Claw color?

I'm pretty sure that I once read on TCS that all cats that are kept indoors have clear claws? The reason I am asking is because of the neighbors' cat that we are feeding. She is solid black and her claws are clear. Would her claws be clear if she stayed outdoors all the time? I know it wouldn't happen instantly, but I am wondering if they would change colors after a period of time? Her nails also look trimmed, though I am no expert. Our cats claws aren't trimmed and they are very sharp. Hers are sort of blunt. My theory is that the neighbors still feed her and let her in the house at night, because we only see her in the daytime or early evening. I think she comes to our house seeking extra food and attention. And she still wants in, even after the disaster that I haven't posted about.

NO ... Cat can have black, brown or white ... at least that is the assortment on my ALL indoor cats

Cat claws shed, so any change in the exterior color due to weathering outdoors would be removed with that layer. This happens more frequently in outdoor cats since they are constantly using their claws and shedding layers to keep them sharp.

I've found that claw colour reflects pad colour for the most part. Just did some cat mauling.........er..... research and Da Lip, with his pink pads, has clear claws, the kitten has brown pads and brown claws, Da Magpie has black pads and mixed black and white claws, and Jack, the barn cat who transplanted himself the other day has mixed claws as well - his clear and grey. Tippy, who is black with black pads has black claws and the rest, I am not foolish enough to maul to check

Thank you all for the information. After DH recovers from his surgery, we are going to get to the bottom of who owns this cat. She is always welcome here and is so very sweet.

Originally Posted by sharky

NO ... Cat can have black, brown or white ... at least that is the assortment on my ALL indoor cats

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I know what I'm going to say has nothing to do with the original poster's questions. But this is good to know. I noticed Midnight has 1 claw that is black. I've never seen that before on my other cats. So I'm glad to know that's normal.

I also have black and clear claws on my indoor cats. In my case they do not seem to be linked to paw pad colors because all of them have black pads, but majority of the claws are clear.

My all-black cat has clear claws, so I don't think the toe-pad color has much to do with it. I cut a lot of cat claws at the shelter and once in awhile I'll find a black cat with sort of smokey claws (they're not opaque black, like I've seen on dark-colored dogs)...sometimes it's only a couple of claws- the rest are clear.

Mostly, though, on any color cat, I see clear claws.