Life with a cat
 

The cat that I received as a retirement gift (from what I thought was a friend) is quite the character. I've never had a kitten in the house before and it sure is an experience. Into everything but the dog seems to enjoy the challenge. Taking him in to get fixed and declawed on Monday and my DH thinks this will settle him down. He's 6 months old. Please tell me my DH is right.

As far as getting him neutered, that is an excellent idea. If he's litter box trained that is excellent also. On the other hand he is still a kitten. At 6 months he is like a 2 year old. he is still a baby. Sounds like your dog is happy with him and that is a good thing. Hopefully you're not going to get him totally declawed and only frontal. If he would accidentally get outside, he could still at least defend him self some what or at least climb to get away from unwanted predators or bullies. I had cats but that was 3 decades ago. I hate seeing the strays in our neighborhood running from other animals. But first things first, the neutering.

Please, Please don't get him declawed. There is nothing worse one can do to a cat.

To keep him from clawing at the furniture keep PLENTY of scratching posts around. We have one cat and she has 5 posts scattered around the house. Also keep a squirt bottle handy for times when they "forget" where their post is. :)
Having him neutered will help settle him down some.

Declawing means they will take his claws out all the way to their first knuckle it's painful for them. It's inhumane. And he won't be able to defend himself if he happens to get outside. Without his front claws he will not be able to climb a tree if a dog is after him.

You might as well have him put down if your going to take away his only defense. By removing his claws.

I agree against declawing. Please, please don't have it done. Give him a scratching post rubbed with catnip and encourage him to use it. Use the spray bottle if he scratches on anything else. I agree with the neutering. Just my opinion.

Can you research this declawing on the internet first before taking this permanent, extremely painful, traumatic procedure on your new friend? Cat's bad behavior is rarely a physical problem, but more frequently a caregiver/training problem.

Jan in VA

how I would love to have another cat, but I don't think my terrier would behave herself!!! neutering is an excellent idea, but have to say, like previous posts please please don't take his claws away - over here in the UK NO vet would even consider this and it certainly won't change his behaviour.

You can clip his claws weekly and get him the cardboard box

Hi! I have 8 cats. We say cat hair is a clothing accessory and a food condiment here. Don't remember where I heard that but I love it. I know declawing is a touchy subject, much like clipping a pet birds wings is. I have not declawed any of my cats, nor would I personally in the future. But that being said, I would not hold it against someone who did declaw. While finding a vet to do the procedure is getting more difficult, there are still some out there that will. I am saying all this with the utmost respect to everyone that posted before and after me. To declaw or not declaw is a personal choice, and in my opinion, if it is the difference between a cat being able to stay in its home and not end up on the streets (and eventually at my house lol) or in a shelter, I say do it. If god forbid the housing situation changes and kitty can no longer stay in his home, declawed cats are adopted much quicker too. Just my thoughts. I know it's painful and leaves them defenseless if they get out. I worked in a vet clinic where some vets wouldn't declaw and some of the older vets would. It's just so sad the overpopulation problem, there are not enough homes. Anything that helps them get homes and stay out of shelters can't be frowned upon completely, can it?


i also wanted to say congratulations on your new kitty!! He will calm down with age and after being fixed. (They tend to get a little fat) a spray bottle with water will help teach him where he can and cannot go. Lots of play time while watching tv or talking on the phone will wear him out and keep his hunting need filled. (Also they generally stop climbing things as they grow up out of kitten stage)

Congratulations on your new kitten! We have 3 kitties and love them to pieces. Our baby, Sylvester, is just about 9 months old and we got him neutered about 2 months ago. He and our other younger kitty, Callie, who is 1 yr old, still love to play and run through the house occasionally. But for the most part, they are quite content to lounge around and be petted. Sylvester and Callie both have gotten chubby since their operations back in the late summer. None of our kitties are declawed.

I have 2 cats at the present and have had 2 others that have passed on due to old age. I have never declawed one and I do not have issues. I agree with spay and neutering, it must be done. There are too many unwanted pets, and it does settle them down. Declawed cats can start biting as it is all they have left. I know some people do it and it is your decision. Indoor cats generally have a long life and they do escape occasionally (seems to be a game with mine).

Don't know if others are/were uninformed like me but up until 9 yrs ago I thought 'declaw' meant just that-the vet 'digs' the claws out. I didn't understand, didn't confirm and had my cat declawed. After the fact, for no reason, I did some research only to find out they actually amputate to the first knuckle. I had another cat done yrs ago and never understood why she walk so daintily. I would too if half my feet were chopped off! Disgusting images on the web. The vet I see now refuses to declaw and I totally agree.

