤ 0.05). The location of scratching posts emerged as a significant factor, with posts placed in areas frequented by the cat being more effective in redirecting scratching behavior ( ≤ 0.05).
This study reveals several significant associations between cat characteristics, nocturnal activity and play, as well as the environment. It underscores the multifaceted nature of undesirable scratching behavior and emphasizes the importance of comprehensively understanding both the individual characteristics of the cat and its environment to effectively address this behavior.
尽管抓挠是猫的一种自然行为，但从人类的角度来看，当猫抓挠家居用品时，这种行为就会变得令人讨厌。这种复杂的行为可能源于各种动机，从猫的个体特征到环境因素不等。本研究调查了影响家猫不良抓挠行为增加的因素，同时考虑了与猫相关的因素和环境因素。
本研究收集了1211只猫的数据。使用了一份包含三个部分的在线问卷。第一部分收集了照顾者的人口统计学信息，随后的部分则考察了猫的日常生活、社交互动、环境、行为和性格等方面。最后一部分评估了猫不良抓挠行为的频率和强度。抓挠行为是根据综合抓挠指数进行评估的。
研究表明，家中有孩子可能与抓挠事件有关。此外，玩耍时间、活泼程度和夜间活动等因素被确定为抓挠行为增加的重要因素（≤0.05）。攻击性和破坏性在抓挠行为增加中也起到了重要作用（≤0.05）。猫抓板的位置是一个重要因素，放置在猫经常出没区域的抓板在引导抓挠行为方面更有效（≤0.05）。
本研究揭示了猫的特征、夜间活动和玩耍以及环境之间的几个重要关联。它强调了不良抓挠行为的多面性，并强调了全面了解猫的个体特征及其环境对于有效解决这种行为的重要性。
