Laser Declawing

Not sure if this is the right topic to use (Cat Health), but I need some advice.

I already know that regular declawing methods are not the way to go, but was curious if anyone here had the laser declawing done on their cats?

I have been clipping their nails but honestly, I would prefer not to have to do this. I hate struggling with them and they use their back paws like weapons. lol

My vet actually will not perform any other method than laser so that is thankfully my only option. I really respect them for that as most vets will give you an option.

Just curious of others experiences and if you remember what the cost was?

Declawing is bad no matter how it is done.
A lot of declawed cats will start biting as a defense.
I am against it no matter how it is done.

Laser declawing is as bad as the "hack" method - there's no way around it.

Declawing is cruel because you are amputating the tip of their toe - you change the way they walk, the way they move. Then they have to walk on their mutilated feet.

Doesn't matter how you do it - it's wrong.

Its completly wrong, its like someone cutting the tips of your fingers and toes off just beneath the nail bed, you take away their defence, and it could lead to as said biting and possible litterbox problems

If I amputated your toes by cutting, or with laser.... would it matter?

Curious to know wether or not this is becasue you just don't like clipping their nails becasue it's inconvient or because they're damaging property? Have you tried using gloves? Mechanic's gloves are thinner but are used for heavy duty things. You could try acrylics that you or your vet can apply or you could always ask a friend to help you.

Melanie

Originally Posted by carolinalima

If I amputated your toes by cutting, or with laser.... would it matter?

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Well you don't have to be RUDE.

I was just asking a question. I guess my vet LIED to me as I asked if this amputated any part of their toes and they said no.

How about you guys give suggestions instead of being judgmental towards people?

I am not in favor of declawing, BUT, they are completing tearing up my furniture and everything in their path. I have scratching pads, trees, etc, etc, ETC and I clip their nails but they are still scratching my bed, my couches, EVERYTHING.

I have always felt as though people here were being helpful but I can take my business elsewhere and get advice from people who aren't so high and mighty.

Originally Posted by DarkImager

Curious to know wether or not this is becasue you just don't like clipping their nails becasue it's inconvient or because they're damaging property? Have you tried using gloves? Mechanic's gloves are thinner but are used for heavy duty things. You could try acrylics that you or your vet can apply or you could always ask a friend to help you.

Melanie

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Clipping is not the problem, they are just damaging things. Thank you for your SUGGESTION and not judgemental attitude.

Originally Posted by tiberius709

Well you don't have to be RUDE.

I was just asking a question. I guess my vet LIED to me as I asked if this amputated any part of their toes and they said no.

How about you guys give suggestions instead of being judgmental towards people?

I am not in favor of declawing, BUT, they are completing tearing up my furniture and everything in their path. I have scratching pads, trees, etc, etc, ETC and I clip their nails but they are still scratching my bed, my couches, EVERYTHING.

I have always felt as though people here were being helpful but I can take my business elsewhere and get advice from people who aren't so high and mighty.

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I don't think that sounded rude, she was making a good point.

Declawing is bad. Plain and simple. It should never be done unless medically necessary. It's an extremely horrific procedure and no cat should be put through it. It doesn't matter how it's done, it's wrong no matter what.

Originally Posted by tiberius709

Well you don't have to be RUDE.

I was just asking a question. I guess my vet LIED to me as I asked if this amputated any part of their toes and they said no.

How about you guys give suggestions instead of being judgmental towards people?

I am not in favor of declawing, BUT, they are completing tearing up my furniture and everything in their path. I have scratching pads, trees, etc, etc, ETC and I clip their nails but they are still scratching my bed, my couches, EVERYTHING.

I have always felt as though people here were being helpful but I can take my business elsewhere and get advice from people who aren't so high and mighty.

Click to expand...

I don't think that was rude. When I'm a vet, if someone asks me to do a declaw, I'd tell them to come back after they cut off their fingers at the first knuckle. That's essentially what a declaw does to a cat.

Originally Posted by -_aj_-

Its completly wrong, its like someone cutting the tips of your fingers and toes off just beneath the nail bed, you take away their defence, and it could lead to as said biting and possible litterbox problems

Click to expand...

Declawing is actually removing the whole first joint of the toe. I just tell everyone that when they are prepared to allow me to cut off each of their fingers to the first joint then they in turn can cut off their cat's fingers.

FWIW, this is an anti-declawing site and we wait with bated breath for the day when North America catches up with the rest of the world and bans declawing due to its barbaric nature.

Originally Posted by tiberius709

Well you don't have to be RUDE.

I was just asking a question. I guess my vet LIED to me as I asked if this amputated any part of their toes and they said no.

How about you guys give suggestions instead of being judgmental towards people?

I am not in favor of declawing, BUT, they are completing tearing up my furniture and everything in their path. I have scratching pads, trees, etc, etc, ETC and I clip their nails but they are still scratching my bed, my couches, EVERYTHING.

I have always felt as though people here were being helpful but I can take my business elsewhere and get advice from people who aren't so high and mighty.

Click to expand...

I have to confess I did not find that answer rude either. It's like me asking you if it would matter if you cut off your foot with an axe or a saw - either way the foot is cut off and the result is the same.

Cats that are declawed often develop other issues, like refusing to use the litter box because the litter bothers their feet, biting because that is their only defense. Unfortunately when those things happen, the owners take their cats to the shelter because they don't want to deal with those issues. Poor cats!

