When a cat is deficient in trace elements, it may lose interest in cat food and instead become interested in foreign objects, such as scratching posts, plastic bags, cardboard boxes, hair, and walls. This is because the cat's body is lacking certain trace elements, and these foreign objects happen to contain what it needs. That's why it is so fascinated by chewing on scratching posts. Cats lacking trace elements may have a slightly pale nose and lose more fur than before. 
Cats nowadays mainly grow up on cat food because it's convenient to feed them—no cooking required, just feed them directly—and it can be stored for a long time. However, cat food mainly contains protein and fat, with very few trace elements. If cat owners only feed their cats cat food and don't pay attention to supplementing their diet with trace elements, the cats will become deficient in these elements, leading to strange behaviors and a tendency to chew on foreign objects.
Methods to supplement trace elementsSince the cat owner knows that the cat is chewing on foreign objects because of a lack of trace elements, the cat owner should supplement the cat with trace elements and stop letting the cat chew on the scratching post. The cat's stomach cannot digest the scratching post, and eating too much of the crumbs from the scratching post can easily cause indigestion and problems for the cat.
Therefore, cat owners should supplement their cat food diet with some cat-specific trace elements, such as mineral supplements, mixed into the cat food. Once the cat's body has absorbed enough trace elements, it will gradually stop chewing on the scratching post. (Content based on personal experience; images from the internet; please contact us for immediate removal if there is any copyright infringement.)
