Couple cat questions?

Question

I need to get my cat fixed and we are going to get her de-clawed. How old does she need to be to get fixed? And other than her not having claws can being de-clawed affect her negatively? She is a strictly indoor cat. She is only about 10-12 weeks old.

in the case of this cat she cant get much more of an attitude she already claws people if they dont pet her

Answer 1

the cat has to be at least 2 lbs to be neutered, but most vets want to wait till 6 months before they neuter them. you can discuss the pros and cons with your vet. you deffinatly want to do it before he reaches sexual maturity because he will start spraying and once he starts doing that, even neutering isn't a 100% guarentee that he will stop. getting him neutered before he starts spraying is pretty much 100% guarentee he won't start spraying.

I would not recomend declawing. I'm sure others have told you the horrors of it so I won't go into that, but I must tell you that I work at an animal shelter and we have 2 cats there that their owners (two different people) surrendered their declawed cats to us because they couldn't handle their behavioral problems that had started after this procedure. they don't have claws so they bite, and are very ill mannered, I've gotten bit by them a few times cleaning their cages and trying to give them fresh food and water. other behavioral problem is not using the litterbox. litter hurts their feet after surgery so they associate litter box with pain so they didn't use the litter box. their owners didn't want to bother to work with them so they declawed them and then didn't want to deal with the other problems that came about so they gave them up.

there are lots of things you can do to try and correct the scratching problem. you may neeed to get a few scratch posts. have different materials for scratch posts (carpet, wood, rope, cardboard etc.) we have 2 cats and 5 scratch posts and a cat tree. and this is in a 2 bedroom apartment. you can get soft claws they are plastic caps that go over your cats claws. keep your cats nails trimmed. here is a good video of how you can do that: http://www.felinevideos.vet.cornell.edu/index.shtml

please do all you can to not declaw your cat. work with your cat teach him right from wrong, talk to your vet and see if they have any ideas on what you can do also.

Answer 2

Cat can be spayed at 4 or 5 months. Some vets won't do it as young as 4 months, but she can probably get pregnant at around that age.
There are a few problems with declawing, actually. First of all, the majority of people who get a cat end up bailing out on the 15-20 year commitment, or they let the cat out "once in awhile" and it takes off.
If your cat is behaving aggressively, don't use your hands to play with her. A cat who has been declawed gets MORE aggressive, because they feel defenseless.
Also, declawing is one of the biggest causes of litter-box aversion, and it can happen years after the declaw has been done. You see, declawing is like amputating your finger at the first knuckle. The skin will heal, but it will always be delicate and sensitive.
It's my personal opinion that cat love is "claws and all"- have you ever pressed gently on the paw pads, and marveled at the way the claws come out automatically, like little switch blades? It's a real wonder of design.
Also declawing can cause extreme sensitivity to carpet or other textured surfaces. Probably the worst part is that you're robbing the cat of a natural defensive tool. And the cat knows it. Hope this helps.

Answer 3

We rescued a cat from a shelter in Maine. Since recently losing our previous cat to an automobile, I had decided to get her declawed when we were getting her spayed. We had her spayed at 5 months, but I will say this! After seeing the pain she went through from being declawed, I would never do it again. PLUS, a month later, she was bound and determined to get outside & clawed her way though our window screen. She stays close, we've been lucky, and our current vet is against declawing anyways. Especially when it comes to having it done simply from vain owners. You may want to try those claw clovers if your furniture is an issue. Hope this helps.

Answer 4

Your cat can get it done at the age she is at now. If you bring your cat in they can do it at the same time she gets spayed. Getting your cat declawed will not affect her in any way. I have a very happy cat right now and she gives out a lot of love and she was declawed and it did not affect her in any way and she is able to do everything.
Cats that are declawed can use their litter box
play with toys
jump up and down from furniture
no balance problems
no bitting problems
no personality problems
no behavorial problems
My cat is a very happy and loved a lot. I had no problem with her when she was declawed. After she was Declawed I did not see any problem with her at all and she was still a happy cat and I have not seen any problem that people say that happens to cats that are declawed.

Answer 5

She should be at least 6 months old . About declawing her i don't think you should. i have had a personal experience with having a nice cat but after i got her declawed she wont let anyone near her. cats nails r just like dogs it wont hurt if You take them to get them cut. You can even do it on your own. i still have the mean cat but this time when i got my newest cat(hes just turning 2 years old this year) i didn't declaw him he is the sweetest cat i have owned.... hes also the only cat i didn't declaw. with the fact thats shes strictly indoor all you have to do is buy a couple of sracthing post. I personally think declawing is inhuman. it like someone taking you to the doctor and getting you nails taken off...how would you feel? Ohh!!! im not a hippie i jus dont think its right.... so there

Answer 6

My vet will spay at 12 weeks but some vets don't spay until 6 months. Please do some research on declawing[look up some websites] it's a horrible procedure. You are basically cutting off the cats toes. Why not work with the kitten and get her used to having her nails trimmed. The best time to work with them is when they are tired. Some declawed cats develop litter box issues. It's thought that the litter hurts their toes.

Answer 7

About declawing, PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE do not declaw your poor kitty. Removeing the nail on a cat is not like removing the nail on a human. When they remove a cat's nails, they have to take the first part of the toe with it too! Imagine if somebody cut all your fingers off at the knuckle after your nail. That's basically what declawing is.

Also, I know your cat is strictly indoor, but what if someone accidently left the door open, or the screen on an open window fell out or something? You cat could get lost with no way to defend herself or hunt for food! Additonally, declawing cats often results in them biting more.

Declawing causes the majority of cats discomfort for the rest of their lives. With proper training you can teach your cat to scratch only on approved areas (scratch mats, posts, cat trees, etc). There are so many options you can use for her nails. I use Soft Caps...Basically little plastic caps you glue onto their nails. My cat is really fussy, and it was still easy to do!


As for spaying her, she should be at about 6 months, before she's had her first heat.

Answer 8

Siamese and half siamese live long lives. The average lifespan with good vet care is between 16 and 20. My vet sees a lot of 22 year old cats. I have a half siamese who is 17 this year, and the other one I had made it to 20 before cancer spread in him. My siamese was 19 when he went into renal failure. The record is 35 years but that was a mixed breed cat, not a siamese.

Answer 9

I think they can be fixed at about 8 months to a year. Dont quote me on that tho. As far as declawing goes, you want to do it early as you can I got my female declawed at about 11 months and she was mad as hell for a month or so but after it healed up, she has actually been a better companion. Make sure you know that the cat will not be able to go outside at all after you declaw them as they will have no way to defend themseves against other animals.
Whatever you do dont listen to these hippies that will say that "declawing is inhumane" I caught a tone of that when I was asking about mine. Trust me, it isnt that bas as long as you do it before they get too old. They wont even notice half the time. And My furniture is still as nice as the day I got it!

Answer 10

Traditionally, vets say about 6 months. But some have done the said surgeries at 5 months old. So you still have to wait a bit in any case.

Hang in there!