We have a recent addition to our family - a rather rambunctious kitten. I’m trying to avoid the brutal declawing operation by looking for a more humane alternative, if one exists. I’m not looking for a litany of why declawing is terrrible - I’m already on board that it is a terrible thing - but want to know what my best alternatives are and the advantages and disadvantages of each.
Take a look at this
My sister used Soft Paws quite successfully with her two cats.
The drawbacks: They have to be glued on, so your success or failure applying them yourself may depend on just how rambunctious that kitten is. (And where are the kitty pics?!??) My sister had them put on by a groomer, which upped the cost considerably. Eventually, she stopped using them because it stressed Nero out so much having them applied she decided it wasn’t worth it.
The other thing I’d heartily recommend is a good, sturdy scratching post covered with sisal, not carpet, and tall enough to accommodate a stretching adult cat. Reward kitty-poo lavishly whenever s/he uses the scratching post.
The good thing in my sister’s case is that, by the time she dropped using the Soft Paws, the cats were thoroughly trained to use the scratching post.
One thing I don’t recommend is the kind of scratcher that uses corrugated cardboard refills. My cat LOVES his, and consequently, I am constantly picking shredded cardboard up off the carpet.
How about keeping her claws trimmed (get one of the little kitty nail clippers at any pet supply store, they’re a few bucks) and providing ample scratching posts? Trimming claws only takes a couple of minutes and if you get her used to it early on that’ll help.
Also a little aversion therapy - keep a squirt bottle or can with some loose change in it and use that (squirt or rattle) when you catch her doing it. Give a good firm “No” at the same time and the cat will begin to associate “No” with “Stop it now or get wet/startled” and you’ll eventually be able to just use the word.
Our family tried Soft Paws but it was quite a chore getting the kitties to sit still while they were applied, and the nail caps came off one at a time and it was difficult trying to keep them all sufficiently soft-pawed.
One solution has been to wrap them (the cats, that is) securely in towels with one or the other front paw exposed, and then to very slightly trim the points from their claws with nail clippers. It is best to do this only slightly to keep from getting into the quick.
It’s probably less difficult for the cat as this procedure doesn’t take quite as long, and it’s pretty much just as effective.
We do exactly what Valgard said with our three. We just keep nail trimmers scattered through the house in spots cats are likely to sit on our laps. When we notice a pointy claw we trim it quick and get to the kitty loving. They all put up with it, but Dot had about a year when she was two or so that I had to hold her down to trim her. She grew out of it, tho.
I don’t really like kitty nail trimmers. I use this puppy, the side nail trimmer, it’s in the kit in the middle. If you can get your hands on one I highly recommend it. Great leverage and doesn’t slip out of your fingers.
You can easily make a sisal scratching post if you can’t find one. If you want directions for a simple, cheap and (I have found) effective one, e-mail me and I’ll try to explain how I did it.
To stop the cat from clawing furniture you can chop off its tail…
…right behind its ears… :eek:
Just kidding. I am a cat lover. Mine is right at the foot of my bed now…claws and all…
I’m a big fan of SoftPaws. Since they fall off one at a time over the course of weeks, I just make a habit of picking up the cat every evening, checking his toes, cooing over him a bit, and giving him a treat. That way he looks forward to Toe Check Time, and when I do have to replace one, it’s less traumatic for both of us.
I found SoftPaws more trouble than they’re worth, but that’s just me. My wife and I just trim our cats’ nails regularly and have a carpet cat condo for them to scratch. We had a sisal post for a while, but only one of our 3 cats used it. The carpet ‘condo’ is used by the two who scratch. The third doesn’t claw the furniture, so it doesn’t matter much.
I suggest that you get a feel for the boards before you post again. NO KITTEN THREADS WITHOUT PHOTOS. REPEAT: NO KITTEN THREADS WITHOUT PHOTOS!!
Aaaahhhh…that’s bettah.
Okay. We have rough cedar paneling on the walls. They’re all attracted to scratching on it. We’ve had some carpet descruction from a couple bad kittens, but for the most part, they looooove to scratch at the doorway. If you go to Home Cheapo and pick up a plank or two of rough cedar, and nail them up to a doorway, I can almost guarantee the kitties will scratch there. Good luck!
(and post some pics!)
My cat doesn’t like sisal too much, but he lurves the cardboard scratchers. His real favorite is the one in the middle of one of those ball track toys - he can’t get enough of it. So, he likes that, and I trim his claws when I think about it, but the real success has been that double sided tape stuff. When I see him finding a piece of furniture he likes to sink his claws into, I slap a piece of the tape on it and he doesn’t mess with it anymore. It also works for windowsills you don’t want them walking on. It really does work like a dream and it’s cheap and I’m sure in a while I’ll be able to take the tape off. Of course, my cat isn’t a hardcore furniture scratcher, so YMMV. (Also, he scratches weird - he doesn’t stretch to scratch.)
I second the double-sided tape. One kitty took a liking to my chair and we stuck some tape on it for a couple months and he stopped. I took the tape off and he’s still not messing with it.
They have it in strips or in rolls - I guess you could use regular office tape, but the pet store has this stuff that’s around two inches wide that works really well. The strips are convenient but I imagine the rolls are more versatile.
I keep my kitty’s front claws trimmed and he has a scratching post at the ready at all times. It works, and if your kitty is too squirmy for trimming, try getting someone to hold him/her firmly but gently, with one paw out at a time. If need be, take a short break between paws so kitty can calm down.
Another SoftPaws user here. We had a hard time at first getting the dern things on, but these days the cats are fairly resigned. We wrap the kitty in a sheet with a paw sticking out and get it done quickly.
Of course, as soon as our backs are turned, the cats go to work getting the SoftPaws off again. We have to re-cap some claws every few days. Still, it’s a lot better than the alternative. My husband is not a cat person (yet) and the SoftPaws have been a huge help in keeping the kitties from destroying things.
She’s a cute kitty.
What’s the easiest way for me to post a photo? I don’t have an account with any of the online photo sharing services.
If you’re not particularly into domesticity, you could do what Mr. Neville and I have agreed to do:
We have agreed that we will not buy any furniture that we’d be really upset if the cats damaged.
Of course, we do stuff like put glasses on the furniture without coasters, and put our feet up on the furniture…
We do clip the Neville kitties’ claws when they’re getting really sharp (or when I think to do it and manage to catch them), though that’s more so they don’t accidentally scratch us than anything they could do to the furniture.
We also have a couple of cat trees for them to scratch, and several of those cardboard scratchers. They generally seem to prefer those to the furniture. If the cats get cardboard scraps everywhere- well, that’s why we pay someone to come and clean every couple of weeks.
You have cats? Don’t want to declaw them? Then give up any idea you ever had of having nice furniture.
I trimmed my cats’ claws. Just gave them more edges. I did the tin foil/water pistol/double-sided tape/cat-off spray things. My cats laughed, and went back to scratching the furniture.
You can get nice furniture after the cats die in 15 or 20 years.