Male cats need to stay active and healthy because they need to shed their coat periodically.
Since they’re more active than females, they’re likely to have more spots to scratch. Overall, male cats tend to be more aggressive than female cats.
So, do male cats scratch more than female cats? It’s important to take care of your cat’s health.
However, many people don’t realize that male cats scratch more than female cats. As a result, they often make cat owners angry.
When male cats scratch, they often mark their territory by leaving scent on the furniture or walls. They also scratch to cover their scent mark with urine or feces.
These scratching behaviors often start when your cat is a kitten. However, they may continue as they get older.
Male cats usually stop scratching as they get older and stop marking their territory.
Do Male Cats Scratch More Than Female Cats?
Male cats scratch for a variety of reasons other than to mark their territory.
When they are not neutered, they sometimes experience some sexual arousal when scratching objects such as furniture or walls.
Thus, marking territory not only helps you identify a cat’s place of origin but also helps determine the reproductive status of the animal (females) and the status of the dominant males (dominant males’ territory) in the feline society.
Why Do Cats Scratch?
Expressing Emotions
Cats may scratch when they are feeling anxious or excited.
To reduce stress, a stressed cat will rub his face against an object and release pheromones.
Anxiety and stress are the main reasons a cat scratches at an object.
Marking Territory
Tom cats, in particular, tend to mark territories by clawing objects and trees.
They leave their odors on their goods, and when cats smell each other’s odors on these objects, it tells them that it’s “their” object.
Sharpening Claws
Cats may scratch to groom themselves as well.
Their nails grow a coating that serves as a protective layer for the claws, which must be regularly removed to prevent overgrowth of the claws, which may break easily and cause injury.
Cats scrape at surfaces, and the coating peels off, exposing clean claws underneath, which they then sharpen by rubbing them against each other or the objects they are scratching.
Exercising
Cats scratch surfaces in order to stretch and exercise their bodies and also to sharpen their paws.
They may scrape at surfaces to loosen up the muscles in their legs.
Out of boredom, they might also start scratching furniture and other objects just to keep themselves busy and entertained.
Scratches may also appear if your cat is suffering from arthritis, which is characterized by pain and inflammation in the joints of the legs. This pain causes the cat to exercise more and may result in more scratches on surfaces around the house.
Self-defense
Cats mostly utilize their sharp claws for self-defense rather than for hunting prey.
You’ve probably seen cats pounce on a mouse or other small animal without harming it with their front paws first.
They hunt with their keen eyesight and their long whiskers, which help them detect their prey before pouncing on it with their powerful hind legs.
Why Do Male Cats Scratch More?
When they are neutered, their desire to mate is diminished, and they no longer feel the need to mark their territory, thus reducing the need to claw at surfaces around the house.
Male cats have a more dominant and bossy personality, and they show this by marking their territory more often than female cats do.
They urinate on, around, or scrape items around the house to leave an odor that identifies them as “their” possessions.
It is surprising that male cats do this more than female cats do, as female cats are less territorial than male cats and do not need to mark the territory as aggressively as male cats do.
Do Male Neutered Cats Scratch More?
The most obvious reason why male cats scratch is to mate, but once they’re neutered, they no longer need to do this.
However, this is only true for outdoor male cats.
Even if they have stopped roaming the streets to look for females to mate with, they are still inclined to mark their territory.
It’s in their nature to mark territories with urine and feces, but neutering does not eliminate this instinct completely as they still feel the need to do so.
Dominance is also one of their shared traits, and this is another reason why they scratch more than females do.
Getting your cat neutered might make it less likely to do this, but that doesn’t mean it won’t do it anymore.
How Do You Stop Cats From Scratching?
Safety Measures
If your cat scratches a specific item more than others, you might use double-sided tape to secure the item, such as the couch, chair, or table, to something else so that he/she can’t climb up on it and scratch it any further.
The item should be something that is easily moveable from its usual position so that if your cat is trying to scratch the item, you can move it to another location.
Begin with a section that your cat has scratched frequently and gradually move it to places that are harder.
Clipping Nails
Regular nail clipping for your cats is important not just for grooming purposes but also for preventing trauma to the appendages and limbs.
Clipping the nails can help prevent the overgrowth of the claws and also protect the cat from injury, as overgrown claws are much more likely to break and cause injury than short claws.
If your kitty is reluctant to let you handle the paws, you can rub oil or cream on its paws so that their paws become slippery and you can more easily trim the nails.
If they grow long, they may scrape against your floor furniture or carpet, leading to damage and possible bleeding, so trimming them regularly will prevent this.
Neutering
Spaying your cat may also help, since one study has shown that spaying can reduce the frequency of unwanted behaviors such as scratching in both males and females.
When they lack the desire to do certain things, they tend to stop doing them, and if you’ve been consistently clipping their nails or moving the furniture to prevent scratching, they will eventually stop doing it on their own.
Scratching Posts
Scratching posts are specifically developed for cats to scratch them in order to help them keep claws in good condition and relieve stress and anxiety.
Scratching posts give cats a good surface to scratch and massage their paws.
Not all scratching posts are created equally, however, so you must find a scratching post that will give your cat the most satisfaction.
Some are more appealing to cats than others, and some, such as the sisal or cardboard ones, simply do not last long.
Also Read: Why Do Cats Hate Tin Foil?
Final Words
In conclusion, males definitely scratch more than females.
However, there are some exceptions. For example, male cats scratch less than females when there’s less room to run around and scratch.
Also, male cats tend to scratch more than female cats when there’s less access to scratching posts and other scratching areas.
Overall, males are much better at scratching than females, but there are still exceptions.
