getting declawed?

racn1320

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What is the process of getting a 11 week old declawed in the front? Is it painful for the cat and if so how long? will she hate me? are thet put under while this done? Some1 said its like pulling out ur toenails?
 

mcat

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Most civilized countries ban it as cruel. There are many ways to train a cat not to scratch furniture which is what I think you want. Many declawed cats develop behavior problems such as inappropriate peeing, biting and such. They can be in constant pain and can develop arthritis.

There are plenty of declawed cats in shelters as owner returns. If you must have a cat without claws, consider adopting one of these unfortunate ones.

I cannot more strongly recommend that you do not do this to any cat, ever.
 

katachtig

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Please reconsider any decision to declaw. The surgery removes the first joint of the toe. It is invasive and unnecessary. You can learn to trim the cat's nails or use soft paws/claws to protect furniture.
 

bonnie1965

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Declawing a cat is like cutting off a human's fingertips at the first knuckle. I liken it to cutting off a child's fingertips for doing things that come naturally; picking nose, coloring on walls, etc. Cats need their claws.

I am glad you asked before doing this procedure
Declawing can cause many behavioral issues that make inappropriate scratching seem like nothing. Please do read the declawing link halfpint provided.

The procedure is outlawed in many European countries. Wish North America would catch up!
 
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racn1320

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wow thx. Whats good way to get them to stop playing with wires and scratching furniture?
 

bonnie1965

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Originally Posted by Racn1320

wow thx. Whats good way to get them to stop playing with wires and scratching furniture?
Please check out this thread of behavioral issues.
http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=22301

Having alternatives for scratching is best ... cardboard scratchers, cat trees, sisal scratchers, both vertical and horizontal options.

Some people have used bitter sprays on cords. Others use wire/cord covers.

Please let us know if you have more questions after reading the behavior threads
 

momofmany

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You won't find very many people on this site that supports declawing. If it were as simple as ripping out toenails and not amputation at the knuckle, you might find a few supporters.

I live with 10 indoor cats, all fully clawed and my furniture is not clawed. I have a variety of scratch posts at different heights and materials to keep it interesting for them. Get a scratch post that is tall enough that if they were to stretch out on their hind legs, they can reach up to the top (they prefer at least 3 feet tall). Get the flat cardboard scratchers also.

And remember, giving them a scratch post doesn't guarantee that they will know how to use it. When you see them going after a piece of furniture, give them a firm "NO", pick them up and carry them to the post and have fun rubbing your fingers on it to show them what it is used for. When they use it, give them a treat and praise the heck out of them. Cats are very trainable with posts if you give it an honest attempt to teach them.

Claws have nothing to do with cords. Some cats unfortunately like them. Bitter apple, citrus sprays (cats don't like citrus) or cord covers are good choices,

I'm glad you asked before you did this!
 

renovia

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i use bitter spray on anything i don't want them to touch. . . .it pretty much works all the time....
 

nausicaa

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Use Bitter Apple for the cable-gnawing and sisal cat posts/rough-textured carpets/cardboard boxes/cardboard scratchers/firelogs for the scratching (depending on your cat's tastes.)
 

fosterkitty

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I declawed my first 2 cats and THEN decided to research it. I will never do it to another one of my cats, and all of my fosters are adopted on a strict no declaw basis. Remember that your cat is only 11 weeks old, so sometimes, even as hard as you will try, she will still get into things and scratch, but she is just a kitten. With proper training, she will grow out of it. Make sure you provide a lot of scratching posts. You can buy the sisal ones at pet stores, or some cats like things as simple as carpet scraps or large pieces of wood. Just make sure you provide enough things to stimulate her, and you should be fine.
 

maxy24

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I found for scratching furniture as long as they have a scratching post (that they actually like) in the room they will choose that over the couch or other furniture. If the cat is about to scratch the furniture or started to, go grab him and bring him to the post. Some how get him to scratch it. Use cat nip or toys or scratch it yourself anything to get him to scratch it. Once he starts let him do it in piece and give him a treat or piece of kibble when he finishes.

