Declawing

[Josh]

Pros and cons please. I have a 3 year old F Sav. She likes to play hide and seek and jump at your feet whie walking by and likes to swat as you walk by for no reason. She has brought blood a little by doing this to everybody except me. Niece, Nephew, GF, parents etc.... Plus you could be petting then all of a sudden turn and get you. I tried spray bottle, putting stuff to keep her from hiding but she's a Houdini. Anyway any behavior changes after declawing only the front will get done. Thanks

 

[Trish Allearz]

Pros- they lose their claws and cannot claw your furniture.

Cons- most breeders have a contract that is anti-declaw.
Declawing can cause behavioral issues- this one, I think is more so hype- that the cats will bite since they don't have claws, but it's something that is definitely brought up in declaw discussions
Declawing can cause litterbox issues as your cat ages- THIS, I do believe. My two oldest are front paw declawed (domestics) and they are much more likely to pee outside of the box then my other altered cats. The theory is that they are more prone to arthritis in the paws as they age and they don't like the feel of litter under their paws.
Declawing is actually REMOVING the last digit of their paws- it is not simply pulling out the claw...

Frankly, I think declawing is silly UNLESS there is a medical need for it (sorry- antideclaw peeps- I do think that at times, people need to worry about theirselves and some people- particularly seniors- cannot be clawed up by a particularly silly kitty). This is NOT the case for the most part- most people chose to declaw for vanity's sake- for their furniture.

 

[Dantes]

She likes to play hide and seek and jump at your feet whie walking by and likes to swat as you walk by for no reason. She has brought blood a little by doing this to everybody except me. Niece, Nephew, GF, parents etc.... Plus you could be petting then all of a sudden turn and get you.

The minute she seems to "turn" you need to ignore her. Ignoring is the best way to tell a cat you're pissed. No contact, no talking to her, if she was on your lap and then starts to claw for too much petting you immediately stand up and walk away.

It's possible she doesn't realize she's causing pain, so make sure you squeal Ouch! loud enough to startle her. Another technique I used in the past is when she bites or scratches to bite or scratch her back. You need to be careful with this though.

Training your cat is the best way to love her. Declawing her is cruel and inhumane, unless you're prepared to have your fingers removed too.

And trimming her nails will really go a loooong way to preventing blood. This is what I use:

 

[Dantes]

Dremel Nail Grooming Kit

 

[Kristin]

You can also buy nail covers from the pet store that last about 6 weeks. It might help you in the training process so you aren't getting scratched while training

 

[Jacq]

My Chuju has the same behavior, and i tell him no and push him off the couch, or my lap. A couple of minutes later, he's back up purring and much nicer.

 

[WitchyWoman]

Amazon Prime + Dremel = happy Deborah. I have one that isn't cordless but going to the cats rather than taking them to the Dremel will be more convenient.

Thanks for posting that Dantes.

 

[Cathouse1]

I use large nail clippers on Loki, and it was easier than I thought it would be. The big silly looking ones, easy to grip while holding him. He doesn't really mind, one paw, break, other paw. Don't bother with the back ones.

 

[Josh]

Thanks for the info. She doesn't do it to me because I do swat back or push her away. We do ignore her but she always runs into my bedroom when someone goes in and gets under the bed. Then swats as you walk around. I think she rough plays but everybody can't, I have to put her up when company comes or my GF dog. Can't stand the chihuahua she growls and squalls but my parents dog about same size she just looks at her and chases. As for trimming can't do nothing with her she squirms and gets away. At the vet they have to give her a local before doing anything. It was just us for 2 years but now more people involved do I'm thinking she doesn't like change and is territorial

 

[jungle boy]

The minute she seems to "turn" you need to ignore her. Ignoring is the best way to tell a cat you're pissed. No contact, no talking to her, if she was on your lap and then starts to claw for too much petting you immediately stand up and walk away.

It's possible she doesn't realize she's causing pain, so make sure you squeal Ouch! loud enough to startle her. Another technique I used in the past is when she bites or scratches to bite or scratch her back. You need to be careful with this though.

Training your cat is the best way to love her. Declawing her is cruel and inhumane, unless you're prepared to have your fingers removed too.

And trimming her nails will really go a loooong way to preventing blood. This is what I use:

When my kittens scratched me, I would squeal and say ouch and it worked very well!

I can't bear to think about amputating a kitties toes at the first digit. And it IS amputation!