Diary of a Cat Mom
Diary of a Cat Mom is a reflective cat podcast created and hosted by Dagmar Gatell about understanding cats more deeply — and creating a calmer, more connected life for both you and your cats.
Based on real experiences caring for over 50 cats throughout her life, each episode shares quiet observations, emotional moments, caregiving reflections, and gentle insights from everyday life with cats. From routines, behavior, and emotional wellbeing to grief, gratitude, overstimulation, trust, and the small meaningful moments many people overlook — this is not a traditional “how-to” podcast, but a space for understanding, awareness, and lived experience.
Beyond cat care itself, Diary of a Cat Mom also explores our connection to nature, emotional presence, personal growth, and the way our inner state can influence the animals who share our lives. Because living with cats is never only about feeding and routines — it’s also about energy, safety, trust, patience, and how we show up emotionally in the spaces we create together.
Created for cat lovers who see their cats as family, this podcast offers companionship, reassurance, perspective, and emotional support during seasons of caregiving, uncertainty, healing, change, and letting go.
Diary of a Cat Mom is a personal storytelling podcast and does not replace professional veterinary advice. Every cat is unique, and medical or behavioral concerns should always be discussed with a trusted veterinarian or qualified professional.
You’re not alone on this journey.
We’re learning, loving, and growing together — one paw print at a time.
Diary of a Cat Mom
Ep. 64 - Why Your Cat Scratches Your Couch 🐾💥
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Why does your cat ignore the scratching pads you bought and head straight for your sofa instead?
In this episode of Diary of a Cat Mom, I share what happened after I bought a new couch and watched one of my cats prepare to scratch it with complete determination. What looked like destructive behavior turned out to reveal something important about feline instincts, physical needs, and emotional well-being.
Sometimes our cats aren't trying to ruin our furniture. They're simply trying to meet a need the best way they know how.
What You'll Learn in this Cat Podcast Episode
- Why cats are naturally drawn to couches and furniture
- The physical benefits cats get from scratching
- How scratching helps cats communicate through scent
- Why some scratching posts fail while others succeed
- How one simple change stopped my cats from scratching the sofa
- How understanding behavior can improve life quality for cats
Timestamps & Chapters
00:00 – Introduction
00:18 – The mystery of the new sofa
00:55 – Watching my cat prepare to scratch
01:34 – Why scratching pads weren't enough
01:55 – Finding the right scratching solution
02:17 – Why cats scratch in the first place
02:39 – The role of pheromones and scent communication
02:56 – Understanding the feeling behind the behavior
03:13 – Closing thoughts
This is where I’ve gathered everything that supports me and my cats:
https://diaryofacatmom.com/cat-care-resources/
About the Diary of a Cat Mom Podcast
Diary of a Cat Mom is a quiet, personal cat podcast created by Dagmar Gatell, sharing real moments, emotions, and experiences from life with cats.
This space is meant for connection, comfort, and companionship. Everything shared comes from lived experience as a cat mom and is not intended as professional veterinary advice. Every cat is unique, and for health concerns, it’s always best to consult your trusted veterinarian.
Most of all, please remember:
You’re not alone on this journey. We’re learning, loving, and growing together — one paw print at a time.
Diary of the cat mum. Today's diary entry where your cat scratches your couch. You're listening to diary. Your cat has scratching pads, a cat tree, maybe even toys everywhere. And still, they go straight for your beautiful sofa. It can feel frustrating, confusing, and honestly a little personal when you just bought something nice and your cat immediately starts clawing it apart. But one day I realized something important as I got a new sofa. Almost immediately the cats approached it for scratching. At first I couldn't understand why they would choose the sofa when they already had scratching pads, but then I watched one of them closely before stopping her. She scratched her whole body upward against the side of the sofa, leaning all her weight into it and prepared to scratch with full power. And suddenly I thought, wow, this feels good to them. It almost looked like she was creating artwork with her whole body. The scratching pad on the floor couldn't give her that same feeling. Was too soft, too flat, too low. She wanted resistance, height strength, the ability to pull her nails downward with full force. So I started searching for something better. And eventually I found a cat tree with really thick, vertical scratching poles wrapped in cord. The moment the cats tried it, everything changed. They climbed up high, stretched fully, scratched downward with power and loved every second of it on I too. And after that, they stopped scratching my sofa. That experience helped me understand that scratching is not simply bad behavior. Like cats scratch because it fulfills physical and emotional needs for them. Scratching helps them stretch their muscles, release energy, maintain their nails, and leave behind species specific scent chemicals called pyramids. Cats process these send signals through special sensory structure called the bulmer or nasal organ, tiny scent processing organ located in their upper frontier. So when the cats scratch, they're not only exercising their body, they are also communicating and creating a space that feels emotionally safe and familiar to them. Sometimes a sofa simply feels better than scratch the options we gave them. So in this case, our cats are not trying to destroy something. They are simply trying to fulfill a need in the best way they know how. And often, when we understand the feeling behind the behavior, we can give them something even better instead. Thank you for being here with me. This is Diary of a Cat Mom. Don't miss the next entry. There's always another little moment, another story, another lesson waiting to be shared. I will talk to you in the next entry. Diary of a cat mom.