DIY cat scratcher

The main things you’ll need for this project are a carpet tile and a piece of wood. Carpet tiles are very inexpensive, and you can usually pick up samples in interesting colours or patterns. 

You will need the following tools and materials for this diy cat post:

• Carpet square

• Wooden board or plastic sheet

• Saw

• Blade

• Sander

• Hammer and nails OR short screws

• Pliers and wire and hooks OR a drill and jig for pocket holes and pocket hole screws

• Varnish or stain or paint (optional)

This project should end up being around £25, with the cost varying depending on how you decide to make your DIY cat scratcher. 

This project is perfect for beginners - you'll see how easy it is to complete, you won't need more than a morning or afternoon to finish it.

Firstly, decide how big you want your scratcher to be (keeping in mind if you want a very large scratcher, you may have to use multiple carpet squares). Cut your wood down to size. Sand down any rough edges, wipe off the dust, and give your wood your preferred finish. If you prefer the natural wood, we'd recommend giving it a clear coat of varnish nonetheless, to protect it from any straying claws. 

If you can't get hold of a sheet or large board of wood, then plastic would work too, although it may be a little more difficult to use. For a budget friendly option, you could also opt for pallets. For this option, you'd just need to cut three lengths of wood the same size from your pallet, and attach them with a few perpendicular strips on the back.

Next, measure out your carpet square against your board. We chose to make it around an inch and a half smaller than our board, so the border would peep out of the sides. Once you've decided on the size, cut your carpet tile with a retractable blade.

To attach your square, you can nail each corner in with your hammer. If you choose to do this, we recommend also adding some strong adhesive between the two to ensure the square doesn't budge. Alternatively, you could attach the carpet by drilling screws into each corner.

To hang, we twisted wire into a U shape, and secured this loop by twisting the bottom tightly with pliers. We hot glued this to the back. Alternatively, for a cleaner finish (and perhaps also more secure) you could also drill holes into the back of the wood, and mount these onto nails. 

Sprinkle with catnip to get the ball rolling, and hang from screws or hooks.

Alternatively, you could leave the cat scratching board on the floor (we'd recommend putting down a rug pad so it doesn't slip).

We hope you (and your cats) enjoyed this tutorial, and that perhaps it can help save some pieces of furniture from your cats claws.