A cat scratcher that includes encapsulated cat claw abrading grit layers that can dull claws of a cat using the cat scratcher and which are interleaved throughout a scratching block of the cat scratcher. The encapsulated grit layer may define a self-contained unit in which grit particles are encapsulated between a pair of backing sheets so that substantially none of the grit particles are exposed or visible. The encapsulated grit layer may include a sandpaper strip that has a sandpaper backing sheet and grit particles that are bonded to the sandpaper backing sheet and define a gritty surface of the sandpaper strip that faces away from the sandpaper backing sheet. A seal sheet may engage the gritty surface of the sandpaper strip so that the gritty particles are wholly sandwiched and sealed between the sandpaper backing and seal sheets.