As for wires...well I don't see how declawing would stop that anyway, he's just starts using his mouth
You will have to keep them out of reach or each time he goes to play with them you should use a toy to distract him and play with him. Eventually he may learn that the wires are no fun but his toys are. You best bet would be to block them off somewhere for his safety.

For scratching posts you may need to do some trial and error. Everybody likes something different. My Neko likes the cardboard ones that are horizontal. Willie likes vertical carpet. Neither like rope. A good cat tree is also something fun for the cat to play on. Also remember to play with him a lot. If you ware him out he will be a much better kitty
 
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racn1320

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She likes to play with the computer wires
 

littleraven7726

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Originally Posted by Racn1320

She likes to play with the computer wires
i remember seeing a website that was for cat products just for that. it looked like fish airline hose (the bigger kind) and the wires were run through it. we never tried it but thought about it. stimpy just grew out of his chewing phase so we didn't need to.
 

cntrygrl

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i also declawed my kitties in the past until i researched it....yuck! i even researched the soft paws/claws. anyhow, i just adopted a semi feral cat who i would expect to rip into anything and everything. i did lots of reading here (
). i bought a scratching post, rubbed a bit of catnip on it. now, both my declawed (
) and clawed kitty both use it! soft paws are worth the look....even just to see the cute pictures of kitties with coloured claws!

there was a thread about wire chewing a bit ago but i use foil wrapped around my wires and cables and the kitties don't like the looks, sound or "taste" of the foil.

good luck!
 

cococat

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Mine has her claws too, she never hurts anyone with them (people or other animals) and doesn't tear up the house. She does have an extra large cat tree and LOTS of toys. I think that helps. I also clip her claws once a week.
I don't have any experience with declawing, but I would assume an owner would want to get it done due to thinking the cat might claw the furniture or hurt others. The declawed cats I know don't cause problems and there never was a problem to begin with that needed any help.
Plus, if you let your cat outside (mine is 100% inside) they won't have their natural defenses. That goes for escapes too. My cat lives with large dogs and a small dog - yet she never uses her claws in a mean way.
They have caps you can put over nails for cats if they need it.
 

green bunny

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Well, when I adopted my cats (and even before that since I was thinking about getting a cat) I researched the subject and decided against declawing. I just couldn't put a cat through that. Anyway, both of the of the places I adopted from had no declawing clauses in their adoption contracts, which I would imagine most rescue groups have now. I clip my cats' front claws, but not their back. They have only done a little damage to my box spring and the underside of my couch (they made a hole in it and now use it like a hammock. When I see them trying to scratch certain things (like the box spring) then I know it's time to trim their nails.

However, my sister's cats are declawed (they were declawed before her soon-to-be ex-husband and his at-the-time girlfriend adopted them), and I've never noticed them having any discomfort in their paws (and only the front paws are declawed), or any arthritis problems, but they are probably 4 and 5, so they could still develop it. (Her dog is pretty lucky that one of the cats doesn't have his claws because she likes to antagonize him, and he likes to "bop" her on the head.) So, I would not have any cats declawed, but if you really want a declawed cat, then I would adopt one.

I have heard of some people getting their cats declawed after having them for several years after getting badly scratched. My mother got rid of her 3 cats when one opened up my sister's face two or three times when we were babies. (She has some scars on her face that we didn't realize were scars and weren't natural until about five years ago when our mom told us.) 2 out of 3 of the cats DID NOT like us (they were old, and the other was young and more adaptable, I guess, but my mom wasn't taking any chances). Really, that's probably just a lesson to keep animals away from babies and small children, but my mother was done with cats. My sister's stepdaughter was badly scratched when she was 7 or so by her cats, but I don't think they were declawed after that.

So, I really hope that you do not decide to declaw your kitty, but just be careful about her claws, especially as she is a kitten and doesn't realize to retract them yet when playing like an older cat would.

Tricia
 

kittylover77

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A lot of times when you go to neuter or spay your kitty, its like a combo
"spay & declaw"
They offer plenty of information about spaying process, but no one really goes into detail about declawing.
It would be nice if vets were more educational and talked about soft claws, the process in detail and compared it to removing half of our fingers.
 
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