Why Does My Cat Try to Climb Walls? 8 Reasons

Cats are all about climbing, leaping, and perching. Yet for most of them, the highest location available is a chair, a sofa, or sometimes when you aren’t watching, the kitchen counter. If you are wondering “why does my cat try to climb walls” you’ve come to the right place to understand their natural instinct to climb.

In this article, you’ll learn 8 reasons why your cat needs cat trees, cat shelves, perches, a climbing wall, and wide window panes.

Grey kitten up on a light blue bookshelf looking down with round lights on the left
Why do I climb walls?

Table of Contents

How do you get your cat to stop climbing everything?

The short answer is that you really don’t want to stop this cat behavior. Further, it would be very difficult to do so. As a loving cat owner, you’ll find that the more you encourage and support this behaviour, the happier your feline friend will be. The reason for this is that cats not only love to climb, they need to climb. Why? Below are 8 reasons why cats love and need to climb to a high place.

  1. Climbing expands your cat’s territory. Have you ever heard someone say his or her house is too small to accommodate an indoor cat? Maybe your mother said that about your house yesterday. Well, that’s not necessarily true. A cat can easily feel comfortable even in a studio apartment. There is no problem with keeping a cat in a single room because it’s not about the number of rooms. Cats don’t care how many square feet your home is. Cats do care about how many climbing opportunities each room provides. For example, add one cat tree with three perches and it’s like you just bought your cat a three story apartment. Add another tree in the opposite corner and a few shelves so your cat can climb and jump from one to another. Your cat now has a mansion.
  2. Climbing provides exercise for your cat. The act of climbing and jumping from perch to perch is great exercise all by itself, but that’s not all. When you play with your cat ( you do play with your cat every day right?), being on a flat surface is boring. If you add a cardboard box, that improves the quality of play significantly. But what if you have window panes, cat trees, shelves, perches, and cat houses available for play? That set-up actually becomes a 2 for 1 reward. You’ve created a playground and a gym for your cat. Find more ways to provide activity for your cat here.
  3. Climbing provides security. Being up high means that a larger predator, toddlers, dogs, or vacuum cleaners can’t get to your cat. Cats naturally look for high places because they’re safer from any dangers and they can spot a predator coming from far away. Also, most cat trees include a “house or condo”. This is an enclosed area with walls and holes. Cats don’t live in caves in the wild, but if the cat condos have appropriately sized openings, it will provide extra security for your cat. Besides, such hideouts are great for playing too.
  4. Climbing builds confidence in shy cats. What is the difference between a cat who spends their days lounging on top of a cat tree compared to a cat that spends their days behind a sofa? The latter will have a hard time accepting that the outside world means no threat to them because they are shutting that information out. A cat that sits on top of the world feels secure and simultaneously, has the chance to observe what’s going on in the “dangerous” part of their home. This means that if you have a shy cat, no matter how long it takes to train them to be comfortable with resting on the top of a perch, it will be worth it. Your shy cat will have an opportunity to learn about your world and make the decision that it is not as bad as they thought after all. Best of all, their quality of life will be better.
  5. Climbing ensures peace in your home. Do you have multiple cats? Then cat trees and perches are a must have for you. Even cats that absolutely hate each other can easily share a home if there is enough vertical territory. Cats who get along so-so may never nap a few feet from each other on a sofa, but they can on a cat tree when that distance is measured vertically. What’s said above about security and confidence also applies. If your older cat finds that playing is silly, as opposed to your junior cat, they have the opportunity to climb up to a high place. If your shy cat does not feel brave enough to engage in playtime, he has an opportunity to avoid it. You will be surprised how much other cats respect the privacy of a cat who wants to be alone on the top of a cat tree.
  6. Climbing provides views. Several of your cats needs are satiated with the different kinds of views climbing provides. The height lets your cat look over their territory. It lets your cat observe what you are doing (cats actually find it amusing how we prepare meals, read newspapers, and play Twister). If at all possible, it is ideal to place the perch so that it also gives a nice outdoor view (an indoor cat’s equivalent to television).
  7. Climbing improves your communication with your cats. Do you know why dogs love to jump up on people? It’s because they want to be closer to the human’s face. This isn’t exactly true for cats, but your cat sure prefers to greet you from the level equal to or even above your face. They would much rather do that than running around you, getting tangled between your legs, and waiting for you to crouch down and pet them. Cats love greeting each other nose to nose. This is because cats have scent glands in their cheeks and jaws that they use to transfer their scent. This is why your cat loves to rub their face on yours and your body. If your cat is on a cat tree, it becomes a lot easier for you to offer your face for a short sniff as they would greet another cat. When you pet or talk to your cat, they will feel a lot better being on the same level as your head is at their same level as theirs.
  8. You will feel great, too. People who have managed to cat-ify their homes report that they feel proud of their cats’ increased health and happiness. Do this and you’ll find yourself loving to share when visitors ask why there are empty shelves on your living room wall.

How do you get your cat to stop climbing the walls?

The easiest way of course, is by adding a cat tree, or several cat trees to your cats favorite room. In an ideal world, each room of your home would contain at least one cat tree and the central family gathering room would have at least a few. In addition, you should expand the opportunities for your domestic cats to climb by adding a cat wall shelf, a series of cat shelves, or a cat climbing wall. By creating clear access for your cats claws to be used for climbing instead of scratching your furniture, both of you will be much happier. You can find more information about making your house appealing to your cat here.

Why does my cat try to climb walls summary

By providing as many climbing opportunities for your cat as you can, you’ll be improving their mental and physical health. Instead of your cats nails being used on your furniture, they’ll use them to scale the vertical surface you’ve provided them. Make them available in several strategically important parts of your house and your cat will be happy, confident, secure, and feel loved.

This will go a long way towards a happy life for you and your cat. And keeping your Pet Happy is what we all want.

Scroll to Top