How to Make a Cat Scratching Post With Sisal Fabric

Turn sisal rope and some scrap wood into a scratching post for your kitty. A simple base topped with a sisal-covered 4-by-4 will give your cat a place, other than your furniture, to stretch and to file its claws. Put this scratching post together in an afternoon.

Things You'll Need

  • Wood post, 4 inches by 4 inches
  • Saw
  • Sisal carpeting
  • Utility knife
  • Plywood
  • Sandpaper
  • Contact cement
  • Drill
  • 4 wood screws, 4-inch
  • Staple gun
  • Carpet staples
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Instructions

    • 1

      Cut the 4-by-4 wood post to the height you want your scratching post to be.

    • 2

      Cut a piece of sisal carpeting to the height of the post and wide enough to wrap around the post with a 1-inch overlay. A utility knife can be used to cut this carpeting.

    • 3

      Cut a piece of plywood to 18 inches by 18 inches. Sand until all surfaces are smooth. Cut an 18-by-18 piece of sisal carpeting, then cut a 4-by-4-inch hole in the center of the carpeting.

    • 4

      Use contact cement to attach the carpeting to the top of the plywood base. Paint the back of the carpet and the top of the base with contact cement, and allow to sit until dry to the touch. Put the carpet on the base. The cement will adhere immediately, so be sure the carpet is aligned with the base. Smooth the carpet on the base.

    • 5

      Stand the post on end. Have a friend hold the base upside down with the hole in the carpeting over the end of the post. Drill four starting holes on the underside of the base so that the screws will easily go into the post. Use the drill to insert four 4-inch wood screws through the holes in the base and into the post.

    • 6

      Set the scratching post on its base. Cut a 4-by-4-inch square of sisal carpeting, and use contact cement to attach the carpet to the top of the post. Use a staple gun and carpet staples to attach the carpeting you cut for the post. Staple one long edge of the carpet down the length of the post. Wrap the carpet tightly around the post, and staple the other end in place.