I know exactly how you feel. My little deaf cat Creamsicle has virtually ruined a chair that I bought when I bought this house two years ago. She's the only one who scratches on the furniture and try as I might, I can't break her of it. And this chair matches the cushions on the sofa, so it's especially annoying. (She also has brain damage, so it's rather difficult to teach her.) I considered leather myself but I'd really go ballistic if she tore that up, too. Thank goodness the peeing isn't a problem any more, at least not that much, since I started the two pissers on Clomicalm. Once I got the dosage right, it doesn't drug them up, just calms them. The vaseline sounds like it might be a good idea, except that, obviously, you won't be able to sit in that chair for a while. But it might save your upholstery. I'd give it a whirl.

Blessings,
Mary