Is putting "pretty paws" on my cat safe? they are small rubber caps that you glue onto their claws.?

Question

They are supposed to be an humane alternative for declawing? She is a strictly indoor cat and I would never consider declawing her, but I would like to save the furniture. I have gotten her a scratching post but she eems to prefer the couch and rug.

Most animals activists agree that declawing is inhumane and I tend to agree. Would you like your finger and toenails ripped out as long as you were put under at the time?

Answer 1

Yes, it can be safe. Just make sure you get them on there good. The worst part is if she injests any of the glue. Mind you, they will only last 2-4 weeks. Thats about how long it will take her to shed the outer layer of her current nails, and the capper attached to it. She will still want to claw at things, those will simply make it a little less effective. You can get a product that is basically double sided tape that you can put on your furniture that will help save that, and/or a deterrent that you can apply to your furniture.
I would suggest the last part, because the claws won't deter her, only make it a little harder.

Answer 2

Have you tried trimming her nails? If you trim them on a regular basis she probably won't feel the need to scratch on the sofa as much and with blunt nails she won't be hooking into it. You can also put catnip on the cat post so she's attracted there and not the couch. There's also sprays that have a smell cats don't like that you could spray on the edges of the sofa.

Those nails are harmless but seem more work than they're worth. If you can hold the cat down long enough to stick on all those caps you may as well just trim the nails! Plus there's always the risk of the cat biting off and swallowing one of the plastic caps - which wouldn't be too healthy for her. Add to that cat nails grow quite quickly which means the caps would probably fall off and need to be replaced quite frequently.

PS: only a vet tech would refer to declawing as "fast and painless"!! In reality it's cruel, painful and unnecessary - the equivalent of removing the first knuckle of each of your fingers. Guess profits were down so you need more customers, eh?

Answer 3

Over the years I've had great luck (and undamaged furniture) simply by trimming my cats' claws regularly and providing multiple "good" scratching areas (i.e., proper cat posts and cat trees, sisal mats). When a new cat comes into the house, I use sticky two-sided tape or plastic garbage bags on furniture temporarily to discourage and redirect scratching. I use lots of treats when I condition cats to let me trim their claws. It usually takes a few sessions of protests, however, cats learn to tolerate the nail trims well. There are always lots of cats interacting at my house, so regular nail trims are a safety must. Here's a link to an article "how to trim your cat's claws" from the HSUS:

http://files.hsus.org/web-files/PDF/PETS_trim_cat_claws.pdf

Thank you for never considering declaw an option.

I'm sure you already know that a cat's claws are used for balance, for exercising, and for stretching the muscles in their legs, back, shoulders, and paws. They actually walk on their toes and stretch their muscles by digging their claws into a surface and pulling back against their own clawhold - similar to isometric exercising for humans. This is the only way a cat can exercise, stretch and tone the muscles of its back and shoulders. So the trick is redirecting the behavior to an appropriate spot.

As far as teaching cats where it's OK to scratch, cats don't like the feel of two-sided tape or a plastic garbage bag; you can add a few rows of two-sided tape to a chair or sofa, pull a garbage bag over a chair arm, or buy a couple of cheap plastic place mats and add a few strips of two-sided tape. Place the mats where you don't want the cat to scratch and it won't take long for your cat to learn that the chair's no fun to scratch. (Make sure you change the tape often and keep it sticky.)

Though I've never used them, I've heard positive stories from cat owners who've used vinyl claw caps called Soft Paws. I understand there is an initial learning curve/adjustment period, but for cats who have not responded well to other methods of conditions, vinyl claw caps are certainly a humane solution to problem scratching. Here is a link to Soft Paws that you might find useful:

http://www.softpaws.com/about.html

Answer 4

On no circumstances let your cat be declawed, this is a barbaric practice which is illegal in the UK and most civilised countries, that it is legal in the USA is absolutely horrific. the cat will be crippled if you do this. I do not know anything about rubber tips for the claws, but anything is better than having your cat declawed, which is a truly horrible thing to do.

Answer 5

I use regular finger nail clippers to cut the ends of the claws off on my cats. It makes the claws not sharp and solves the problem for me.

Answer 6

y dont u give ur cat something to claw at besides ur furniture. u can give it threadballs, cardboard papers, fuzzyballs or a piece of rag for it to play with. it's in their nature to claw things. it helps to strenghten its nails and a good exercise! don't stop it from doing that. poor thing..

Answer 7

as long as she cant chew them off.. then yeah they sound pretty safe. the cat might be uncomfortable when you first put them on and for a few days to come but shell get use to them and you're cat and youre furniture wont have to suffer.

Answer 8

Why would you do that? Let pour kitty keep the claws, it's what makes kitty a kitty.

Answer 9

no its not wrong..as long as shes an indoor cat..declawing isnt bad either..its fast and painless...as long as they are an indoor cat

Answer 10

LOL!! LOLOLOLOL!!!!