neuter and declawing time??

jonh453

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Well the time has come to get my 2 kittens neutered and declawed. Although I have to get them neutered, I dont want to get them declawed. I have looked at soft paws and they seem like a good alternative. I was wondering, if you can buy them anywere else besides from the manufacture?

Also just out of curiosity, the vet quoted me at $183 for each cat to have them declawed and neutered, is that a good price?

thanks
 

AbbysMom

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I'm glad to hear you are considering not declawing your kittens.
Do you know what it entails? I honestly never had any idea before joining this site. My childhood cat was declawed, because back then a spay/declaw was the norm. I was surprised when we adopted Abby and had to sign that we would never declaw her. Here are a few articles about declawing:

http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=41954

http://www.thecatsite.com/Care/34/De...-Manicure.html

http://www.thecatsite.com/Care/33/De...ernatives.html


Many of of members have had luck with the Soft Paws. I have seen them at most major pet stores, as well as online retailers. I am sure some of them will be along to tell you where they bought theirs.
 

jen

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Soft Paws are WONDERFUL!! One of our cats is very mean when you touch her paws and I just pinned her down and put them on her. She gnawed at them for hours trying to get them off and only succeeded with two. Be prepared for your cat to ignore you for a while while he tries to remove them and be prepared to have to replace a couple of them here and there. But they work great.

I buy therm from Pet Smart.
 

crittermom

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I HIGHLY reccomend Soft Claws!! I will not go without them on my 4 kittens.
They are wonderful and it is sooooooo much less stressful for the kitten than declawing.
Please consider using them as you mentioned.
 

jen

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The way I see it is there is always a neutering time (can be done at 7 weeks) but there is never ever ever a declawing time


Oh and about cost, I usualy go with the low cost clinics or mobile clinics and they charge from $15 to $45.
 

crittermom

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I forgot the other question
I paid $22.00 for my male kitten to be neutered.My Vet will not spay/neuter before 12 weeks old.
Females are $35.00
 

mzjazz2u

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Originally Posted by crittermom

I forgot the other question
I paid $22.00 for my male kitten to be neutered.My Vet will not spay/neuter before 12 weeks old.
Females are $35.00
Those are good prices for a vet. But please read the information Abbysmom gave you and reconsider the declawing. If you have scratching posts and/or cat trees, your cat usually won't mess with your furniture or anything. MIne don't. A lot of people use the soft paws too and love them.
 

callista

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I think price can depend on the area in which you are located--places with higher cost of living will naturally have higher prices.

You may check with a local animal shelter; they don't necessarily do low-cost neutering, but they can connect you with someone who does. Chances are that the vet will be just as experienced, because they do a LOT of cats when working with TNR clinics for ferals; but ask around.

I agree on the declawing--declawed cats I've met were so much more nervous and likely to hiss or bite. When they can't swat with a paw as a warning, they get scared and defensive. Also, it's pretty painful--bone surgery always is--and painful paws can get your cat not to like the litter box so much (because s/he associates it with pain to scratch there).

Seriously try alternatives... Softpaws has been mentined; but you can also just clip the sharp tips off your cat's claws, which works almost as well and is not so expensive (and probably a bit more comfortable for the cat). Start when he's a kitten and he should tolerate it later on with a minimum of wrestling. Combined with consistent training, claw-clipping can eliminate the need for any sort of claw cover.

Oh yeah--another bit of advice: keep your cat--even a cat that still has its claws--indoors. With all the crazy stuff the cat can get into outdoors, you'll be increasing his lifetime (as the odds go) by about 10 years. The two cats in my sig both died because my mother insisted that it was "more natural" for them to be outdoors; one died of feline leukemia (despite a vaccination--they aren't 100% effective) and another died after a fight with another animal (despite neutering--it doesn't help if the other animal picks the fight). When I am finally living without allergy-plagued housemates, I will have a cat of my own; and that cat will live indoors, just like I do.
 

meow meow

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If your kitties are just kittens, you have a good chance at teaching them to claw at the proper things, not the furniture or carpet.

First get many different things for them to claw: carpet covered post, cardboard box type scratcher, sisal post, etc... Each and everytime you see them scratching the appropriate things, reward them with a treat. My kitten would scratch the cardboard box and then sit there and look at me as if to say "where is my treat?" Also if you catch them scratching the furniture or carpet, immediately pick them up and take them to a post to scratch -- then reward with a treat.

I did this for several months with my kitten and it was enough to convince my DH that declawing him was unnecessary. He is not perfect but scratches the appropriate things about 95% of the time.

Another thing that helps hugely is to clip your kittens nails. Start doing it now (again using treats for bribing). When they are small it has to be done every 7-10 days. My kitten is 7 months now and I notice his nails do not grow nearly as fast. Every two weeks is good now. If your kittens do scratch the furniture or carpet, if their nails are clipped, it will cause little or no damage. If you don't want to do this yourself, a groomer will do it for about $9.
 

missinthesouth

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We use Soft Claws on Carl and LOVE THEM! We have a leather couch that he loves to sleep on and we have not had a single scratch on it since we put the Soft Claws on! He can still retract and extend his claws, grab at toys and scratch his scratching post, but it does not damage at all. He can kneed me all night long and not scratch me, it's essentially like he is declawed.

If you order from Soft Paws, they usually ship within 2 days. Also, they do carry them at Petsmart and Petco. Your vet will probably put on the kitten sized ones first, and then you can do it at home.
 

cata_mint

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I prefer trimming nails to softclaws, (i wouldn't mind them but my dad thinks they're 'sissy') so every so often we grab the kittens and give them a quick trim. I think it sounds cheaper and easier than messing around with glue and quicker as well. However I do think softclaws are a brilliant idea! I have a leather sofa and even though Tilly will Not let us trim her claws we haven't yet had a problem with it, mostly due to a doormat we bought for them, whose rough surface they seem to love.

