Am I hurting her when I clip her nails

So one of our cats doesn't mind the slightest when you hold her paws and examine her nails. However, the instant the cat nail clipper touches her nail, she starts struggling and pulling back. Am I hurting her when i trim her nails? There is no bleeding and I am hardly trimming any off at all...I am pretty far from the quick. However there seems to be a "vein" at the bottom of the nail which I am cutting into, but that is not pink, it's clear.

I am using the scissor type nail clippers...do those hurt the cats or something?

My GUESS is that she's scared... she THINKS your going to hurt her... PHX does this too, but its only because he's a big baby.. He's getting better at it though.... Keep us posted, good luck!

Well, we have clipped her nails a few times and she has the same reaction. If I hold her long enough she eventually just "gives up" and lets you do whatever you want. But then as soon as you let her go she runs off, only to return a few minutes later. Some nails don't bother her but some get a reaction.

I agree, she's probably just scared of the clippers.
Gracie and Annabelle are fine with getting their nails trimmed...Lizzie was also.

Everything goes okay with Elliott until he hears the sound of his nail being clipped, then he whines like a big baby.

Yes, if it was truly painful, she would make a much bigger fuss and probably not just give in. If you don't see any blood, you aren't hurting her.

When I clip Daphne's nails, she acts like there is a fearsome monster nibbling her toes. Of course, she needs to attack and eat the monster so I spend most of the session keeping her mouth from the clippers

She's just being a drama queen, some cats excel at that

Radar whines sometimes when we clip his, but he really is very good otherwise. Sonic wriggles at first (it's like trying to hold on to an eel!) but gives up when he realises we mean business.

My younger cat does this. I haven't been clipping her nails as long so I'm guessing it's because she's not quite used to it yet. As long as she isn't bleeding and you're not clipping too deep I wouldn't think it should hurt at all. The clippers do make a scary sound when you think about your nails being in it. I bet she's just nervous. I clipped too deep on my year old not too long ago, I felt TERRIBLE! I wanted to cry along with him. He was being a pain and I didn't get the clippers right, he didn't bleed but you could tell it really hurt him. He almost bit me so I let him loose and clipped the rest a few days later. Make sure to give your kitty a treat after every clipping! That really helps our kitties put up with it.

Yeah it doesn't hurt them at all.. My vet even cuts Trouts nails until they are nubs and she doesn't even flinch!

I'm guessing she is scared..just be gentle and use a calming voice when your doing it. She'll be fine

Sounds like in the past she may have her nails cut too short and they bled a little. As long as you don't make them bleed, she's fine. Try having 2 people involved when clipping nails.

You need a firm grip on her paw so she doesn't pull back. I use the scissors type and they are fine. Ling hates getting hers done - you'd think I'm killing her. Charlie purrs when his are done.

Try wrapping her in a towel, using treats, and being very careful not to cut the quick. If you are not cutting the quick then you are not hurting the cat

It hurts them as much as it hurts us to trim our fingernails, and hitting that vein is only slightly more severe that cutting to the quick on our fingers.

I think they just don't like how it feels. Little weirdos. All brave warriors until the vacuum cleaner or the nail clippers come out!

Try doing one or two claws at a time, so she realizes it isn't such a big deal amd chills out about it.

He he he.. my two young'ns don't like getting clipped very much either. They try to pull away. You know what I found is really helpful? Singing. I know it sounds weird. But you should try it if you're up for it. You don't have to be a good singer either.. hehe.. kitties don't care. They respond to the soothing tone in your voice.

It's amazing, I softly sing the chorus to the song 'Out Of My Head' by Fastball to them when I clip their nails. The effect is so great, they start to calm down almost immidiately.. I keep singing and petting them until they go into a sort of kitty trance and then I slowly take their paws and one by one clip the nails. They hardly struggle if I keep singing the whole time.

Maybe I'm jsut a crazy cat lady, but it works.

