HeHeHe I am so sneaky..

Well Ping needed his claws clipped and usually that means a fight and screaming. Well I did it the sneaky way. Gave him some CatNip around 9pm and waited and hour for him to get real sleepy and calm. Then clipped both paws with no pulling or screaming. But the main thing is I got it done.

What things do ya'll do to make claw clipping go easier?

I try to wait till the girls are sleepy. The other day though Mooch was in a silly mood on top of her cat tree and I was able to get her back claws while she was there. She kept trying to roll and kick me in the head with her free foot though! She was being so funny DH tried to get a video, but by the time he got the camera out and going she wasn't rolling quite so much.

mine are soo used to having their nails done they just sit in my lap and let me do them without any complaints or fussing normally. velvet even holds her little front paws out (it's REALLY cute)

for the dogs- Fosters trims his own nails so i don't trim his but i do keep them filed so that they stay smooth and don't split. Whiskey- he's scared of the nail clippers- so we make it a fun thing for him ...after every nail- he gets a treat. Colin rubs his tummy the whole time- (he does better that way) and i trim the nails.

It's no problem to trim Frisco's nails. I just lay him on his back and he lies still and purrs until he's done. Then he gets a treat.

When they're in that sleepy state or just fully asleep, that's when I do it. Jiggy doesn't even open his eyes when I'm doing it and it takes me like 15 seconds, including his dewclaw. I just recently did Sophia's nails (this is the second time since i adopted her) and I could swear she doesn't have dewclaws--is that possible? And you really have to press down on her pads to get the claws out, whereas the other two, they're practically out already with no pressing hardly!

Chynna practically comes running when I get the nail clippers out. She absolutely loves getting her nails done! She's super spoiled and loves her kitty paw/toe massages that she gets when I cut her nails. Her "spa" time lasts about 1 hour and includes a good brushing and lots of chin scritches

Abby is not so fond of getting her nails done. She squirms around. No yowling or biting or scratching, just squirms because she doesn't like to be held unless it's on her terms. Usually when I have to cut her nails I have to do it when she's aleep. But she's kind of caught onto that trick

normaly i wait until eazy is laying in my lap upsdie down getting a belly rub.
then i can normaly get them all cut,

No matter what, clipping Sophie's nails is an issue. A BIG issue.

I have to wrap him in a towel and have my husband hold him still while I cut each nail and he yelps as if I'm killing him or something, while I incur many scratches and bites throughout the experience.




As soon as Lily gives birth, those nails are getting clipped because she is going through a very cranky mood swing time right now and one second she'll be purring and begging for me to pet her, the next she's ripping off my skin with her nails. Oh to be pregnant I guess.


I am always full of scratches from my furbabies......it takes a whole lot of time and patience to teach them that when I am bleeding, that isn't a good thing!

I always play with Shami's paws and rub his pads and feel around the spaces between his toes. I think he likes it because he'll spread his toes when I do it. So clipping his nails are no big deal. I just cradle him on his back on my laps and in less than 2 minutes it's done.

I think the trick is to just play with their paws from a very early age and get them used to you holding their paws and pushing their nails out.

Wearing a feisty cat out with catnip first is a good idea.

Sho could care less about what I do to him, as long as he gets a nice scratching above his tail afterwards.
Tomas doesn't mind it either but he's still a squirmy kitten, so I like to wait till he's at least a little bit tired.

Oh man all of our girls hate getting their claws clipped!! The main part is that none of them like being held. They all squirm and complain! So we have to scruff and just go as fast as we can! It's always a 2 person job as well.

I keep the clippers on my bedside table so if a kitty is in a deep sleep I do as many as I can before they notice

We actually just did Smudge and Stumpy's about 15 minutes ago - both squealed and squirmed and made it so much harder on them! Lily realised what we were doing and won't come near us

We tried getting the treats out so I could nab her while distracted, but she was watching me, and when DH held her treat out she quickly grabbed it in her mouth and ran away with it to eat it under the table.

Little bag always knows when we're trying to catch her!

I'll have to try the catnip trick....

All of your experiences have me giggling, yet shuddering with familiarity!

I, too, wait until Boo is mostly asleep (which entails me staying up until 2am!)...I've found her the most 'pliable' then.

She, absolutely, hates the process even though it's been done since she was a kitten.

All the procedures (that I've read about) that state "if done from a very young age and regularly, the kitten/cat will grow used to it" do not apply to Boo!

Snipping her nails, brushing her teeth (I've resorted to getting her teeth cleaned as her breath can be pretty rank!), etc.

The only time I've seen her somewhat 'calm' was when her former vet did it, for me (to show me how), when she was a kitten. And she was still fussing!

I've done the wait until she's dead asleep, wrapped her in a towel, cooed and talked her through it, etc. Which method works each time is dependant on her current mood (even if asleep).

But as declawing is not an option, it's something she & I suffer through!

But catnip...hmm...never thought of that! I thought catnip makes them run around crazy like? Since I've moved home (to NC) and live with my parents, I haven't given Boo any (having mercy on my parents), but I used to give her some every now and then and she would bounce off the walls! Not any worse than her 'night crazies', mind you.

Originally Posted by Boo-berry

But catnip...hmm...never thought of that! I thought catnip makes them run around crazy like? Since I've moved home (to NC) and live with my parents, I haven't given Boo any (having mercy on my parents), but I used to give her some every now and then and she would bounce off the walls! Not any worse than her 'night crazies', mind you.

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Well he does do that thats why I wait an hour. After an hour has he is pretty darn relaxed and tired. So it works.

I don't think Gizmo likes the sound of the clippers clipping his claws (wow say that 5 times lol) I can usually get one or two claws and then he goes into panic mode and it's nothing but a downhill struggle after that. Maybe I'll have to try doing it while he's sleeping. He's such a light sleeper though so I'm not sure how well that'll go.

I am really lucky with both of my guys. Both don't mind having their nails clipped. Sassy will just sit there and watches what I am doing. Linus will let me cut his but he likes to play while I do it so it usually takes longer to get his done.
The same goes for almost anything I have to do with them from giving pills to having baths.
Sassy likes baths, he is a weird cat I guess. I started bathing him the day I brought him home 15 years ago. He was only 5 weeks old and was so infested with fleas it was the only way to get rid of them. He was bathed every 2nd about 4 weeks until he was old enough have flea powder put on him.
Linus is not a crazy about baths and has only had a couple. He will sit there but he grumbles about it.

My vet tech says all she has to do it place a harness upon her kitty, and he instantly becomes boneless...