where can i get my kitten declawed for cheap?

Question

My kitten is 6 weeks old and I need to get her declawed because we have 3 small children, where can I do this for cheap. I live in west Michigan.

Answer 1

You need to have her declawed because you have 3 small children? Shouldn't this have been something you thought about BEFORE bringing something with sharp claws into your home?

Do you know what's involved in declawing? They amputate part of the cat's toes! Not just the claws. It's painful for the cat, not to mention (usually) unnecessary. Cats can (and often are) trained to behave with their claws. We adopted our first cat when our son was 5 years old. He is now going on 7, we have two cats, and neither one of them has ever seriously harmed him. It's also a good idea to teach your children how to behave with the cat. Amputating the digits of a cat just so the kids can "safely" play with it is a bit selfish. Declawing is the equivalent of cutting off your finger at the first knuckle. Sound pleasant? It's not for cats, either.

Cats use their claws for many things including marking their scent, defense, and toning their muscles. Some cats experience problems after being declawed such as becoming biters (because they feel defenseless), and refusing to use the litter box.

Please, please, please, for the love of everything Holy, do not declaw your kitten. I grew up in a declawing home, but after being informed of what's involved in the procedure, I will NEVER do it to ANY cat I may own in the future. There are alternatives.

Look here for some answers....http://www.declawing.com/ ....then I would suggest buying some sort of reference book for cats. Cats for Dummies is a wonderful book that has taught me a lot.

Answer 2

Most vets will NOT declaw a kitten this young. Also declawing is expensive. Declawing is amputation not just nail removal. It is considerable to amputating all of your fingers at the first joint after the nail. Declawing is very painfull. Kittens can be taught to use scratching posts and other appropriate scratching surfaces. Also keeping your kittens nails trimmed will help eliminate accidental scratching on humans.Having 3 small children is not a good excuse for having a kitten declawed!!
Declawing can lead to behavior problems such as litterbox avoidance and biting.
Another note a 6 week old kitten should NOT be away from it's mother and littermates. In many states it is illegal to buy, sell, adopt or giveaway any kitten BEFORE it has completed it's seventh week and in some states it must be 8 weeks old.

Answer 3

Declawing is typically not cheap because it is not seen as a "necessary" surgery, like spaying or neutering. Generally, declawing is going to run you about $80-$100, including the pain medication you will have to administer. I am not an advocate of declawing, although I understand why it is done. A six-week-old kitten's nails, however, are no sharper than pine needles and won't hurt your kids.

You can use regular nail clippers to trim the kitten's claws - just make sure you cut the tip and don't get too close to the quick - the pink part that shows through the nail - or they will bleed. Also, with the kitten being this young, it will be very easy to train her to use a scratching post. Get one with the rope wrapped around it instead of carpet - it's more durable and satisfying for the cat.

Answer 4

I agree with the previous posters who said that a) this kitten is too young to have left it's mother and b) declawing is completely unnecessary.

Isn't it funny how people can do so much more damage to animals (including other humans), and yet we don't chop off their fingers?

Trim your kitten's claws (start now while she's young and use lots of treats and praise and when she's older, she'll even enjoy it!), teach your children to respect the cat (no hitting, picking up, throwing things at, poking, and when the cat leaves, the kids will leave it alone!), and make sure the kitty has lots of appropriate scratching posts & toys to play with. Or you can get Softpaws to cover the claws.
I have 3 cats--one who has 28 claws--and I'd never ever ever have them declawed unless it was medically necessary.

Here is a link to a Michigan TV stations story about declawing: http://www.wnem.com/global/story.asp?s=478070

Here is a link to photos of the procedure (one of a few different ways): http://declaw.lisaviolet.com/declawpics.html (these are slow to load)

Please don't declaw your kitty.

Answer 5

declawing a cat is the most in-humane thing you could possibly do to it. how you would you like to be taken to the doctor and have the top half of your fingers removed just because someone was thinking it would be better? when you declaw a cat you have to remember that you are taking away that cats defense, if it ever gets out it was no way to protect itself, and it mutates that cat, puts them in big amounts of pain, changes their attitude(could make them very mean), and the claws have been known to grow back and be extremely painful. a better solution would be to by soft-paws/soft claws. you can buy either online or at petsmart. they are gel caps that you glue onto the cats claws that stop them from scratching on furniture or scratching people, they shed off with their nails every 3 weeks or so, when they fall off you put new ones on. they even come in an assortment of colors. please think about how your cat would feel before you mutilate her. she will thank you for it.

Answer 6

do not declaw!
i doubt the cat will hurt your kids at all since the cat is being raised with them from a young age (too young i might add) and will be used to them
BUT
if you're still concerned, buy soft claws. they're little covers that slip on overtop of the cat's claws. they last about a month and are only $18 for 10 months (or more, they can last 4 - 6 weeks depending on your cat.) the only thing is that you will probably have to wait until your kitten is 12 weeks old.

my mom is a veterinarian and highly recommends these! she used to vet for a kitty who lived in a senior's home and these soft claws were great! it made sure no one accidentally got clawed and that the kitty didn't have to undergo a painful surgery.

the best part about soft claws is they come in awesome colours! you can get anything from clear to green/yellow ones :D

Answer 7

Not only are you cheap, you are also lazy. Your children are in no danger from the kitten. A declawed cat will bite - a bite is many times more dangerous than a scratch.

You need to learn to trim the kitten's nails and do it regularly. You need to train your children not to maul the kitten.

It's a shame that you can get a "cute" kitten for your children's pleasure and then destroy the very nature of the animal in your home.

Answer 8

Declawing is inhumane. There are nail clippers and also nail caps that will work fine. Plus kittens can be easly taught not to scratch people. Declawing a cat is like you having part of yor fingers removed- please dont teach your children that is is OK to be cruel to animals like that!

Answer 9

Did you know declawing is illegal in most parts of the UK? Thats because its inhumane and painful for the animal. Teach your kids to treat the cat right, and the cat will treat them well in return.

Answer 10

If you are so worried about your kids being hurt by your cat, then why do you have cat? Give up your cat until your kids know how to treat a cat. or until you know better then to declaw a cat. what ever comes first