Welcome, bookitty1231!
Not sure if my suggestion will help, but here's something that I have tried in the past that worked with my cats. Cats don't like the smell of citrus, and you can buy different kinds of sprays (cat repellants)for this purpose. Take a look at www.drsfostersmith.com under the cats only section. They may have something there. Another home rememdy is apple vinegar. Most don't like the smell of that either.

Another option is to make the area feel strange to the cat, so putting up double sided tape may work. It will keep them from scratching there. I also have softpaws nail caps(www.softpaws.com) on my kitty, and that can help reduce damage without having to declaw I just love those things! They work great

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"In a cat's eye, all things belong to cats." - English proverb