Kitty lovers of the lounge, I need your help please.

[RidinMyDonkey]

Just how cruel is it to get your cat declawed? I've never done it to my cats in the past, believing that the practice was cruel and inhumane. Hell, I've probably signed a petition or two to make it illegal in the US. Now, I recently got a new kitten a few months ago, and he's just awful. He scratches and bites constantly and I can't make him stop. The vet is no help, he says "he's just being a kitten" I don't want to ask him about declawing because I'm afraid I wouldn't get an honest answer. I don't think I can afford to get the nail caps for the rest of his life either. I really, really, don't want to resort to this option, but on the other hand try waking up with a claw in your eyes. It's not pleasant.

First of all is my precious baby really just being a kitten? I don't recall any of my kittens being as insane and vicious as this one is. If he was a human I bet he'd vote republican. I'm worried that there is something seriously wrong with him. Secondly, has anyone here had it done before? Were your cats unhappy afterwords? Did they have trouble with the litter box and jumping after that? Was their balance effected? How long were they recovering? I don't know what to do. I'm so afraid it will make him miserable and then I'd just feel worse about myself than if I let him scratch me everyday.

Thank you for your time.

[JanMichael]

1. wrap his furry little butt up in a towel, get out a pair of toenail clippers

and clip off the sharp point--being careful not to hit the "quick" or the pink part that extends to the nail.

Do this once a week to keep his nails blunt. Be forceful, and let him know that there is NO choice in the matter.

Steph did this to Stinky when she was a kitten; she is 7 now--still gets her nails "done" and is thoroughly bored with the process.

edited for spelling and grammar-

*btw--I forgot to add (as the person below me did) that I think declawing is a terrible thing to do to a kitty.

[RidinMyDonkey]

3. I might try that

I've always avoided cutting my pets nails myself because there is a grooming parlor up the street from me that usually offers complimentary trimmings, just not for him. I'm a bit nervous about it because I really don't want to hurt him. If he wiggles or I cut too far it could go badly. But I think I'm going to have to suck it up and do that because I'm out of choices. At this point it's him or me, and I want to keep my eyeballs.

[JanMichael]

10. it's easy. You just have to remember that you are the boss--you

are the grownup.

Yes, he's going to squirm, try to bite (that's the point of the bath towel)-- but, be firm, gentle and speak in calming tones---

Then give him a "play reward" afterwards---tell him "good kitty!" scratch and kiss him--and let him play with a string pulled down the hall.

Within a couple of weeks or so, he will associate "nails done" with fun times-- a good life long habit for a kitty!

[renie408]

23. You have to be really careful. Just don't cut his quick or you will never clip him again without

all out war.

[bicentennial_baby]

2. You have two options:

And declawing isn't one of them...

1) Start clipping the nails on a regular basis.

2) Get the kitten some SoftPaws, which are little vinyl nail covers that eliminate the scratching problem:

http://www.softpaws.com/

NEVER declaw. It's inhumane.

[RidinMyDonkey]

5. Oh thanks for that link!

My vet sells nail caps but they cost nearly twice as much. I think I'll order a pack to start with and see how it goes. If it's not as wonderful as I'm thinking they will be I'll start clipping his nails myself.

[bicentennial_baby]

11. I've heard that they work really well. Also,

they sell them at places like Petco, etc. Shop around. And good luck! :hi:

[Lindsey]

6. It's like torture for them. When I got mine from a rescue...

I had to sign a contract that I wouldn't declaw her and that she would only be a house cat. I think declawing is not an option. I know when my baby was a kitten, she was hell on wheels. She grew out of it and is now the most loving, precious critter in the world. When she was little, I literally would sleep with the covers over my head. It's hard to say about her disposition. They're like humans. We never really know how they're going to turn out. IMHO give her a chance....

[RidinMyDonkey]

17. I love that they made you sign that

Not that you would have done it otherwise, but I think a lot of people don't realize that it hurts them a lot so they get it done thinking that its normal. I wish places didn't enforce this belief. Like my vet for example asked us if we were going to get him declawed when he brought him in for his 6 mos rabies shot. I told him "No way, and don't ask people that!"

I wouldn't really do it. When I was breifly considering it I was fed up angry with him for getting my face, but he just rubbed up against my leg to say he's sorry. I can't stay mad at that cute little face for too long!

[TrogL]

4. It's a kitten

Spank it if it bites, swap its paws if it scratches. If it claws furniture, spray it with water then drag it over to its clawing post.

