My cat's new cat tree turned into a total disaster zone

I set up a fancy 6-foot cat tree from Pet Palace yesterday, and my tabby Leo immediately climbed it, got his claw stuck in the fabric at the top platform, and panicked, pulling the whole thing over onto my coffee table. I had to carefully free him while he yowled, and now he won't go near it. Has anyone had a cat develop a fear of furniture after a single bad experience like this?

3 comments

3 Comments

milab752mo ago

Oh man, that's rough! My cat did the same thing with a new scratching post once. She knocked it over and then gave it the stink eye for a week.

shah.evan29d ago

Right? Cats hold grudges forever. Mine still side-eyes the new couch because it dared to make a crinkle sound once when he jumped on it. Took two weeks of him pretending it didn't exist before he'd even sniff it again. The catnip trick is actually legit though, totally worked on my little dude after he got spooked by a swaying cat tree.

jana_hayes312mo ago

Milab75's story about the stink eye is spot on. Cats have long memories for things that scare them. You might try rubbing some catnip on the lower levels to build positive associations again. It took my old cat a solid month to trust a new chair after it collapsed under him.