| When he starts scratching inappropriately, you can either use a squirt bottle -- which will not hurt him but that he won't like -- or just a loud NO to him. And then immediately remove him from whatever he's digging at, and put him on one of the scratching posts. I suspect it would work better for now to only have one post so he gets the connection more easily. Then you can move his paws in a pawing action on the post for him to get the idea. And then praise him in some way (sweet talk or pets) while doing this, so that he also makes a good association to the post. And praise him when he uses it on his own!
No guarantees. Some cats get the idea easily and take to it, some are a pain. :-) You have to be consistent and diligent about it.
As for the pad problem, don't know, unless it's just dehydration. (A lot of cats are dehydrated and we don't even know it.) Or just plain dry skin. In which case some omega-3 may help, which can be found in fish oils like salmon and cod, or even in flaxseed oil. It's much better if you can find one made for cats specifically and it'll have a dose on it. (Probably something like 1/4 tsp.) That way it won't have other garbage in it. You sometimes can find that stuff in health food stores, which carry pet stuff, and does not require a prescription. | 
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