If you think getting kitty declawed is the answer to calming him down, you may be in for worse surprises. As said, it sometimes makes them bite, they often stop using the litter box and choose inappropriate places. It is also rare for the declawing to be totally complete-- leaving one or two claws to grow deformed and often back into the paw. Our rescued Tom has to have one on each paw treated regularly by Vet because they grow backwards into his paws, causing a limping walk. That's when we do our visits. We were told he had to endure a 2nd declaw operation and it was still not successful. We've never had a cat declawed! I just can't imagine how painful it must be.

I beg of you PLEASE do not declaw your kitten!!!

It is the equivilent of amputating your finger at the first joint below the fingernail.

Let me give you a few bullets on how barbaric and horrendous declawing is:

It is outlawed in almost every country in the world! The US and Canada are the only few that still do it. Why? Because it is a cash cow procedure for vets.

Declawing is so painful to the animal that pharmaceutical companies use that procedure more than any other to test the efficacy of vetrinary pain killers

Finally, I urge you to go read this essay written by a vet technician on what it is like working "behind the scenes" and seeing, first hand what a horrific and barbaric procedure this is
http://declaw.lisaviolet.com/declawvettch.html

Edited to add a 2001 study revealed 33% of declawed cats developed behavior problems after surgery (18% biting and 15% house-soiling)

Try interactive play with your kitten. Da Bird is a great toy for active felines. Provide LARGE STABLE cat trees for climbing and scratching. Teach your cat to fetch for hours of interactive play and bonding. Please don't declaw your cat.

EDUCATE DON'T AMPUTATE!!!!

I will not declaw a cat.
They can be trained to use a cat post. Just use cat nip on the post. Also I demo how to use it by clawing on it with my hand to show him how. If he has a spot on the furniture that he goes to, place the cat post in front of it.
I have 3 cats and none of them claw the furniture. I do have 4 cat posts for them.

Oh do you really think you must declaw him?. IT's very painful. Talk to the Vet first and make sure you need to do this. I know, cats can claw but giving them a scratch pad and or post works very well. I have three cats. Other than that, have tons of fun with your new member of the family. .... oh sorry to go on about claws. I see many feel the same. I didn't think much of it until I found out exactly how they do it. yikes.

My daughter puts claw caps on her cat. He is a "grumpy" boy and doesn't like to be held but she does this while he's sleeping and he doesn't even know it. I would imagine that if you started with the claw caps when he was a kitten, he wouldn't mind at all.

Also, I've had two cats inside/outside and neither one has ever clawed at furniture. I do have one that likes to prod the carpet and sometimes claws get hung but its nothing major.

Best wishes on your new family addition and enjoy retirement!!

post a photo of your kitty too! we'd love to see one.

I also have to disagree with declawing. I've had two cats at a time for the past 44 years and have rarely had a piece of furniture hurt. And just for your information, I read that catnip had no affect on cats until they are about 1 year old. So don't expect that to work yet. I have one cat that loves to claw the foam kitchen mat. And the other one likes to claw on sisal wrapped posts. If you get it in your area, watch "My cat from hell" on the Animal Planet channel. That guy really knows cats and has some wonderful suggestions. Because of him, I turned my back patio into a "catio". They have scratching posts, chairs with cushions to curl up on and sleep, carpet covered wood ramps for them to run around the perimeter and, of course, some green plastic netting enclosing the whole patio. They just love it. If you don't have a patio that you can enclose, just be sure the cat has different places in the house where he can get up high and look down on the world. They are much more secure there.

Just wanted to add, I am not in favor of declawing, even though I stated frontal declaw. The cat I had was declawed when I got her. She did get out one day thanks to my boys leaving the door open. We lived in a mobile home park. The neighbors dog, a Rottweiler mix, got into our yard and went after my Jetta. He grabbed her the wrong way. She bit him really good and didn't let go, then with her back claws, she literally shredded his jewels and almost castrated him. He let go she didn't. The dogs owner heard him yelping and I had just gotten home. He didn't know my cat's grip. She finally let go and ran into the house. He took me to court for the damages done to his dog. He lost because the park rules stated dogs needed to be put on leash at all times or contained in their own yard and no dogs allowed over 40 lbs. I didn't want Jetta ever subjected to this again. I gave her to a friend along with all her vet records. She had a kitten who was 3 months. I had her spayed shortly after weaning her kitten. The kitten went with her. Not long after the kitten was spayed. They had a long life with my friend and I had never seen her so content. I'm sure they have both passed on. I'm not in favor of taking away any animals defense mechanisms. Jetta and Lea were the last cats I had and I want no more. Getting out of patience.

