My cats LOVE those new cardboard scratchers. They make a mess, but are soooo worth it. I never had a problem with my cats scratching on the furniture until I bought a new chair last summer. It is covered in a burlap material, and my cats went insane over it! The cardboard scratching postI bought saved the day :) I bought mine at TJ Maxx, but they are available at Walmart, Target,....
Good Luck

They DO love those cardboard ones! You could perhaps tape one to a table legs or something to give kitty a vertical stretch, but I'd try it flat first. Messy for sure, but if it works, you won't mind!

Unless you're willing to buy a large tower, the post linked below is the largest I've found.

Here is a link that might be useful: scratch post

......and don't forget to rub the catnip over the new scratcher.

For many years now we've made our own very good scratching posts from a redwood peeler core (round post found at the garden center) wrapped with sisal twine. It's takes a little while to wrap it and you need gloves, but you can make a nice tall scratching/climbing post if you are willing to secure it to a wall, ceiling, etc. The one we have right now is nearly 7 feet and attached to a "cat tree" that is floor to ceiling shelves. We've had some that were not much more than the post thought, and the cats loved those.

I saw a cat specialist on TV a few years ago who did something similar by wrapping sisal twine around the largest traffic cone he could find- probably 3 feet tall. Traffic comes like that can be found at hardware stores. I see them in the PVC aisle at Lowe's all the time.

Right now I've got a scratcher, and I think he's put his scent on certain objects in the house that he returns to time and again. Anybody know if it's true that they have scent glands in their paws which draw them back to the same spots? I wonder if the edge of the couch needs some kind of enzyme cleaning? I'm considering making him another scratcher that would be a piece of wood- probably 12" wide and a couple of feet tall, which would then have scrap carpet stapled over it (staples on the back with him scratching the front). He has a cardboard scratcher and likes that, but he also likes to stretch up tall and I think he might like that.

I just stapled a piece of carpet around a door frame going into the kitchen... in essence making it into a giant scratching post/climbing pole. Not the most attractive thing in the world - but it was cheap and easy and the cats just LOVE it. They love to run and take a flying leap and climb it up to the top. I think cats like to scratch and leave their mark around doorways for some reason.

I bought a scratch post from a company called Molly and Friends. It is 7 feet tall, very well made, and my cat loves it.

Different cats have different scratching preferences. Some like to stretch tall on vertical posts. Some like to stretch long on horizontal scratchers. Some prefer sisal, corrugated cardboard, wood, carpet, and/or fabric surfaces.

In my feline household, the preferred scratching surfaces are sisal, corrugated cardboard, and real wood. The easiest, cheapest, and favorite scratching surface I have in my basement is a 12' long, rough-cut piece of 2X8 lumber left over from a house construction. It lies with one end propped up on some storage boxes and the other on the floor. The cats walk up the plank and tear into it to their hearts' content. They used to do the same thing to firewood back when I had a woodstove.

I wish I had time right now to respond to all of your posts. Clearly, you are a great cat owner. I have 5. Love them to pieces.
Here's a great site with lots of good info:

Here is a link that might be useful: Cats International

There are several US-based manufacturers of rugged heavy-duty sisal rope scratching posts. You can get a scratcher with a big, heavy base here in the USA. Cheap, imported scratching posts are mainly designed to be shipped overseas in tiny boxes. Your dedicated US-based cat furniture companies are going to be able to provide you with a tall post that is also stable. One firm coming to mind is Feline Design Cat Furniture.