One cat, no leather furniture. But my sister had both. It was a sad, expensive story. If you are against declawing, forget the leather furniture.

Two cats but no leather furniture. Still I had a problem with scratching UNTIL I went to PetSmart and picked up two of tho cardboard scratchy boxes you put on the floor. Never had a problem since!!!

Beloved Wife & I have 3 cats (4, actually) but one has her own room, since she doesn't play nice with the others) a leather couch, & a leather loveseat. The cats have lots of other places to scratch, so they show no interest hurting the leather. I would caution that, if the cat is comfy on the leather, DON'T startle him. Those "0-60 in 1 second" take-off's can leave a puncture.

As long as you keep your cats' claws trimmed, you should be ok on general wear & tear. Blunt claws won't catch or punture. Pointy ones...

We do like the leather furniture because, unlike the cloth stuff, the cat hair comes off without a struggle. That's the big reason we got it in the first place.

If cats are not declawed and show an inclination for scratching on the leather furniture, a quick trip to the vet for "Soft Paws", little silicone claw caps (Lee Press-On Nails for kitty) will solve that problem.

OMG! HOW CUTE!! FAKE NAILS FOR KITTIES!

I have GOT to tell The Good Doctor about this!

Yes, I have to second those silicon nails. They let the cat have its needed claws, esp indoor-outdoor, but are enough not to puncture....

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=2975&Ne=40000&R=4615&N=2002+113036

Two cats, and leater recliner. Cats seem to leave the leather alone, though the cats do their claw stretching thing on everything else.

We have a leather chair. Cats leave it alone, except for one tragic peeing incident from that cat who uses inappropriate places. No problems since...

I told TGD about the kitty nails and he said that he did have those on his kitties, of whom he shares joint customdy with his sister, but they come off and wear thin every now and then so you have to get them put back on. As such, he had some furniture damage in spite of them.

Since then, he's had their front paws declawed and that has helped.

For much of the past 10yrs I have had the pleasure of sharing my humble domicile with two furry felines. As to this subject, I have 3 thoughts.

#1 Cats + Leather = Shredded moderately uncomfortable furnature.

#2 Cats have only a few clasifications for things in thier worlds.
a. Cat Perch
b. Cat Food
c. Cat Box
d. Cat CSD (Claw Sharpening Device)
e. Cat Toy
k. Cat Friend or Enemy
At best it is only occasionally pleasant to be in class a or sometimes class k.

#3 Everything with our furry friends would be simply marvelous if we humans could just pause to remember what is most important in a cat human relationship is not us. ;-)

For much of the past 10yrs I have had the pleasure of sharing my humble domicile with two furry felines. As to this subject, I have 3 thoughts.

#1 Cats + Leather = Shredded moderately uncomfortable furnature.

#2 Cats have only a few clasifications for things in thier worlds.
a. Cat Perch
b. Cat Food
c. Cat Box
d. Cat CSD (Claw Sharpening Device)
e. Cat Toy
k. Cat Friend or Enemy
At best it is only occasionally pleasant to be in class a or sometimes class k.

#3 Everything with our furry friends would be simply marvelous if we humans could just pause to remember that what is most important in a cat human relationship is not us. ;-)

Three cats, no leather furniture. Ever. Out of the question. Even if you train them to NOT sharpen their claws on the furniture, the climbing and jumping will ruin the upholstery. Also, don't pet the cat when he/she is on the leather. Those happy kneading claws will wreak havoc. Just sayin'.

1. yes
2. yes
3. no

I have 3 cats with all claws and had a leather sofa for a number of years. We kept thier claws clipped and a scratching post near by. We NEVER had a problem with them tearing it up. HOWEVER, one of our cats took to PEEING on it! We consulted our vet and he said we needed more litter boxes, at least one for each cat, plus having one near the living room where the sofa was. After having the sofa cleaned and getting the extra boxes, there was no problem... for a about 2 years. Then he started peeing on it again. We ended up having to get rid of the sofa.

Do those of you who have had cats and leather sofas have any opinions on whether it helps if the leather is the "tight" kind, where there isn't much to latch on to? I'd been told that there was more scratching if the leather was more the looser, relaxed kind of leather.

I would think the "tight" kind of leather would be more prone to puncture and the relaxed would have more give to prevent puncture. I have 8 cats, claws and all, however I don't own leather. I am in the market for a leather set myself and have the same question. Can any respond to the best leather for household with pets?