Alternatives to de-clawing my 18 month old cat ?
I have always been against having a cat declawed. However, I’m at my wit’s end. I found a kitten about a year ago. I got her shots and around 6 months we had her fixed. I was always told they usually calm down. She’s still a crazy lil’ thing. She has 3 scratching posts, plus 2 door knob hangers with cat nip. She has never used any of them. I even went as far as showing her what she was SUPPOSE to do. They have sat unused for almost a year. BUT, my bed has been used, our luggage, or childs bed, our couch, dinning room chairs, and our bar stools, which are wicker. I cut and file her nails at least every other week. I have tried the nail covers, and the sticky tape. Nothing! She is slowly ruining everything that we own. What are other alternatives? I don’t like the idea of ruining her personality, or causing her pain, but this is crazy. We’ve recently had a new baby that I have caught her hissing @.. It scares me to think that she might scratch her while we sleep. Any suggestions would be great!
Tagged with: bar stools • cat nip • childs bed • couch • crazy lil • door knob hangers • kitten • luggage • nails • new baby • personality • room chairs • scratching posts • sleep • sticky tape • wicker • wit
Filed under: Your Community Center
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There is a type of cat claw cap that you "glue" on with an adhesive supplied in the kit. They are called Soft Paws and I will give you their website.
I assume you know that declawing is illegal in Europe. It is a very cruel thing to do to your cat and it is a surgery that involves literally removing the tips of their toes, not just their claws. It can lead to a variety of back and muscle problems and any kind of surgery is very stressful for a cat. Please do not declaw the kitty! There are alternatives. Also, you can’t simply get your cat to scratch a scratching post simply by putting a lot of them around, unless you play with him around it a lot around the post, feed him around it, etc.
nail caps for cats. it’s great.
Try soft paws or pedi paws, the vet can slip them on over the nails and they can’t scratch. I had them put on both my cats, they work great and the cats can’t get them off.
Hmm… This is a tough one. I see you’ve tried the nail covers- I don’t know what brand you use, but we have used Softpaws before, they worked wonderfully for us.
You might want to try that Peticure thing, I’ve never tried it but it is supposed to make their nails more rounded not pointy. Try asking your vet or someone at Petsmart, etc. for other ideas. Good luck!
When we first brought our kittens home, we had a little problem with them scratching our furniture. We too are against declawing. I clip their nails every couple of weeks and they too have a scratcher. What we did to deter them from scratching our stuff was cat repellent (didn’t work – they were attracted to it)…and the thing that worked for us was a spray water bottle as a discipline tool. If I caught them scratching something, I would give them a little squirt and they would stop.
definitely do NOT get a cat declawed. it changes their personality So much and they end up biting a lot more. people think that declawing is just cutting off the nail, but it is actually cutting off the entire cartilage in the toe. it is the same as cutting off a human’s finger at the knuckle.
but you can either:
A- get SoftPaws, which are nail caps that just slip onto the cat’s nail, and you can get them in different colors too
B- teach the cat how to use a scratching post. when the cat scratches the couch or something, bring the cat to the scratching post and run it’s paw along the rope.
but in the end, NEVER declaw a cat, you can always just replace whatever it is they are scratching
You have received great answeers. If you are trimming her nails, damage should be minimal. Keeping the sharp hooks cut off the nails usually keeps scratching from doing any damage to furniture or humans. I am really surprised that the Sticky Paws didn’t help. (you said you tried the tape). When you use Sticky Paws, does the cat find another innapropriate place to scratch? What type of scratching posts do you have? Are they tall and sturdy enough for the cat? A tall, sturdy, rope covered post with a platform on top can work wonders if placed near a window. Most cats love the rope texture and are encouraged to use it if the post is placed near a window and has a carpeted platform on top so that the cat can lie on ot for a view out the window. You could also try Feliway spray on the furniture to keep your cat from scratching it while you teach her to use the scratching post. Do you have any cardboard scratch pads? Most cats love these and you can buy tham at most stores that sell pet supplies. I have 5 cats, 2 cardboard scratch pads, and 3 rope covered sturdy scratching posts with platforms on top. None of my cats scratch the furniture. It sounds like your cat is a bit hyperactive and anxious. You might also want to research flower essences if this is the case. I have used the Azmira flower essence for spraying and had some success with it.