[Lindsey]

7. Unfortunately, spraying with water never worked for mine but I didn't

take her to her scratching post so maybe that would have helped.

[RidinMyDonkey]

8. I couldn't spank him.

I'm not tough enough. I'd probably feel worse than the cat.

[LeftyMom]

9. She needs good outlets for her scratching and biting- get toys that work out her prey drive

Fishing pole type toys, the little toy mice, and of course a laser pointer.

At her age she's supposed to be learning to hunt. In the absence of anything else to hunt, she's settled on you.

As far as the furniture scratching, trim nails regularly and offer a scratching post- the rope-wrapped ones are best.

[RidinMyDonkey]

12. We have those. Funny story about the fishing pole toy actually

We were playing chase the mouse/bird hybrid thingy around the living room. I looked away and stopped playing only for a moment and when I grabbed the pole again he ripped the toy right off the string. He's also mangled the toy that was attached to his scratching post beyond recognition. That one I cut off because I was worried he'd swallow the fabric and get sick.

We don't always let him have access to his toys though, except for two that are too big to put away. I read on a website that you shouldn't let them have their toys out all the time but rather play with them for a certain amount of time each day. I've been playing with him way more than I'm supposed to have to and he still wants to play scratch me to death. You think it would be alright to leave them out for him to play all the time?

[LeftyMom]

15. I would.

He'll wear himself out and then sleep a bit, more than likely.

I would suggest rotating toys- don't have them all out at once, switch them every day or two so he doesn't get bored with one.

[applegrove]

13. I read one time that the way to train a puppy or a kitten with biting and clawing is

to over react every time they attack at all. Yelp or scream. Make it absolutely no fun for them. Make the game over as soon as they use your hands as a toy. It is important that your kitten knows that human hands are never toys. Toys are only things that are directed at a kitten to be a toy.

Use a water pistol too. Every time your cat crosses that line squirt him.

Very hard to get cats to stop scratching if they are brought up to do so.

As to declawing I don't know anything about it except I can't do it to my cats even though they destroy furniture because I don't want them to 1)feel that much pain 2) not be able to defend themselves if they need to even though they are at present not outside at all.

Good luck with your pet. And remember the barrier is that your hands or body or furniture are not toys.

[RidinMyDonkey]

16. I've actually tried yelping

I think it would have worked because he would look like you hurt his feelings or something. But I've got a few neighbors who think it's just hilarious when he does "The Hug and Kick" and they taunt him. Actually this may be my problem right here. No matter what I do to teach him the kids mess with him and he's not going to learn which humans are off limits and which ones aren't.

[marzipanni]

31. Tell the kids not to make him wild, or they can't play with him

When he bites or scratches, hiss or growl like a mother cat and hold him down gently by the scruff of his neck. Kitties go limp when you hold them by the scruff as their mother did. Then go to a different room.

I remember reading on DU about how some cats love to play with plastic bottle caps i.e. milk jug size caps. They love to swat them on the bare floor, and even collect them in a hiding place.
I give young cats ping-pong balls.
This kitten is so funny chasing a remote control mouse!-
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TWwBdY1Yglg

[Sanity Claws]

33. I recommend the yelp/scream thing

I adopted Oliver when he was 4 months old. He was a biter. I finally figured out that if he bit me, I should scream in a high-pitched voice. It freaked him out -- he would immediately stop biting to stare at me. I kept doing it; after a while he figured it out and stopped biting.
One odd thing -- After I did the screaming thing, he started screaming in a high pitched kitty voice when I did something he didn't like, like pick him up and take him some place else in the house.

Good luck.

[applegrove]

34. I taught my Sam how to growl when she was a kitten. She growls now any time

you pick her up or do anything she doesn't like.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

14. I concur with the post that said to wrap his furry butt in a towel and clip his claws.

Never declaw a cat. Never spank a cat. Trimming the claws is the only solution if you don't want to bother with nail caps. He will wiggle and squirm at first, and maybe you'll be able to trim onlt 1 or 2 claws at a time, but he'll get used to it eventually.

Declawing is really bad for a lot of reasons. It's cruel -- it's like chopping off the ends of your fingers. And it often makes them turn bitey when they realize they have no other defense. Don't do it.

[RidinMyDonkey]

18. Hmmmm

Trimming seems to be a popular opinion. I think I'll try it, but do you know of any groomers or anyone that would offer a class to show me how to do it correctly or what to do if there is an accident. I'm very paranoid about hurting him!

[JanMichael]

19. just snip the tips at first

look at your own fingernails, the look at the kitty's. Both of you will completely get the hang of it within the first few times.

