Soft Paws!!

homemommy · Jan 5, 2011

I just got two new kittens and I also have two little girls, 6 and 5. As you can imagine, my girls just love them and want to play with the kittens all the time. But my girls got scratched, one on her face and I would NEVER declaw, so I looked on the net and stumbled onto Soft Paws. I was highly sceptical that they would work, but lo and behold, my kittens have no idea that their nails have been done!!

I wrapped each of them in a blanket, like a burrito, and Charlie, the boy kitten, actually purred the whole time his were being put on!! Lola, his sister, was a little harder. She squirmed and hollered the whole time, but I did eventually get them on her front paws. I didn't do the back claws on either of them so they could still get a good scratch if they needed to.

They look so cute with their "manicures"!!

I've heard that some cats chew them off, mine haven't yet. They are fairly inexpensive and certainly worth a try!!

heathen · Jan 5, 2011

Oh I love claw caps!!! I've used both Softpaws and Kitty Caps brands, both are rockin'.

My little Munchkin wears them, since she's going to be a therapy cat someday and she does have claws, so I'm acclimating her to them now...and I've used them one time or another on all my cats. Only one of my kitties has issues with them...my little Persian, Yvaine, has figured out how to get them off...she hooks a lower canine tooth under the edge and flips them off, ha! She can get a whole set off in about ten minutes.

Still, overall I love these things, I always tell people to try them before resorting to declawing.

Aaaand I won't lie, seeing my little Ember with sparkly pink claw caps that match her little sparkly collar makes me just about die from cuteness overload.

ducman69 · Jan 5, 2011

We tried it, it was a disaster. How any one person would be able to put these on a lively kitten is beyond me, and they better have health insurance.

I bet if the kitties were more cooperative and mellow, then the application might have been better as well, but for my kitties they fell off at random times and overall didn't last the expected 3 weeks.

The other hazard with these that you will encounter is that if one of them DOESN'T fall off after 3-4 weeks as it didn't on one of Buttercup's middle claws (was funny when licking paws looked like she was flicking you off heheh), there will be a gap between where the cap ends and the root.

This forms a harpoon |--> like that.

On my fabric office chair, she got a claw stuck and was beginning to panic when I noticed what had happened. The soft paw pierced the woven fabric, but then closed by the gap, and so couldn't be pulled back out. If I hadn't been there, she might have torn a claw off thrashing.

Very dangerous, so plan on them lasting two weeks if your cat doesn't bite them off, and then take small scissors and cut them off and apply new ones.

They do work though and look super cute when on, but its one of those your mileage will definitely vary things:

homemommy · Jan 5, 2011

Wow, that sounds kinda scary!! Sorry they didn't work out for you. I couldn't believe I was able to put these on by myself, but wrapping them up with one paw out did the trick for me. One other problem I encountered was the glue sticking to my fingers, but I have heard putting hand lotion on first helps. I will try that next time. My kitties are himi's and keeping the glue off the fur was hard also. I couldn't get one soft paw on the side of Lola 'cause she moved before i could get the cap on good and the hair got caught in the glue. So I had to cut her fur to expose the claw. It's defiantly not fool-proof or without it's problems, but it is a good solution. I think they're great so far!!

Originally Posted by Ducman69

We tried it, it was a disaster. How any one person would be able to put these on a lively kitten is beyond me, and they better have health insurance.

I bet if the kitties were more cooperative and mellow, then the application might have been better as well, but for my kitties they fell off at random times and overall didn't last the expected 3 weeks.

The other hazard with these that you will encounter is that if one of them DOESN'T fall off after 3-4 weeks as it didn't on one of Buttercup's middle claws (was funny when licking paws looked like she was flicking you off heheh), there will be a gap between where the cap ends and the root.

This forms a harpoon |--> like that.

On my fabric office chair, she got a claw stuck and was beginning to panic when I noticed what had happened. The soft paw pierced the woven fabric, but then closed by the gap, and so couldn't be pulled back out. If I hadn't been there, she might have torn a claw off thrashing.

Very dangerous, so plan on them lasting two weeks if your cat doesn't bite them off, and then take small scissors and cut them off and apply new ones.

They do work though and look super cute when on, but its one of those your mileage will definitely vary things:

darkmavis · Jan 5, 2011

I think Soft Paws are great. I used them Genever for a few months, but then she got sick of them I guess, because she'd bite them off within a day or 2. So I just gave up, and really, she doesn't scratch furniture or us much at all. And when she does, it's not bad, because I am good about keeping her claws trimmed. She's one of those rarer cats that you can do anything to and she's ok with it, so it was a breeze to put the Soft Paws on her, and it's equally easy to trim her claws now. There were a few times when a cap wouldn't come off for more than 4 weeks or so, all I had to do was clip the very end of it, and that kind of loosened things up and it came off (or was more likely chewed off

) soon after.

