A cat has, after six weeks of what its owner describes as "pointed indifference," formally rejected a newly purchased scratching post in favour of the cardboard box it arrived in, which now serves as the animal's primary residence.
The scratching post, a multi-tiered structure with a sisal-wrapped base, hammock, and dangling toy, was selected after extensive research and positioned, on recommendation, "somewhere central but not too central." It has, since assembly, been climbed on twice and scratched never.
"I read the reviews," the owner said, gesturing toward the post, which stood untouched near the window. "Sturdy base, good height, apparently cats love the sisal rope specifically. She's walked past it maybe four times."
The box, by contrast, arrived flattened and was reassembled only briefly to transport the post inside. Within minutes of being set down beside it, the cat entered, sat, and did not meaningfully leave for the better part of a week.
"She just went straight in," the owner said. "Didn't even look at the post first. I thought it was temporary. It was not temporary."
The box has since been reinforced twice with tape after minor structural failures, has had one side chewed into a rough doorway, and now contains a small blanket, relocated there without discussion after it became clear where the cat intended to sleep going forward.
Attempts to physically place the cat on or near the scratching post have been met with what the owner describes as "polite but total disengagement," the cat typically returning to the box within the same minute.
"I'm not saying I regret it," the owner said, glancing between the two structures. "I'm saying one of them cost $140 and one of them was free, and I know which one she'd save in a fire."