Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

With new kittens (and their needle sharp claws) in the house, it was time to make some upgrades. After searching around, I landed on this particular scratching post and thought I'd give it a try. I'm glad I did. It arrives in 5 pieces plus hardware- top trim board, bottom trim board, and two bottom base boards. Five screws and an included tightening tool made assembly a breeze. Based on how tall the scratching post is, and how high up the tethered toy is, I figured it would be a while before our kittens were big enough to get it. How ignorant I was... They hop up and stick to it like velcro! They like to grab the fuzzy ball, and since it's on a bungee-like stretchable tether, they can pull it down a fair amount and wrestle with it. And, of course, they'll walk up to it and use it as a conventional scratching post. At the time of this review there are two units being offered for sale- one with carpet padding all of the trim wood and base at the top and bottom, and one, like I purchased (because the carpet style was sold out) is plain wood (or some kind of thick masonite with a varnish like coating.) With the wood top, they can't get a grip on it to climb all the way up and sit on top, which would likely lead to some ambushing and other shenanigans. Then again, maybe it's better that they can't get up there, yet they keep trying- which maybe is part of the fun? Either way, I'm happy with the unit and likely would be equally happy with the carpeted version. One observation I will pass along is that the screws holding the base to the post to protrude a fair amount. There are foam feet included, but the heads of the screws are thicker than the foam. On carpet this would be no issue. But on hardwood I had to put a towel down as the unit was resting on the four bolt heads in the middle rather than the foam pads on the outside. The manufacturer should have recessed the holes slightly. I can manage this easily enough, and could put four chair foot cushions that are thicker on the bottom if it were an issue. If not for this, I would have given five starts.