declaw or don't

[sharky]

Please do not UNLESS medically nescessary for the cat... I have an immune disorder that a basic scratch could be deadly but all five of mine have claws ( I do teach and take proper measures when scratched to avoid life threatening moments)

 

[marycat]

Please don't declaw your kitty. Both my cats aren't declawed but I use a toenail clipper and just clip the points off their claws at least once a week or every two weeks. I have a scratching post for them, which they use, and I have used double sided sticky tape on some of my furniture and they don't touch it.
It's so cruel and mean to do this to cats.

 

[kscatlady]

I hope she comes back!

 

[taryn]

I had to have one of mine 10 years ago declawed due to issues with her attacking full on claw severely enough that we(myself and my now ex-husband who was my boyfriend at the time) required stitches. We worked on this for around 2 YEARS trying everything before we ran out of options and it was either declaw her or have her put down. She was ok once declawed but she is the exception not the rule. Declawing most often makes all behavior worse and makes the cat more likely to bite, refuse to use the litterbox, not to mention causing the cat horrid pain. The vet made sure we knew every gory detail of what declawing was(even though we already know) and if there was any other choice Spaz(RB) wouldn't have been declawed but we were out of options.

It sounds like you haven't even thought about options or tried anything. Attitude and Nuts are not declawed and won't be unless they have issues like Spaz or some medical reason for it to be done. We have 4 different scratching posts(one works just fine, we just happen to have more since we had 3 clawed cats before

Maude

crossed the bridge) that they use and if there is an issue in the future with them scratching inappropriate things I'll get them some soft paws until they quit. I did that when they first came inside and turns out they didn't even need them, they knew where to scratch(and they both came in from living an entirely outside life where they could scratch anything they wanted to, I know because from 4 weeks on they and their siblings there were 9 kittens total lived on our front porch.)

There are too many options please don't declaw your kitty, it isn't worth it. If I had had any other option for Spaz I would have taken it. I agonized over having a cat that had to be declawed declawed.

Maude was a very large clawed very mean cat. It took over 2 years before she would even consider letting my son Bobby touch her without hissing and trying to strike him(she couldn't have scratch him her claws were kept clipped.) Trust me they learn quick to not mess with the cat when it doesn't want to be bothered. Just clip the nails and there will be no problems. Trust me I have had to bathe Attitude and Nuts and if their claws are clipped I don't get a scratch, they claws are too blunt to do anything. Also, never ever EVER declaw a cat that goes outside. I won't even clip my outside cats claws and wouldn't clip Attitude's and Nuts' if they went outside(they have no desire to.) I will say that I prolly wouldn't let a cat with soft claws out either but I saw Attitude climb a tree no problem wearing them(she door dashed on me.)

Taryn

 

[wellingtoncats]

Originally Posted by kscatlady

I hope she comes back!

Me too - I mean I can understand getting upset when posters come on and say "I'm GOING to declaw because XXX" but this poster just asked.

This is awesome, the awareness is there and I think Nat's post totally summed it up.

Thanks to the original poster for coming on and asking - you've recieved the facts regarding declawing so I wont harp on about that, instead I want to see photos of your little kitty

 

[kscatlady]

Yes! She definitely deserve credit for not just doing it, but looking for answers first. I just hope she takes our advice.