The only time they scratch is when we confine them to the living room when we're cooking or hanging out the washing etc, when they scratch at the door. They've been doing it for about 5months now though and we've only just noticed the (faint) marks!
 

southernlocs

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I've never used the softpaws myself but i trim my cats claws about every 2 wks. I started trimming their claws when i first brought them home as kittens, i just catch them when they are relaxed and it only takes me about a minute per cat to do both front and back claws, i usually only cut the hook of the claw so i wont cut them too short.

Good luck, i never even considered declawing bc i researched it b4 my kittens even came to live with me.
 

laureen227

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Originally Posted by Southernlocs

I started trimming their claws when i first brought them home as kittens.
if you've already been trimming their claws on a semi-regular basis, you won't have that much trouble using the soft paws if you want to use them. the 1st application is the most trouble, 'cause you have to do 10 at once. after that, you just replace as necessary.
i bought my first set at soft paws.com, but i've found the catandkitten.com is less expensive. their selection of colors is not as great, though. you can also get them at pixie pets. our local petco & petsmart both carry the natural version, but none of the colors. it's easier to see when a replacement is necessary if you use a colored version.
 

goldenkitty45

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PLEASE do NOT get them declawed. There are many other good alternatives and for your cat's mental/physical health - don't do it. Many times declawed cats will start avoiding the litter box and peeing elsewhere. Or they may resort to biting in defense or become overly aggressive or overly fearful.

Neutering is fine - forget the declawing. Learn how to trim the nails (its easy) or use the nail caps. Your cat will THANK you for not declawing.
 

girlieq

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That does seem a bit expensive for a surgery... My cat's neuter was only $55, and he was bilaterally cryptorchid, so it was more like a spay (and they had to go hunting to find the testies, too). Lots of places do it way cheaper than that, no matter where you live. If you're in an urban area, there are low cost clinics, and if you're in a rural area, it's probably cheap to keep the feral cat population down. Ask at your local pet shelter.

And SoftPaws worked marvelously. I actually put them on the hind claws as well, because they had those claws filed down to sharp little needles, too, and they learned very well what was scratchable and what wasn't. I bought mine from PetCo and PetSmart, and didn't mind that they were only clear. They stay on really well.

I actually don't use the SoftPaws anymore because I don't need to. The cats don't scratch anything that shouldn't be scratched, so I don't see why I should bother. I don't even trim their claws anymore, although if Rowan gets any more insistant about getting under the covers at night, I just might start doing him again.
 
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jonh453

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thanks for all your help everyone. I just received my first set of soft claws for my 2 kittens. We got them on almost trouble free. They dont seemed to be bothered by them at all. So I am just going to stick with the soft claws and not get them declawed. I am just a little surprised the soft claws dont interfer with the retracting of the claws. I am sure they would let me know if the soft claws were buging them.. thanks again everyone.
 

mskitty666

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I'm glad you reconsidered declawing. All of my cats have claws. If you decide to stop using the soft claws, or even if you just want to train your cats I have a few tips. To tech them where to claw sometimes you need to play with string or a toy. When their nails dig in or if they scratch reward them with high praise or a treat if you like. You must have different textures and styles available as cats have moods just like we do. Sometimes they want something flat, sometimes they want to stretch and claw. Once you find a style and texture your cats love, place it where they spend a lot of time and always reward them when they use their stuff. Trimming claws is easy to learn. I usually cut my cats nails about every 6-8 weeks. They are well trained and usually scratch inappropriately when the nails are too long, or they have a bothersome sheath or infrequently acting out because of some stress like moving or one of their people goes away. By knowing what their triggers are, I am usally able to address the issue before they act out.

In my opinion declawing should be against the law. A few years ago I read about a proceedure called a tendonectomy. They are not amputated as in declaw, but the tendon that allows them to extend their claws is severed. Nails still require trimming. I don't know about the latest info on this proceedure, but it seemed to be a safe and effective alternative to declawing a few years ago.
 

jen

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Originally Posted by mskitty666

In my opinion declawing should be against the law. A few years ago I read about a proceedure called a tendonectomy. They are not amputated as in declaw, but the tendon that allows them to extend their claws is severed. Nails still require trimming. I don't know about the latest info on this proceedure, but it seemed to be a safe and effective alternative to declawing a few years ago.
In the majority of other countries, declawing is against the law, along with tail docking and ear cropping.
 

sheffieldlass

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yes here in the uk declawing is illegal & i have never seen a cat with out its claws. the only time i would consider declawing is if i am willing to have the ends of my fingers & toes amputated at the same time because its only the same. i've heard of soft claws as a product but i dont think they are that widely available here or used much. i wouldnt feel safe putting them on pisces because he goes outdoors & i'd worrie he wouldnt beable to protect himself.

most people here train their cats to claw only the things they want them to claw & go to great lengths to buy products which only they can scratch, cat condos, scratch plates, poles, toys etc.
 

jenny82

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Originally Posted by jonh453

thanks for all your help everyone. I just received my first set of soft claws for my 2 kittens. We got them on almost trouble free. They dont seemed to be bothered by them at all. So I am just going to stick with the soft claws and not get them declawed. I am just a little surprised the soft claws dont interfer with the retracting of the claws. I am sure they would let me know if the soft claws were buging them.. thanks again everyone.
Great! I'm glad it is working out!
 
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