# Why don't newborn kittens retract their claws?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-newborn-kittens-retract-their-claws/728144>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [August 18, 2015, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-newborn-kittens-retract-their-claws/728144 "2015-08-18T03:44:12Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\
**Post date:** [August 18, 2015, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-newborn-kittens-retract-their-claws/728144/1 "2015-08-18T03:44:12Z")

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Kittens do not retract their claws until they’re about a month old. Until then it’s best to keep your fingers away from them because they’re pretty sharp even if they’re tiny.

Do they not retract their claws before this age **more** because:  
a. they don’t have the strength to  
or  
b. they don’t know how?

I lean towards a much more than b. Human babies wouldn’t be able to walk at 3 months old even if they theoretically knew how because their leg and back muscles aren’t strong enough to support them yet - it seems likely that the muscles in a kitten’s paws need time to strengthen too.

I could of course be completely wrong. Anyone know the truth?

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**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\
**Post date:** [August 18, 2015, 6:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-dont-newborn-kittens-retract-their-claws/728144/2 "2015-08-18T06:52:44Z")

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Ever see a kitten ‘knead’? It’s how to get mom to produce more milk.

Those are ‘milk claws’. just as they have ‘milk teeth’.

Presumably, the claws maximize milk delivery.