Originally Posted by tiberius709

Well you don't have to be RUDE.

I was just asking a question. I guess my vet LIED to me as I asked if this amputated any part of their toes and they said no.

How about you guys give suggestions instead of being judgmental towards people?

I am not in favor of declawing, BUT, they are completing tearing up my furniture and everything in their path. I have scratching pads, trees, etc, etc, ETC and I clip their nails but they are still scratching my bed, my couches, EVERYTHING.

I have always felt as though people here were being helpful but I can take my business elsewhere and get advice from people who aren't so high and mighty.

Click to expand...

There's no need to be defensive - to be fair, you didn't say you had a problem with the cats clawing things, and needed some ideas, you asked if laser declawing is better, which it isn't. It may be more precise, but it still changes the way they walk, loses their main defense, and causes pain. Declawing isn't just a convenient way to stop scratching, it often completely changes their behaviour, because you've removed a major part of their body.

What specifically are you having problems with? Are they deliberately scratching the bed or are their claws getting caught as they play on it? What sort of couches do you have?

Some ways to stop a cat scratching on couches is to apply double sided sticky tape to the areas they scratch - they don't like the sticky feeling, and it trains them not to scratch there. Once they get out of the habit, they should stop scratching. You can spray the couches with Feliway spray, or alternatively spray a towel with Feliway and put that over the areas they're scratching - that's known to stop scratching in appropriate areas.

When they scratch, they get pheremones from their paws onto the places they scratch, so keep going back to those places because it has their smell. You need to discourage the behaviour, and remove the smell.

Have you tried putting catnip on the cat trees to encourage them to scratch there?

Originally Posted by tiberius709

Well you don't have to be RUDE.

I was just asking a question. I guess my vet LIED to me as I asked if this amputated any part of their toes and they said no.

How about you guys give suggestions instead of being judgmental towards people?

I am not in favor of declawing, BUT, they are completing tearing up my furniture and everything in their path. I have scratching pads, trees, etc, etc, ETC and I clip their nails but they are still scratching my bed, my couches, EVERYTHING.

I have always felt as though people here were being helpful but I can take my business elsewhere and get advice from people who aren't so high and mighty.

Click to expand...

I was not being rude - I was making a point... IMO, It is not ok to mutilate a cat's feet, and by comparing to your feet, I was hoping to change your perspective on the matter.
Your toes, the kitties toes.... It is amputation, no matter the method.
IMHO I am not rude for telling you the truth, it is far better than wasting my time just telling you what you want to hear.

Please research Soft Claws.

This might be too late if the OP has left, but will throw in my 2 cents.

Declawing no matter how its done is wrong and is still mutilation. The nails and bones are removed - so the end result is the same. Laser might be quicker, but its not any better.

And yes your vet did LIE to you about the procedure. Removing the claw and bed IS amputation - no matter how you do it.

Please note rule 3 of The Cat Site rules.....

3. This website considers declawing a drastic way to curb cat behavior. A painful ordeal for your kitty we would suggest that declawing never be considered for any behavioral issue. Health issues are entirely different. It is up to you as a responsible pet owner to explore all the different options available instead of declawing. Your cat is dependant on you to make wise choices for her, and not put her into any more stress or discomfort. Please be a responsible pet owner and research this subject thoroughly. Understand that if you are pro-declaw in your posts, you will encounter opposition. Please learn more about alternatives for declawing here in our forums as well as on our website itself. Declaw - More than Just a Manicure. Hopefully those of you with claw-related problems will find solutions by spending time in our Behavior Forum.

Bea is the ultimate case of why no cat should ever be declawed. She & I went through a lot - and she was forever damaged. She suffers from renal failure, chronic UTIs, and now severe arthritis in her paws.

Bea begs you to never declaw


Many vets will not tell you it is amputating, or that it is a routine procedure. In fact, most vets perform several declaws every week...declaw is offered at the same time as spay/neuter regularly - at a discounted rate. It is hard to find a vet who doesn't declaw. Actually, in many countries declawing is illegal, believe it or not. Yet it is so commonplace in the US.

I have seen it said in these types of threads before & it is true that you will have a hard time finding any one that will agree with any type of declawing. I grew up with cats that were 4 paw declawed because that i jsut what my parents did to house cats. I have since learned what it is all about. I now have 4 kitties with all of their claws. I understand that training can be difficult. I believe someone else suggested the Soft claws. I have been using these on my kitties & they do help. I find that keeping the claws clipped short also helps greatly. It is not easy, but the more offten you clip them the more used to it the cats become.

I think it is always important for us to educate ourselves about what our kitties are going through. For so long people have relied soley on the vets, now we are learning that vets are human too. They may not be honest, or they may not know the truth.

Personally I would not declaw in any manner, but they are not my cats. I would suggest researching lazer declawing from both sides of the argument & that will allow you to make the best decision.

I have to add that in this part of the world declawing is illegal and considered as a serious case of animal cruelty. It's illegal for a very good reason!

I never said that I was going to get it done, I was asking a question and I got jumped on like I said I was going to.

I already said I am against declawing but I guess no one took time to read that.

This will be my last post and maybe a reminder that you guys should take the time and give suggestions to people and not make them feel like a child who's been scolded.

I'll figure out how to handle this issue by myself, but I thank the people who were kind enough to give me some suggestions to try.