Good luck with yours!!

catbehaviors · Jan 5, 2011

I've never tried soft paws (Wessie really doesn't scratch that much), but I have heard good reviews of them. Good luck on using them on your kitties!

ducman69 · Jan 6, 2011

The real problem, and hence perhaps problem with a proper application that might have lasted longer, is that even though Buttercup was in a burrito wrap of sorts with two people, she would wait until the instant the cap touched her extended nail and then yelp and jerk her whole body. So you had to be quick, or else it just ended up sticking to your own finger, heh.

Wesley was more mellow and easy, but he chewed on his a lot. More glue would probably help too, but you have to be careful not to get TOO much or else it goes on the cuticle part or gets on fur which gets stuck to the claw, and then when they try to extend the claw it pulls the hair and causes discomfort until its torn out.

my4llma · Jan 8, 2011

I love the Soft Paws, their so cute!!!! I like the variety of colors. Midnight doesn't like them, and he always manages to get them off. Luna doesn't mind them, she keeps hers on

riffxraff · Jan 10, 2011

when we got jericho we got him soft paws, and we put them on when he sleeps. they worked GREAT! we love them, i was just saying how i need to order more because he has become kneed crazy and he only wants to do it on bare skin..which reallllly hurts lol. when we put new ones on he will lick around them, but he's never chewed on them before. he doesnt even realize theyre on anymore

sakura · Jan 24, 2011

It took me a while to get the hang of them, but I love them. Putting them on Henry is pretty traumatic for everyone, though. Chloe once had a Soft Paw stuck on something (I forget what), it was pretty scary.

andrea1 · Mar 20, 2017

Vet tech put Soft Claws on my 22 month old cat yesterday. He refused to walk afterwards. Took him home and he started biting and pulling at the caps on his hind legs. Vet tech suggested putting on an E-collar for a couple of days to deter is possible removal of caps and let him get used to the feel of the caps. He hates the E-collar, won't eat.. Didn't eat after vet visit w/o the E-collar: either) and today he is still immobile w/ lack of appetite. tomorrow evening, Monday, I will take off E-collar, but knowing my kittie, I think he will continue to bite and yank at he caps. I work during the day and can not be here monitoring his adjustment. I need some help here, please.

andrea1 · Mar 20, 2017

P.S. It's Monday PM, the E-collar is off, and he is biting and tugging on the caps, front and rear, to remove them. Back on goes the E-collar. This is a nightmare.....

Willowy · Mar 20, 2017

I'd let him bite them. They stay on pretty well and he won't hurt himself (well, probably. Keep an eye on him). If he does pull one off you can reapply it. Every cat I've tried them on bit them for a day or so but gave up after a while.

Why does he have them on the back claws? That's pretty unusual I think. Most of the time they just go on the front.

orange&white · Mar 20, 2017

I looked at them about a month ago and the user reviews looked like about 80% positive and 20% negative. Within the negatives, there are a lot of damaged and wounded paws and expensive vet trips to have the tips removed. Personally, they look like they can easily be seen by some cats as cruel torture devices if misapplied and cause psychological damage to the cats who are physically injured by them. But 80% of people seem to like them at least at first so there is a 4 out of 5 chance of them working out well. Not good enough odds for me. I decided to pass on them and only torment my cat by the Sunday afternoon "attacks" I perform with a standard nail clipper.

That's enough agony for me and the cats.

andrea1 · Mar 20, 2017

Willowy,

You are the first person on many blogs to say the caps stay on pretty well. On this and other sites, pet parents are complaining that their kitties have been successful in biting thru the caps and tearing them off. Some say they're reverting back to weekly nail trims. This is not practical foe me. The other thing you said that was encouraging was that after a day or so, they gave up! Besides this, did you do anything to deter the biting? Chili powder on nails,etc?

They are on his rear nails because he is a tree climber kittie; loves to climb on me and has damaged some nice shirts. Also, when he is on upholstered furniture, he digs in his rear and front nails to propel himself upwards. Vet tech and pet parents report using them on front and back if indicated.

Thank you for a glimmer of hope.

Andrea1

andrea1 · Mar 21, 2017

Orange and White,

As you might have read, Willowy gave me some hope that maybe over time my kkittie will stop biting and yanking at them. When I get home tonight, I will take off E-collar and TRY to be tolerate as he does his thing. Posts on the Cat Site report that cats can bite through the material and pull of the caps. I paid the vet tech to clip nails slightly and then apply the caps, so I have an investment in them working.

I once cut too close to the nail quick on a former cat and he went wild, so I take this kittie to vet tech every 5-6 weeks for trimming. Damage to my clothing and most of all, my nice upholstered furniture has got to stop.

Thank you for your input; much appreciated.

Andrea1

orange&white · Mar 21, 2017

Andrea,

My comment was just a generalized opinion based on my observation. Not specifically about anyone's particular experience, but more a culmination of everyone's.

I do hope that they work out for you since you've invested so much.

andrea1 · Mar 21, 2017

Yes, O & W, your intent was clear

..I'm hoping for the best

Soft Paws!!

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