Soft Paws.....de-clawing alternative?

Question

Does anybody have actual practical experience using these?
Here is my situation. We have 3 adult indoor cats. We didn't have them de-clawed when we first got them because the breeder we got them from "frowned upon it". I know....that was our mistake....they are our cats, and we should have, but we didn't. Now, we are faced with wanting to buy (nay--needing to buy) new furniture, but I don't want to spend big bucks only to have them destroy it yet again. I found out that it's going to cost us approximately $150-$200 per cat, which totals $450-$600 before we can even think about the cost of furniture. Soft Paws seems like a viable alternative, BUT I need to know from someone who has used them.....Are they easy to put on? Do the cats actually LET you play with their claws that long? How long do they actually last?
I just keep thinking that at $20 per cat for a 4 - 6 month supply it would be more cost effective to just have them de-clawed and be done with it. What would you?

Answer 1

I am a vet tech and I just got my kitten declawed because my apartment required it. My cat did fine! He never limped once. We use the surgical laser to declaw (so no bandaging required) and hospitalize for 2 nights to keep them from jumping and playing too much.
Declawing is more controversial in older cats since they are usually bigger and heavier, therefore more weight on their feet. I have seen a few of our clients use the soft paws on their older cats, and they seem to like it ok. They last as long as it takes the nails to start to grow out.
Some people do it themselves at home, but we do have several clients who come in and we trim the nails and put the soft paws on for them, since they have a hard time holding the cat still.
There are several products that are supposed to keep animals away from furniture (hormone sprays, sticky things etc), or providing scratching posts could help, but there is no guarentee except declawing. Talk to your vet or vet tech and see what they recommend. They may have some products their clients have had some success with. Good luck!

Answer 2

I just put soft paws on all 18 claws of a kitten on Friday. It took us about 10 minutes...there was one person holding the kitten, one person filling the soft paw with glue, and me putting the soft paw onto the claw. They're easy to do as long as the cat holds still. Rarely a cat will need to be sedated to do the job right. They last for about 4 weeks.

Of course many people think declawing is cruel and that's a personal decision to make. If you want to go that route talk to your vet about all the possible complications first (infection, nerve damage, anesthetic risk, etc). Also by having your cat declawed you must be committed to always keeping them indoors.

Another thing to think about is that some cats, after learning they can't use their claws for defense/play type activities start to bite to compensate.

Good luck. Try the soft paws first, I'd suggest 2-3 months, before deciding to declaw.

Answer 3

I have not tried the soft paws- but i have heard that they are a hassle to get on the cat (especially since you have adults).
Have you tried cat furniture? At all the pet stores there are houses and all these things you can buy for a cat- our cats know what furniture is theirs, and which ones not to scratch.
Also- I would recommend the scratching posts- our cats use it all the time- and NEVER on the furniture. (I have 4 cats- one declawed and 3 not).
we do have one cat that was declawed (we didn't- my dad did when the cat lived with him) and he uses the furniture also to 'scratch'
Cats within their claws have a special "scent" that is distinctive to themselves. Which is why they are scratching everything- to put their scent on it. When another cat smells the other cats scent- they scratch over- making theirs the top one.
Good Luck finding an alternative!

Answer 4

I have never used the soft paws things, but I will say, Declawing your cats should be a last resort. DO NOT declaw them unless they are house cats, because if they are declawed and they go outside, they have NO way to defend them selves if they are attacked by a dog or a strange cat. Have you tried to get hem to use a scratching post? There are many training methods available to keep he cats off your furniture altogether. Dr. Foster and Smith magazine has a load of stuff for situations like this... Good Luck!

Answer 5

I have friends that swear by them on their Persians, but I always found them to be too expensive, and my cats wouldn't sit still long enough to put them on. Between the expense and the effort, I gave up on Soft Paws and have found other alternatives!