Originally Posted by TwoFlower

He he he.. my two young'ns don't like getting clipped very much either. They try to pull away. You know what I found is really helpful? Singing. I know it sounds weird. But you should try it if you're up for it. You don't have to be a good singer either.. hehe.. kitties don't care. They respond to the soothing tone in your voice.

It's amazing, I softly sing the chorus to the song 'Out Of My Head' by Fastball to them when I clip their nails. The effect is so great, they start to calm down almost immidiately.. I keep singing and petting them until they go into a sort of kitty trance and then I slowly take their paws and one by one clip the nails. They hardly struggle if I keep singing the whole time.

Maybe I'm jsut a crazy cat lady, but it works.

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awww that is so sweet! You're in good company here is you're a crazy cat person!

Originally Posted by TwoFlower

He he he.. my two young'ns don't like getting clipped very much either. They try to pull away. You know what I found is really helpful? Singing. I know it sounds weird. But you should try it if you're up for it. You don't have to be a good singer either.. hehe.. kitties don't care. They respond to the soothing tone in your voice.

It's amazing, I softly sing the chorus to the song 'Out Of My Head' by Fastball to them when I clip their nails. The effect is so great, they start to calm down almost immidiately.. I keep singing and petting them until they go into a sort of kitty trance and then I slowly take their paws and one by one clip the nails. They hardly struggle if I keep singing the whole time.

Maybe I'm jsut a crazy cat lady, but it works.

Click to expand...

Hey, my boys got their first claw clippings today and I did just that. I sang to them this very soothing song called "Let It Roll" by Devin Townsend, and they were purring by the time I was done with them. So I suppose we're both crazy cat ladies.

for those of you who don't have difficulty trimming nails - how do you hold kitty to clip her nails? my mom sets her ragamuffin on her sewing table so he's standing and goes from paw to paw - helps that he doesn't mind having someone touch his paws.

my himalayan, on the other hand, is an absolute terror when it comes to having his nails done. if it weren't so expensive, i'd take him to the groomer just to have his nails clipped!

hubby and i have to tag-team him, holding him in mid-air so he can't jump around or claw anyone. he is such the squirmer.

also, how short should the nails be? i see the pink and i know i'm not supposed to cut that -eek! - but i don't know how much nail to leave in front of it.

also, the nail just ahead of the pink is pretty wide and doesn't fit well in the clippers (i use a scissors type) so i don't cut that.

Originally Posted by lady_tiger61

for those of you who don't have difficulty trimming nails - how do you hold kitty to clip her nails?
also, how short should the nails be? i see the pink and i know i'm not supposed to cut that -eek! - but i don't know how much nail to leave in front of it.

also, the nail just ahead of the pink is pretty wide and doesn't fit well in the clippers (i use a scissors type) so i don't cut that.

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You might want to get different clippers then. Move to small dog if the nail doesn't fit well. I use cat clippers and cut just a bit above the quick. I never hit the quick, but I do get close as I don't leave much past the quick, you will get a feel for what is right for you and your cats. Her nails grow so fast, I have to do them weekly. But it never hurts her. I hold her upright on my lap while I sit on a chair, she is wrapped in a towel b/c it do them right after her bath

thanks. i'll try that.

If you hurt her, she will scream, not squirm.

THANKS!!! Tonight, hubby and I wrapped Punk in a bathtowel and we clipped his nails in RECORD time!!! Oh happy day!!! Keith sat on a kitchen table with the wrapped kitty and I took the clippers to his nails!! Punk squirrmed a little but was contained in the towel.

When we were done with Punk, we wrapped up Sneakers in the towel and clipped his nails - no prob!!! yea!!!!

Originally Posted by lady_tiger61

THANKS!!! Tonight, hubby and I wrapped Punk in a bathtowel and we clipped his nails in RECORD time!!! Oh happy day!!! Keith sat on a kitchen table with the wrapped kitty and I took the clippers to his nails!! Punk squirrmed a little but was contained in the towel.

When we were done with Punk, we wrapped up Sneakers in the towel and clipped his nails - no prob!!! yea!!!!

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Glad to hear that!!