What did they do to her?!

I just laid down on the bed with Tanna (back from her spay yesterday) and every single one of her back claws are extremely short - down past the quick and covered in dried blood. It looks like a person just hacked them off, it's a clean exact cut on every claw. Her front claws are fine, so I doubt it was from trying to get out of her cage.

I never requested a claw trim, I trimmed them the night before her visit so I remember exactly how long they were. My vet called me back and said that he doesn't know what it could be - no one claims to have trimmed them. I think someone did it because she will struggle and kick you with her back claws when you pick her up...

Many vets (techs usually) 'help' by trimming their claws. We had one cat come into the shelter we were sure was declawed her claws were so short

Originally Posted by icklemiss21

Many vets (techs usually) 'help' by trimming their claws. We had one cat come into the shelter we were sure was declawed her claws were so short

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I can only hope she was unconscious when they did this - they only left 2-3mm of claw per toe. She already has some trust issues having been born feral. I don't want this lasting trauma with her. She also hates having her nails trimmed (hates staying still that long), I hope this doesn't completely ruin it.

Poor thing. I feel terrible and at fault for this. I can only hope the vet keeps asking and even if the person doesn't admit to it, that they realize that a pet's owners will know if someone has abused their pet.

Did that cat's claws all grow out fine? I'm worried that since they're so short that it might cause some lasting damage.

ETA: I take it back. She's lucky if there's 2mms left.

Poor Tanna. I hope her little paws heal OK. They trimmed Holland's nails when she went in for her dental procedure a couple of months ago. I didn't request it, but she needed it, so I didn't mind. Plus, they did a good job. They were short, but not anywhere near the quick.

They did, we had her down as a declaw and one day she smacked a volunteer and scratched her. We were sure it must have been a bite type scratch since we thought she was declawed but sure enough, there were her claws. It was about 3 weeks after (front claws).

She was semi-feral too but grew to be ok with clipping so hopefully it doesnt ruin her trust with you, if she is a kicker, I would assume they did it when she was under otherwise they wouldnt have managed without a lot of trouble

Bless her heart! I've had a cat come back with unexplained injuries to his nose and front claws, but when confronted they told me it was because my cat tried to get out of the cage. He looked like he gone a few rounds with Tyson! Wouldn't have made me so mad if they would have explained to begin with instead of keeping quiet and hoping we wouldn't notice. I hope your cat has a full recovery soon. If this was done as a well-meaning attempt to trim her nails, they should have at least let you know what happened.

Poor little baby! Hope she's okay!

Now I'm wondering if some vet offices do the back claws, specifically, as some standard procedure? (Although I don't know why they wouldn't admit to it - maybe because they realized what a hack job it was!) My sister's two male cats were neutered on Wednesday (her female was in heat so they rescheduled her) and I was at her house yesterday to watch them while sis and her boyfriend were at work. They both were the same - back claws hacked down really low, but front claws left alone (and both of them had pretty wicked front claws - they could've used a trim!). Didn't make any sense to me.

My vet techs cut Sophie's nails every time she visits, for any reason - I actually take her in sometimes just for a trim, because it's inexpensive (they only charge about $6 if you take them in for a trim) and the techs there are very good with her (whereas I usually only manage 3 or 4 claws before she wiggles away from me). They definitely trimmed her nails down when she was spayed, but it was all 4 paws, and they were neatly done.

I have seen lots of cats scar their noses trying to get out of cages, Autumn can not be caged at the vet at all, they leave her in a room by herself. Thankfully she has not had to have surgery where she needs to be in a small area where she can't jump/move too much

My vet usually does all of their claws when cats are in there, for free as part of the office visit, but not as short as they seem to do during spays. With the one I mentioned it was all paws, but I have seen short claws quite a bit with spays/neuters

They've never touched the claws on any cat I've brought in - ever. I wonder if it was a recently hired tech/assistant?
The poor girl is quivering her back legs, probably from pain. This makes me so upset because purposely cutting/damaging quicks in an extreme way is used as a form of torture to people - pets quicks are no less sensitive.

I would take pictures of the claws and send them to the vet. The person who did it might never admit to it, but they might be more careful with the next person's pet.

You need want documentation in case she gets an infection or has other issues that require medical intervention. Also ask if they have a styptic that you can put on to stop the bleeding and seal the ends of the claws. They should give it to you free since they're the ones who caused the damage.

that she heals quickly and grows her claws back so she can scratch the heck out of the vet tech the next time.

Originally Posted by GoldyCat

You need want documentation in case she gets an infection or has other issues that require medical intervention. Also ask if they have a styptic that you can put on to stop the bleeding and seal the ends of the claws. They should give it to you free since they're the ones who caused the damage.

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I plan on taking some pictures later. I need someone to take the picture while I lightly hold her foot.
Actually, it looks like someone did use a styptic on it - just that they were cut so short that there was a lot of blood and that her right claws (the worst ones) might have taken a little longer to stop.
There's blood in her tail, on her leg, and belly. Some of this could be from the spay.. but I've never had them come back with any blood on them from that. They're always cleaned up really well from spays. So I'm thinking that it was post spay, certainly because the vet would have seen the blood had it been done before he got to her.

Originally Posted by nurseangel

I've had a cat come back with unexplained injuries to his nose and front claws, but when confronted they told me it was because my cat tried to get out of the cage. He looked like he gone a few rounds with Tyson!

Wouldn't have made me so mad if they would have explained to begin with instead of keeping quiet and hoping we wouldn't notice.

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That's it exactly. Someone should fess up - or should have warned me right then at the clinic. I was there long enough getting Sherman checked - so it wasn't like I rushed out before someone could say anything. How anyone could expect an owner not to notice this sort of stuff is beyond me..

Originally Posted by strange_wings

I plan on taking some pictures later. I need someone to take the picture while I lightly hold her foot.
Actually, it looks like someone did use a styptic on it - just that they were cut so short that there was a lot of blood and that her right claws (the worst ones) might have taken a little longer to stop.
There's blood in her tail, on her leg, and belly. Some of this could be from the spay.. but I've never had them come back with any blood on them from that. They're always cleaned up really well from spays. So I'm thinking that it was post spay, certainly because the vet would have seen the blood had it been done before he got to her.

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In that case somebody obviously knew they're made a mistake. I would keep after the vet until that person admits to it, if for no other reason to let the person know there are consequences to irresponsible actions.

I'm sure you've already thought of this, but I would put a huge sign on the carrier the next time you take a cat to the vet that the claws are not to be trimmed for any reason.

She'll be back in there 2 weeks from now, or sooner depending on if anything gets infected (it's a 50/50 chance on the spay incisions). I'll definitely bring it up again. And yes, I'll even ask them to put it in the account, too, as well as nagging them about it every time a cat will be leaving my sight. I can be annoyingly persistent when I want to be.

I've been trimming animal claws since I could hold a pair of clippers - dog, cat, bird, rodent, rabbit, and reptile. (haven't trimmed hooves - though I have cleaned and packed them) I think I can handle trimming all of my cats claws myself and I know I won't butcher anyone's toes.

Oh my goodness your poor baby. I hope she recovers ok.

My vet always does a complementary claw trim any time my kitties go in for surgery. She said it was because they are under anesthesia anyway and its very quick and easy to do when they are under. I think that's what may have happened in your case, though it sounds like for you they did a horrible job.

for your kitty.

OMG that's so horrible, I can't believe they would do such a thing Keep us updated on how she heals ...

Oh, your poor girl!

How disturbing! I hope she got over it quickly. Ouch!

Ugh, I'm so sorry. Poor girl. Have you had good experiences with this vet in the past?