Congrats on the new kitten. As for the declawing, I agree it is not something I would choose to have done. I have 2 cats. The first came to us grown, neutered and declawed in the front. She is Siamese and also cross-eyed. Because of her front claw removal she is clumsy and now that she's older she has trouble jumping onto things. When she is on my lap if she gets startled and jumps off she uses her back claws and tears up my legs if I'm not careful. She only goes out in the back (fenced) once in a while because of the declawing. The other cat came to us as a kitten. We did not get her declawed (thought about it but decided against it) She was an inside only cat until she discovered an escape route in the garage. We repaired her escape route and she started spraying in the house as retaliation so we now let her come in and out at will. I guess what I'm trying to say is if I had a choice I wouldn't declaw BUT I don't agree with Chasing Hawk's comment that you might as well put the cat down if you're going to declaw...that's a bit harsh. We aren't living in your house or your shoes. Only you can decide what's best...and as far as I'm concerned I'm glad my Siamese is alive and not dead because she's declawed...

I agree with not having it declawed. And our caus love the sturdy scratching post with the rope on it. We also have one with actual tree branches with the bark on it that a previous cat loved. Then we have another with carpet that a different cat likes. Some like to scratch vertically and some like to scratch horizontally. We have both. I clip my cats' claws every 10 days or so to keep them short. You may have to start out with someone holding the kitten and the other one clipping. Just be careful not to clip to the quick which is the pink part. I usually just clip the tips. If you squeeze the paw a little their claws will come out and you can get to them easier. I have had to wrap one of mine in a towel because she was in a mood and wanted to scratch me. She has extra toes on all her feet and long hair so it takes me a long time to get hers done. Other times she lays still and growls at me. Good luck with your kitten.

sometimes I have my cat facing me when i'm in my recliner and I clip her nails. the small one I turn back to me and clip usually. which ever way works best. I only clip the curve near the tip of the nail. I'm chicken to go back further. I don't want to hurt them.

Please, all the above suggestions are excellent, and I agree about the neutering. Do not have this precious pet de-clawed. It would be like cutting off your fingers at the first knuckle. Please do the research on this issue and give your cat to another pet lover before taking that terribly painful step. Scratching posts, and spray bottles of water worked in teaching our cats not to scratch furniture.

declawing involves cutting the cats first digit off. how would that feel. getting fixed is o.k. My zoey gets her nails clipped regularly and does find with scratching posts. \
please rethink that, the people I know who have had it done their cats, 1 made all over the house, 2 pulled out all the fur on the belly, and the 3rd threw up all the time. dr. said it was a neurosis developed from being declawed.
good luck with your kitty. please don't declaw. and worst of all, sometimes they grow back all mangled.

my little girl is an indoor cat, she learned to scratch her toys and condos. we cut her nails regularly, clean her ears and scrape her teeth. have the vet show you all this and you'll have a happy kitty. they take awhile to get used to this 'stuff', but it's for their own good.

I will have to agree with the others who are against declawing. I had that done to my indoor cats in the past until I realized how painful and tramatic it is for cats. As far as playful, my Dave just turned one and he is still every bit as crazy as he's always been, he gets in his moods and runs like a wild cat, but I enjoy it, DH not so much.

I had to stop reading this after the first page. All I can say is that I had a cat declawed years ago and would never, never, never do it again. The pain that cat had. I had to carry him to the litter box almost 2 weeks . I'll never forget the look of pain in his eyes. I only did it because I was told it was the thing to do. Never again.

He will be helpless as far as defense without any of his claws. He won't be able to climb without front claws and his back claws would be a last ditch effort - if he gets to that point, he's done.

I had my first cat (about 40 years ago) declawed because 'everyone' said that was the thing to do. I have taken the guilt of that decision with me my whole life. This poor beautiful creature was mutilated and was never the same.