Seriously. Just do it; so what if you only get a few done at first? just remember to be firm, gentle, and have play time afterwards--

[bicentennial_baby]

20. One thing you can do is

Buy a trimming kit that has the clippers and Quik Stop, which is basically cornstarch, to stop bleeding if you hit the quick of the nail.

You press the pad of the cat's paw, and the claws will extend. Do it in good light, and you should easily be able to see the quick, which is a vein that runs down partially into the nail. Just cut below the quick, and you should have no problem. If you do hit it, having Quik Stop or just plain cornstarch on hand will be good. Sprinkle it on, and it will stop the bleeding. It's not a huge vein or anything, so it's not like the baby will bleed to death. It's more like a nick.

Same goes for ferrets. I cut ferret nails for years. Once you and the cat get the hang of it, easy peasy.

If possible, have another person there the first couple times, to hold the cat in the towel while you clip.

:)

[RidinMyDonkey]

21. I think I can manage that

it seems so much worse than it probably really is. We even bought a clipper for him the day we got him but I've been afraid to use it all this time.

But just in case I chicken out, in your professional pet clipping experience do you think those new pet files work? They seem less scary to me for some reason, but as with anything I see on an infomercial I doubt it really works.

BTW I love ferrets. I've always wanted one but the darn humans I live with don't appreciate their smell.

[bicentennial_baby]

22. I haven't seen them, but if it's like a nail file,

I assume that it would be more intolerable to the cat, as it would take longer. Seriously, the nail clippers are just like the human kind, snip, snip, snip. Or course, cats like to fuss a lot more than humans, but the principle is the same. The cat will appreciate it too, once their nails get too long, it's not comfortable, and they get caught in stuff.

:)

[RidinMyDonkey]

24. I'll skip on that then

I'll just suck it up and clip them... later. I think I'll save my first try for when he's asleep or napping.

[kath]

25. Here is a video on how to trim the claws

http://partnersah.vet.cornell.edu/pet/fhc/trimming_claws

and some photos:
http://www.catscratching.com/htmls/article.htm

Ths one is quite detailed:
http://www.vetmed.wsu.edu/ClientED/cat_claws.aspx

a google of
how to clip cat's claws
yields lots more.

[RidinMyDonkey]

28. Thanks, that makes me a lot less nervous about it.

I needed to see it done in action. It really doesn't look that bad!

[RidinMyDonkey]

26. Thank you everyone

It's been a very trying time with my newest pal, I appreciate all the advice. I'm going to wrap him up and clip him later on today when he's nice and sleepy. Wish me luck!

[renie408]

27. I think you can probably fix the scratching and biting without declawing him.

Please don't get pissed off, but part of your problem might be that as far as you are concerned, he is 'a precious baby' and not an animal. If he were taken away from his siblings and mother too early, it is likely that he never learned from them when he went too far. I am guessing that you never pin him down or get stern with him when he is misbehaving. I have had multiple cats (and dogs, horses and chickens, for that matter) all my life and as long as I have made it very clear who is alpha, we have never had problems. Being alpha does not have to mean being, well, mean. Just don't reward the behaviors you don't want to recur. Get on google and see if they have any cat training websites out there that can go into detail for you. Right now we have six cats with a wide variety of histories.

As for the declawing, I have never had it done, but we have gotten two cats from the shelter that were declawed. Neither one of them seemed to have any negative effects. We still have Leonard. He climbs, jumps, uses the litter box...everything a 'normal' cat does. He is an indoor/outdoor cat.

[RidinMyDonkey]

29. I'm not mad or pissed off

but he is more than an animal to me. I do see myself as his owner because I have to take care of him but I also love him like he's a part of my family. But I also try to correct him. I've never hit him but I do yell and I'll set him on the floor away from me. Even go into another room somtimes. It makes him feel bad.

As for when he was taken from his mother, I'm not sure. To put it somewhat nicely the owner of the mother cat was going to get rid of them, so I took them. The other cat I got at the same time died about a week after I got her. The vet wasn't sure how old they were but he guessed that they were at least two months old. It is very likely that he never learned from his mother or sister.

[Haole Girl]

30. How cruel is it?

I'll give it to you straight. But if you don't want to hear the harsh reality, stop reading right now.

It's like cutting off a person's fingers at the last knuckle. :-(

[Habibi]

32. For the furniture scratching

try spraying Feliway on the surfaces you don't want him to scratch. You have to be consistent, but it has worked pretty well for me.