What's the best type of scratching pad for my cat?

Scratching is a natural instinct for cats. It's a habit they learn from their mothers and need to do it to sharpen their claws and keep themselves clean as well as using it as a territorial marker. It becomes a problem when cats do all their scratching on home furniture, which is why it's a good idea to buy a scratching post. Here are some tips to encourage your cat to use the scratching post and to leave your furniture alone:

The scratching post you buy should be appealing to your cat. It needs to be big enough and sturdy enough for them to be very active without knocking it over. Bring your cat to the post and rub their paws gently against it. If they try and scratch themselves against something else, you can say "No" firmly and bring them back to the post and keep rubbing their paws against it.
If they scratch the post on their own initiative, give them lots of praise and a treat. If they keep ignoring you, you can use a correction method i.e. spraying them with water, or a smell they don't like or releasing a loud noise whenever they do it. It's best to hide out of sight when you do this so that your cat doesn't realize it's you and resent you.