Declawing Cat?

[MartinBKK]

Hi

I have had blind cat for a year and i love her very much. Unfortunately with her not being able to see she is constantly damaging my furniture.

I have just bought an expensive LCD tv and today i caught her perched on the top of it. I am petrified of her scratching it.

I love her a lot but i cant take her damaging my rugs, furniture and other valuable objects any longer. I want to get her declawed. I have heard mixed opinions on this as to whether it is cruel or not. My cat will never be able to go outside as she is blind so is it really cruel?

I would like to get some opinions from cat owners and suggestions as to where i can get it done in Chiangmai.

Thanks.

Edited November 25, 2007 by MartinBKK

[londonthai]

you can do it even by yourself - I did it to my kitten when it was small and scratching me. In the usa all cats are declawed and they tend to keep them inside.

Get her as well a scratching pad/rug - you might sprinkle it sometimes with a catnip.

[ThaidleHands]

you can do it even by yourself - I did it to my kitten when it was small and scratching me. In the usa all cats are declawed and they tend to keep them inside.

Get her as well a scratching pad/rug - you might sprinkle it sometimes with a catnip.

Wrong. Again.

[Major Major]

you can do it even by yourself - I did it to my kitten when it was small and scratching me. In the usa all cats are declawed and they tend to keep them inside.

Get her as well a scratching pad/rug - you might sprinkle it sometimes with a catnip.

Sounds like you are talking about clipping claws!.....declawing is a surgical procedure necessitating anaesthesia and totally removes the entire claw down to the bone. Unnecessary and inhumane IMHO. Advise OP to do some research (Google declawing) and try other methods like scratch pads/posts impregnated with catnip.....encourage your cat to use them and praise/reward her when she does. I bought a rattan chair especially for my cats to scratch, encouraged them to use it and after a short while they stopped scratching my good furniture and use the old chair.

Edited November 25, 2007 by Major Major

[MartinBKK]

I know it is widely done in the USA - i assume you are joking about doing it myself. Obviously the cat must be under anaesthetic.

[MartinBKK]

Major i have tried with the scratching posts - she doesnt use it and has ruined a lot of my furniture. I dont think its fair to have to suffer it any more. I have gone out of my way to rescue the cat and give her a lot of love. I shouldnt have to have a house which doesnt look nice though.

[Nienke]

Cats and dogs are going around in the world much more on their hearing and ol' factory senses, than on their sight. Your blind cat can perfectly learn, without eye sight, where she can scratch and where not.

Your cat has no notion about the value of your furniture and other stuff. This you have to train.

De-clawing falls under animal abuse.

I'll send you a PM with more details.

Nienke

[Patsycat]

Here in Europe we can buy a odourless spray that puts cats off certain areas of the house where they will mark or scratch. I sprayed that on furniture etc. and then sprayed catnip on the scratching post. Seemed to work. But I can't remember the name. Will try and find out.

I don't think she would scratch the tv - probably just up there for the heat if your aircon is on.

Declawing in my opinion is inhumane as well. My cat that stays in I clip her claws with the larger nail clippers, I was scared to do it the first time but my vet showed me how. She even said that if I cut them too short and they bleed just to put a bit of ordinary soap on the claw. Luckily I didn't have to resort to that!! Now the only thing she sticks her claws in is ME!!

[Smithson]

I had never heard of declawing until I read it was common in the US. Ear clipping is also common over there, although it has been illegal in Australia for decades. I wonder if declawing is done anywhere other than the US?

[Patsycat]

When I was a teenager I baby sat for an American family who had a declawed cat - But the worst was they had had their dog's voice box removed because they thought he barked too much!! The poor dog would make a sort of gurgling noise.

I think you can get your cat declawed in Europe, but I'm not sure.

[BambinA]

Being a vet, declawing is a bad idea. Too pain. A vet has to cut some pieces of bones.

I heard about the Soft plastic nail caps...Try to use it then

PS, I have got a bad experience. The Tiger needed to have be decrawed. My senior vet gave him anesthesia drug and he dead.

[Priceless]

Where I come from (Sweden) declawing is illegal and would get you prosecuted for animal abuse. Draw your own conclusions...

Priceless

[Sheryl]

First of all, declawing cats, while some people do it, is NOT common in the US. And not commonly approved of, either.

it is a painful and traumatic procedure for the cat.

Clipping the claws regulalry and using repellent sprays to keep her off specific things you don't want her to scratch are the best approaches if scratching posts don't work (and I must agree they often do not. My cat -- and every cat I have ever had -- will either not use them at all, or sue them and still scratch everything else).

The only case in which I would agree with declawing a cat is if it is a choice between that and abandonment, in which case it is the lesser of 2 evils. I have a friend, for example, for adopted a cat who had been abandoned and was close to being euthenized after 6 months in a humane shelter with no one else offering tio adopt her. My friend's living situation was such that the cat wouldn't be able to go outside, and she was unwilling to have a cat if it meant having naything in the house clawed. Now I would prefer if she would have adopted the cat and adjusted to a bit of clawing, but as I know she otherwise would not have adopted the cat and the cat would then have been homeless -- in that case, it was the better option.

They do undergo risks (anesthesia etc) for the procedure and suffer afterwards but once recovbered they get over it. However, they are then defenseless so if you do it you must make 100% sure this cat is never outside nor exposed to any person or other animal who might harm her, intentionally or otherwise.

Please try the various repellent sprays and manual nail clipping first

[BEENTHEREDONETHAT]

Just got a cat a couple of days ago. She is (I'm told) about 7 or 8 months old. Very nice and friendly. Can't go out as the dogs would get her. Live in a condo where you are not suppose to have pets, so will keep her inside or on the balcony (14th floor) for fresh air. We plan to have her neutered and thought at the same time to have her declawed. After reading this thread I am not sure what is best. She does have a go at the furniture, climbs the screens and the curtains.

Does the clipping work and how often do you have to do it? I know nothing about cats.

[Samuian]

have yourself desexed first and then you may decide to have your cat declawed - inhuman?

[Major Major]

Being a vet, declawing is a bad idea. Too pain. A vet has to cut some pieces of bones.

I heard about the Soft plastic nail caps...Try to use it then

Heard about these nail caps too although don't know anyone who has used them......check out this website: www.softpaws.com. Sound like a good alternative to declawing if they work as good as the testimonials on their site imply.