Because it is so expensive to get the cats declawed (and would be quite an adventure having three heal from it at once...the litterbox issue alone would be a nightmare), I would suggest that before you replace the furniture, you should put something on the furniture that discourages them from scratching (maybe something like double sided tape or aluminum foil...just experiment until you find what works) then train the kitties to use a scratching post or scratching box. For the kittens I foster, I bought this one (http://www.amazon.com/Omega-Paw-SBE-Scratch-Everest/dp/B000GLR8IU/ref=pd_bxgy_k_img_b/105-3115899-6878060) and they LOVE it. I also have carpeted scratching posts for them, but they definitely like the scratch box better (which is fine by me because it's a lot cheaper!)

To teach them to use them, don't pick them up and move their paws to make them scratch the box or post. That just scares them away from it. It sounds silly, but I just run my fingernails along the post to show them what to do, and they usually catch on within a few days. If they don't seem to respond to it, you might have to experiment a little to see whether yours like scratching posts/boxes that are vertical or horizontal, and what material they prefer (carpet, cardboard, sisal rope, etc) (My cats/kittens have never liked the sisal scratchers.) Some cats prefer one over another, so it might take some time and patience to find what works best for all three. The good thing is that once you've found what works, you can buy new furniture without the fear of them tearing it to shreds!

Good luck!

Answer 6

I don't believe in declawing...I've seen it done and it is SO cruel that I will never get a cat declawed ever! But anyways, I have never personally used soft paws but I think it's worth a shot.

I have 3 cats and they have these things called super scratchers at the pet store that are inexpensive it's basically a flat cardboard box w/ more cardboard inside for them to scratch on. Even my cat who won't touch a scratching post loves this thing. It's a cheap way to keep your cats amused and for them to satisfy their need to scratch. I have several of them throughout the house and my cats never touch our furniture because they love these things so much. I would get a bunch of those and try the soft paws. Good luck!

Answer 7

Alternatives for scratching would be your best idea. Keep in mind that different cats like to scratch on different things. Some cats will love scratching corragated cardboard while others like carpet. Try out a few different things. Since you know your cats like scratching furniture you might want to find something with a fabric that closely resembles your furniture. Spraying them with water might help while you train them to scratch on something else. You could also try rewarding them with treats when they scratch in the correct place. My cat gets a treat every time I clip her nails and it gets easier every time I do it. I had her front claws removed when she was spayed as a kitten. She was having surgery anyways and it was only like $20 more to have her declawed. She didn't seem any worse for the wear and we left her back claws in for defense etc. So she doesn't bite as defense and doesn't scratch furniture. Just a suggestion for furture cats.

Answer 8

Why would you want to hurt your pet so you can have nicer furniture? Thats just cruel and nasty. Cats arn't stupid, and they can be trained to scratch on something else - perhaps you should have looked into this, rather than to disable the cat. Try softpaws - I've never heard of them, but they sound like a great idea. Whether or not your cat will tolerate them? Wait until your cats are relaxed and play with their feet. You'll see what they do.

If that doesn't work for you, the smart choice isn't to decapitate the cat for your own sake, but to spend some time with your cats and teach them that scratching the couch isn't on. Buy them something else to scratch and a spray bottle. Spray them when you see them scratching (you're furniture is already gone, by the sounds of it, so you've got nothing to lose.) and then take them calmly and put their paws on their scratching post. If they scratch there by themselves, give them a treat.

Answer 9

I'm so glad you never had them declawed. How they declaw a cat is that they actually cut off the tips of the cats' fingers to what would be the first knuckle. It's cruel and no matter what the vet says, it's painful for the cat.

I have never owned a cat since my brother is allergic, but most cats would probably be nice and would allow for you to put on the soft paws.

Answer 10

Well Miss Cost Effective, did you consider the price of your cat's welfare in your figures? People like you should just hang a nice picture of a cat on the wall and then you can look at it without worrying about it's living creature features. Declawing is for lazy people who don't want to take the time to train their pets and would rather mutilate it as get up off their bum and take kitty to the scratching post. I have trained all my 5 cats to posts and my furniture is fine. It takes patience and consistency. You have to take kitty there every time you see her clawing anything but the post. That means you might miss 5 minutes of Lost or Desperate Housewives but isn't your cat worth that? It's a cat's nature to scratch. If you can't deal with that, get a fish. http://declaw.lisaviolet.com/