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Advice on Trimming claws

post #1 of 15
9/12/11 at 4:07am
Thread Starter 
I am in need of some opinions on trimming my kitten's nails. He's 5 months old and I adopted him from the local humane society where they kept his nails trimmed. I decided that it would be the easiest for everyone just to keep them trimmed down. Especially since by boyfriend, who is inexperienced with cats, is afraid of getting bad scratches. (lol he's seen some of my battle scars from when I lived with my parents and their cats.) My plan is to keep an eye on his nails and when they start getting sharp points on them again to just clip the tips off. My main concern is at least at this point in time, I'm being cheap and not wanting to buy an actual cat nail clipper and currently I'm using a small pair of human nail trimmers.
They aren't causing my cat any discomfort and depending if I trim his nails when he's sleepy, he doesn't seem to mind the process.
My main question is if its alright to use human nail clippers as long as it doesn't cause him any discomfort and as long as they are making clean work of his nails (not leaving the frayed or rough looking)?
Please let me know your thoughts on the matter.
Thanks!
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post #2 of 15
9/12/11 at 4:13am
As long as you can see to make a good, safe cut, human nail trimmers are fine. I use a little pair of nail scissors that I got at Petco or WalMart or some such thing, for about $5. On any given day at the shelter, I probably trim the claws of 10 or more cats. I've used nail clippers, but they're not as fast or as controllable as the scissors, for me.
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post #3 of 15
9/12/11 at 4:19am
Thread Starter 
Yeah, eventually I will be getting actual clippers meant for cats. Just at the moment, we're having to really watch our budget. We just moved out mid August and we honestly weren't planning on coming home with a kitten when we visited the shelter last tuesday so between the adoption fee, basic kitten supplies (cat box, litter, food, toys, cat tree/scratch post), and the $200 pet deposit at our apartment, our buget is a little stretched at the moment and since I figured as long as I'm careful, human nail clippers should due for now.
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post #4 of 15
9/12/11 at 4:30am
You're fine with the human clippers and Chacho is too cute.
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post #5 of 15
9/12/11 at 10:26am
I've tried two different types of "cat claw trimmers" and neither of them have been as easy and effective as simple human nail clippers.
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post #6 of 15
9/12/11 at 10:40am
We have used them before when we have misplaced our kitty nail clippers. But I make my hubby do it LOL. I figure I feed and water and comfort said kitties 24/7 the least he can do is trim their nails
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post #7 of 15
9/12/11 at 1:30pm
Thread Starter 
Lol I should make my boyfriend trim Chacho's nails. Of course he's paranoid about hurting him lol. This is the first cat he's ever had so he's unsure of himself
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post #8 of 15
9/12/11 at 7:08pm
I've never used anything but human clippers.I use the big ones as I can hold on to them better,but they do a great job for me.Never have had a bloody toe yet!I clip mine down quite a bit,not just the tips.I also have a scratching post I made from an oak log and a square scrap of 1 by 12 pine.I scarfed the log with the bark on it from my neighbor...I think it's probably a little over a foot long,and on the flattest end is where I nailed the board with a couple of pretty long nails.The board is the base and I flipped it over.It sets in the corner of my livingroom,and some have used it and some not.The last one I had they clawed all the bark off ,which is when I made the new one.Took the used log back to the neighbor...all were happy
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post #9 of 15
9/12/11 at 10:23pm
I used to use human nail clippers, until I was gifted a pair of the small angled scissors with the half circle indents at the end. I find it much easier to make sure I'm not hitting the quick, which in turn enables me to take off more of the tip than I'd feel comfortable with using regular clippers. I can wait longer between trims this way.

But hooray to you for adopting an unexpected furbaby! Definitely worth using regular clippers for a while to have a new addition.
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post #10 of 15
9/12/11 at 10:31pm
Thread Starter 
I'm glad that I'm not the only one who has used and/or is still using human clippers on their cats' nails. I think once I get more confindent on my nail clipping skills, I'll start trimming a little more than the tips. I just want to get a little more efficient at it first before I do.
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post #11 of 15
9/13/11 at 8:10am
I trim my cats nails on a bi-weekly basis. I normally ask somone to hold her and I take the clippers quickly to all of the nails. Normally the back ones arn't as sharp as the front ones.

Jasper is fully trained to expect this and allows it with very little fuss. I have been cutting his since he was about 12 weeks old. Audrey on the other hand faught a bit her first trimming but she is an older cat that has never been trimmed before.

What I do is when somone is holding the cat take the paw and press on the pad so the claws are extended. Start on one side and go all the way to the other not forgetting the Dew claw. Don't worry if a nail layer comes off with it, Cats nails shed layers as they grow. I normally use the large human toe nail clippers.

As Jaspers nails are clear he is easy to do without damaging the quick, Audrey on the other hand has black nails. In her case I just take about a millimeter off hers which is basically just the point and a bit.

If I don't have anyone to hold the cat I wrap them in a blanket and do the exact same thing.

Good luck with the trimming, soon it will be comfortable for both you and y9our cat.
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post #12 of 15
9/13/11 at 10:45am
Quote:
Originally Posted by TheMBCat View Post
I'm glad that I'm not the only one who has used and/or is still using human clippers on their cats' nails. I think once I get more confindent on my nail clipping skills, I'll start trimming a little more than the tips. I just want to get a little more efficient at it first before I do.
I used to absolutely dread nail clipping time... I live alone so I never had anyone to hold Holland for me (not that she would allow that anyway... ). When I first adopted her, I tried several different methods, and what I found to work best for me was to actually hold her by her scruff IN MY MOUTH so I had two hands free for clipping.

Once she got used to it and realized that it was going to happen whether she liked it or not, she was more comfortable with just being held. Now I can hold her under one arm like a football and use both my hands to clip. She may struggle a bit, but generally she lets me do it without a fuss. If she's still, it takes less than a minute to clip all four paws.
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post #13 of 15
9/13/11 at 2:52pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mystik Spiral View Post
I used to absolutely dread nail clipping time... I live alone so I never had anyone to hold Holland for me (not that she would allow that anyway... ). When I first adopted her, I tried several different methods, and what I found to work best for me was to actually hold her by her scruff IN MY MOUTH so I had two hands free for clipping.
Hah that's great! That sounds like something people in my family would do. Luckily Chacho is pretty good about me clipping his nails. He just won't hold still unless he's tired at the time.
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post #14 of 15
9/13/11 at 3:31pm
I have a cat who requires eye drops every morning and gets treats when she's done. Because the other cats also want treats, they now get a nail inspection every morning and I trim the ones that are getting long. They are all fantastic at waiting patiently while I extend each nail.

As long as your clippers do a clean cut, I see no problem with using them.
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post #15 of 15
9/14/11 at 1:09pm
I have always preferred human clippers. I can't see as well with the animal clippers so am not comfortable using them.
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