should I declaw my cat?

Question

Is it true it their paws remain injured for the longevity of their life?

Answer 1

No. Don't declaw, it is like cutting off kitties fingers at the first joint. The cat we had growing up was declawed and even 10 years later you could see bloody paw prints on the bathroom counter from his declawed paws. He used to drink from the faucet.

You can buy Soft Paws. They are vinyl caps you can glue onto the cat's claws. You can get a vet to apply them if you have difficulty. I highly doubt I would be able to apply them to my cat myself.

http://www.softpaws.com/

Answer 2

If you value your possessions more than the unconditional love of your cat, that may become a serious biter after being declawed - You shouldn't have a cat in the first place. declawing is very cruel and should only be considered as a last resort. There are plenty of effective training methods to keep cats from clawing things they shouldn't. Double-sided tape works wonders when put on things they shouldn't scratch. Taping aluminum foil onto these things will help prevent scratching also. If you're worried that your cat might scratch you or a family member, don't play rough with the cat, and it won't play rough with you.

Answer 3

There are cats who are born with a desire, or even a compulsion, to exercise those little daggers on any suitable material that happens to be nearby. Veterinarians can easily list the possessions most often damaged by housecats... stereo speaker covers, couch arm rests, door frames, pool table covers, waterbed mattresses, grandma's antique quilt, and carpet corners come quickly to mind. Creative and discriminating, the housecat seems most to prefer anything on which the owner places substantial emotional or financial interest! Unfortunately for the housecat, the price for living in the luxurious and food-laden environment of modern pet households, the cat who must "work those claws" will end up in the veterinarian's office sooner or later.

The younger cats seem to heal faster than the older cats, but there really is no time limit when the declawing can't be done. If the cat is healthy and there are very compelling reasons for the surgery (such as the cat scratching the owner either out of playfulness or aggression) the older cat can be declawed, too. Many veterinarians prefer to declaw cats when they are three or four months old. These patients heal quite fast and return to active duty in a matter of days!

Of course general anesthesia is absolutely necessary during the cat declaw procedure. Most cats recover well and adapt to the declaw procedure normally. Many pet owners are vehemently opposed to declawing any cat for any reason. Their view is that it is an unnecessary stress physically and mentally on the cat. They often apply the question of "How would you like it if...?" in reference to the declaw procedure. Each pet owner really should think carefully and rationally about the need to have a cat declaw procedure done. Comfort can be taken from the knowledge that tens of thousands of declaw procedures are performed every year in the United States and elsewhere. And if there were consistent, documented probabilities of mental or physical damage subsequent to the surgery that permanently degrades the cat's life experience, no one would do it. No veterinarian would consent to doing anything that would harm a pet's emotional or physical well-being.

Answer 4

i dont recommend it. I did adopt a declawed kitty once, he was a big ol fat tabby.
Cats' claws help them climb, which is good for exercise, i think thats why mine was so fat. He didnt have "bloody" paws, I think people on here went to a really bad vet if that happened.

Declawing a cat is more like someone pulling out your fingernails and toenails. If your cat is clawing up furniture I suggest you get its claws capped. This is a good alternative, but I do know of some cats that are very uncomfortable with them.


If everyone is SOOO worried about there furniture, then they shouldnt have a cat. Couches are things, Beds are things, Carpet is a thing! A cat is a living, breathing animal. What would you do if you had a baby that vomited on your couch?

Answer 5

I'm not going to say that there is NEVER a reason to declaw a
cat.

But you'd better have a dam' GOOD reason - I've had cats my
whole life, and had them as the 'human adult responsible' for
them for well over 20 years, and I've NEVER had to declaw a
cat. I have had aggressive cats, and cats that have clawed the
heck outta furniture. The aggressive ones we trained the people
and the cat, and the ones that scratched the furniture were either
trained out of it or directed to something that was a LOT more fun
to scratch on.

So... If the question is 'to declaw or not to declaw' as a routine?
NO.
Take the money you'd spend getting the kitty declawed, and get
them spayed/neutered and a really nice scratching post/climbing
nest.

Answer 6

They all heal in a relatively short time. You don't say how old your cat is though. It's much easier to de-claw a cat when it's young. Our vet said it's more complicated when the cat is older, so you should clip the claws (like fingernails) instead. If you would rather cut them then remove them completely, your vet will show you how to do this.

My wife and I have a cat that we had completely de-clawed (all 4 paws ... she's an inside only cat) when she was about 6 months old. Her paws healed up completely in about 2 weeks. During the first week we had to keep them wrapped in gauze with a little medical tape around the top to stop the gauze from unwrapping (this keeps kitty litter from getting stuck between the pads and getting infected). During the second week, the wounds were closed and the cat pulled the gauze off by herself. She's was fine from that time on!

Animal rights people will tell you that de-clawing a cat is cruel, but they aren't the ones who have to replace the furniture they ruin with them. You shouldn't de-claw your cat if there is any chance it'll get outside 'cause the claws are their only defense. If the cat's going to be an inside cat, with no chance of getting outside, you can do it. There are differing opinions on whether you should do just the front paws or all four. While an inside cat is less likely to tear up furniture with just the front paws de-clawed, they can still do it with ther hind ones. That's the reason we did all four and our cat has never ... and I mean never ... gotten outside in 11 years!

Answer 7

I've had most of my cats declawed, and the paws always healed. But the claws never came back.

There are people who will yelp about how you should never declaw a cat- but if the cat won't use a scratching post and the choice is between declawing the cat and losing the furniture, the cat's claws go!

Answer 8

I have never had any of the cats I have had declawed. It is cruel. If the animal gets outside it can't defend itself against any preditors it may incounter and it does take away from the feeling in their paws, which makes them even more vunerable. Just get your cat a scratching post and take some aluminum foil and put it on your furniture for a few weeks and he/she will stop clawing the furnture, if this is the reason you were going to declaw the animal. I know this is going to make me out to sound like a smart-a**, but would you want your fingernails pulled out?

Answer 9

Declawing a cat IS permanent mutilation.

The actual procedure is an amputation of the last joint on each finger, because the claw itself is an extension of that joint. However, cats do recuperate from this surgery in about three days.

It is not recomended if your cat goes outdoors, because you would be rendering her defenseless against other animals.

This procedure should only be considered if you are absolutely sure your cat will NEVER go outside and attempts to train it to scratch in a designated area only have failed.

Answer 10

NEVER DECLAW A CAT!!! Most vets here won't even do it! If her clawing bothers you, keep her claws clipped, and if that doesn't help, there are claw covers you can have put on that will stop the damage without hurting the cat. I've had two cats that were declawed when I got them, and they both were very sensitive about their paws being touched even years later.