For a while I used to have one of those flat scratching post that kept come up off the ground and banging on the floor when the cats used it. It didn't look that comfortable and I don't think they likes the noise either, so I was very happy when I found this one. Mine didn't come with the little disco ball but I used the hole to fill it with rocks so that it wouldn't wobble. Sisal is generally considered the best material but I've tried a sisal insert on my old scratching post and they didn't like it as much as cardboard, although I'll give it another shot with a better quality sisal. The cat nip doesnt work for my cats, they'll go nuts over it but they lick and droll all over the thing instead of scratching it. It works better without the catnip for them. The reason for 4 stars is because it's ugly compared to other angled posts. My pet store didn't have one of the nicer wooden ones but now that I see them on amazon I definitely plan to try it out. In concern is however that because it's open theres no place to fill it with rocks so it may wobble and not work as well after all. I thought I was safe with my new sofa with the post and their nails trimmed but I was wrong. they run around all day playing and there were still some accidental scratches that didn't show up on the last sofa because of the material. They ended up with softpaws but they still using the scratching post, I guess to try to get them off. Overall, my cats like it and it's a solid product.