I bought this because my cat was destroying the side of my couch and I was honestly not expecting much. I put the scratcher right next to the spot he usually goes for and sprinkled the catnip ball in there. First day he played with the ball more than scratched, but by day two he was using the cardboard instead of the sofa. It does leave a few tiny cardboard bits after a heavy session, but way less than I thought and I just vacuum it up. For the price it feels fair because it is sturdier than the flat ones I used to replace every few weeks.