Help Needed from the Cat Experts

[AnewKINDofFEELIN 0]

The only way a cat is completely defenseless is if the back claws are removed. No good vet should recommend that.

I have a cat with no back claws. She was literally ripping out flesh scratching at herself. We couldn't get her to stop scratching, so I tried soft paws. She would yank them off....or even yank out the claw. After the third emergency vet visit, we got the back claws removed.

[britty 1]

Cats without front claws might not be able to 'defend' themselves, but who wants their outdoor cat (claws or not) gettting in a fist-fight with another cat? I mean, the wounds from a cat fight can kill them....

De-clawed cats learn not to fight. Instead they flee. They CAN still climb. I've seen many a declawed cat shinny up a tree by wrapping their front legs around the tree (similar to the way we climb) and then digging in with the back claws.

The only way a cat is completely defenseless is if the back claws are removed. No good vet should recommend that.

My vet told me that declawing is very much like cutting a person's fingers off to the knuckle. I would never dream of getting her declawed. I would rather have ruined expensive rugs. She's not a fighter though - she just harasses the neighbourhood dogs. She only beats up my boy cat but he is a complete wimp and she sussed that years ago.

[rebeccajo 14]

The only way a cat is completely defenseless is if the back claws are removed. No good vet should recommend that.

I have a cat with no back claws. She was literally ripping out flesh scratching at herself. We couldn't get her to stop scratching, so I tried soft paws. She would yank them off....or even yank out the claw. After the third emergency vet visit, we got the back claws removed.

OMG.

I had a kitty once who was chewing at himself all the time. He was old. He had lupus..........

[AnewKINDofFEELIN 0]

The only way a cat is completely defenseless is if the back claws are removed. No good vet should recommend that.

I have a cat with no back claws. She was literally ripping out flesh scratching at herself. We couldn't get her to stop scratching, so I tried soft paws. She would yank them off....or even yank out the claw. After the third emergency vet visit, we got the back claws removed.

OMG.

I had a kitty once who was chewing at himself all the time. He was old. He had lupus..........

It was terrible. On two of the vet visits, they basically told us she wouldn't make it. She's a tough kitty, though. She was the runt AND lone survivor from her litter. I don't want to give you the nasty details, but those claws can be like razor blades.

She's my little buddy and I can't imagine what I would have done if I had lost her. I know it's inevitable, but I can't even think about it.

[Nessa 23]

the cat-tat belly...

roflmao. I like your beer belly.

[Mephys 2]

Declawing IMO is ok in the case where the cat is hurting himself, because it's for a medical reason.

Other than that, and I am surprised no one mentionned it, have you ever trimmed you cat's nails ? I mean I know most people don't do it, and I know it's hard to use them to it when they are older, but all my cats have their nails trimmed every 2 weeks so they are not as sharp and pointy as needles. It helps a lot to reduce the amount of destruction one cat can do. And if the cat give you a hard time, you can usually have it done for pretty cheap at the vet by the technicians.

But yeah to me I would just put away the expensive rug for a while...I wouldn't even bother buying an expensive rug I love my kitties too much.

[Anna C. 4]

Our cat couldn't care less when I put lemon juice water on the cables... She still ate them. What really helped was the water bottle. Each time she does something she is not supposed to, she gets sprayed. She learned super quickly what she is not allowed to do!!!

Also we tried organic anti scratch spray, after I sprayed the whole area she went there to sleep... So not good!!!

We bought her a fancy cat tree and she uses it. Each time I saw her clawing the carpets I brought her to her tree, and she scratched there, and I positively reinforced her to do so. It worked wonders, she ignores the carpets now.

[AtlantiCat 0]

I've heard that cats really really hate tinfoil (Never had a need for it myself). If the rug's not too huge, maybe you could try covering it with tinfoil, wrapping the edges under, when she's out during the day and see how she reacts to it at night.

If she likes catnip, how about rubbing all of her scratching posts with a good strong dose of it? Or maybe the cheap rug you bought for her?

I squirt my two moggies with water when I catch them in the act. You might want to have a vet show you how to give the claws a full trimming. She'll still be able to climb, but she'll have a harder time trying to shred anything with them. There's a new product I've seen called Pet-icure that's supposed to be a rotary file like the groomers use and less traumatic to the kitties' psyche. Personally, I just catch my two when they're sleepy with a sharp clipper and give them some catnip afterwards. They don't like it much, but they'll deal with it without too much squalling.

[britty 1]

Buffalina would kill you first before you could even get near one paw to clip her nails. We have tried on countless occasions and I still have some scars for my troubles. We are going to start squirting water at her. She really really hates water so thanks for the advice. She does love catnip but is like an aggressive drunk on it. She sounds a nightmare but there is usually a window of about 12 minutes during each day when she is absolutely lovely.

[Mags 112]

Cats without front claws might not be able to 'defend' themselves, but who wants their outdoor cat (claws or not) gettting in a fist-fight with another cat? I mean, the wounds from a cat fight can kill them....

De-clawed cats learn not to fight. Instead they flee. They CAN still climb. I've seen many a declawed cat shinny up a tree by wrapping their front legs around the tree (similar to the way we climb) and then digging in with the back claws.

The only way a cat is completely defenseless is if the back claws are removed. No good vet should recommend that.

Actually, I'm going to disagree with you here. A cat with its front claws removed becomes a target. We have 7 cats and Chip (cat number 6) we got from the local shelter. He was front toed de-clawed (we were unaware at the time of adoption). In general he is a timid cat around our alpha males (especially Ziggy) and he IS a target. He often gets trapped in a corner and can't escape the slashing claws of another cat. This will happen outside too for de-clawed animals. Your cat will only flee so far before hunkering down and waiting for the inevitable - the ### kicking.

Having back claws isn't much good at protecting them unless the cat can get the aggressor with claws into a headlock - then they can kick. However, this is no substitute for front claws. The front claws are the sharp ones, the rear are blunter - they are not designed for attacking but aiding the ability to climb.

De-clawing is inhumane and I could never do it to an animal of mine (it's illegal in the majority of Europe too). Never. I actually want to cry for Chip our de-clawed animal and I would give anything to be able to give him his claws back. Even his little paws seem empty.

Only selfish owners get their cats de-clawed, they certainly ain't getting it done for the welfare of the animal. It makes me SO mad, it really does.

Edit: I just want to mention that we do keep Chip under close eye for the majority of the time and we keep him safe.

Edited February 23, 2008 by Mags

[Alex+R 0]

Gotta agree with Mags. Declawing is never the right option.

Maybe in some freak circumstances, I dunno. But not usually.