Today, I have a four month old kitten I rescued from the engine of my car. I didn't want a kitten, but she was under one pound and the humane society wouldn't take her until she was at least two pounds. I've named her Lil Orphan Annie, but should have named her Jekyll and Hyde. She can go from loving and cute to an aggressive terror in under two seconds. I will not have her declawed because I won't do that to an animal again. I have a pair of kitty nail clippers and once a week, when she is in her lovable mood and napping on my lap, I trim her front claws. Since I have started this right from the beginning, she doesn't freak out when I do this,and it keeps her claws with the sharp hook that causes so much damage.

Please do not do this to your kitten.

I had both of my cats declawed(front feet only) they had no problems and we were all a lot happier. They fight with their back feet.. Both lived to be 19 & 20 yr.

My male cat is a terror, has been since he was 6 months old and got him fixed. He terrorizes the dogs and one day the older one just might clean his clock. He kept DH and I awake last night, we forgot to shut the bedroom door. He is very needy at times and last night he roamed all over us, sleeping on us and driving me nuts. I wish we had gotten him a buddy, but now we won't because he might kill another cat. I would suggest a buddy for yours if you can do it, I think 2 work better together than one alone. Good Luck !

I have 2 cats that are about 1 1/2 years old and they love to run and play. I have lots of feathers on dowels, string toys, catnip mice, etc., to play with them and keep them entertained. And the lids from soda water bottles and water bottles are some of their favorite toys as well as balls of crumpled up aluminum foil. My grandfather used to tie a string around a roll of newspaper (about 3" x 4" and about 1 1/2" thick) and play with our cats. He would also tie the end of the string securely around a door knob and the cats would spend a lot of time playing with it on their own. Just like children, cats and dogs need your attention and lots of play time.

Even though my 2 are strictly indoor cats, I have not had them declawed. I have treats for them and they know that when the treats come out, they get their claws trimmed and then the treats. I use nail clippers and cuddle them as I clip their nails. Makes the mani/pedi's fun for everyone!

I also have a cat climbing pole with ledges and boxes for them and the cardboard scratch boxes. When they started to claw my couch, I wet a cloth with white vinegar and, after first color-testing it on a hidden area, wiped down the areas where they were clawing. Cats hate the smell of vinegar. They have not clawed since!

A friend of mine who doesn't have pets said she couldn't believe all the toys I have for my babies. I said just as I bought toys for my nieces and nephews when they were babies, I am doing the same for these.

I hope you have lots and lots of fun times with your darling!

We had one cat for five years and one later on for 17 years. I always thought they might have needed a buddy. But a few years ago we took in a mama cat and her two girls. I never knew how much hair three cats could shed!!! and at times they fight and chase each other around the house. Mama can be mean or terribly sweet.

I agree cat declawing is mutilation and painful. I did it one time and will never do again, the cat was never the same. I understand declawed cats also tend to become biters. My cats love their scratching cardboard boxes, everyone has their own.
My neighbors have a cat that is declawed on all 4 paws, poor thing is so upset all the time, hisses, cries and hides. Animals are smart creatures, they know they are compromised. Absolutely neuter/spay, they will be happier for that and so will you. We currently have a new kitten, courtesy of the feral female in the neighborhood, came across her when walking the dog. She was wet, cold, hungry and week. Vet estimated her to be 4-5 weeks. We don’t need or really want another cat but she is tons of love and fun can’t imagine our life without her(Mocha). Good luck and tons of fun with the new furbaby.

I also believe it is wrong to declaw a cat. The one thing that seems to evade notice on this issue, is that things change, things die, including us. What happens to the poor cat then? Whoever is responsible to find the cat a new home has to find someone that will be required to be hyper vigilant, as I assume you would be, about letting a now defenseless cat get out. When a landlord tried to force me to declaw my Bruno, I told him I would just have him put down. I felt that would be more humane. When they take the claws off of a cat, they have to cripple it to do so. It is the equivalent of having your toes removed.
Having said all of that, I have tried scratching posts for Bruno, but he could care less since they are usually too small for him. I have just learned to keep a weighted cardboard box in the house for him to shred the corners of. I just rotate the box until all corners are "dead" then go get a new box. I use piles of books in them for weight. This costs me nothing, gives me a place to store extra books, and I recycle the old corner-less box! Free and helps the planet, and keeps Bruno from making lace out of my furniture. Winning!

Please do not declaw. Put those temp nails on. Play a lot with him with feathers and such. After two years, out twins wanted to go outside like our outside tabby. They had studied birds forever. We have two cat doors, one in laundry room and one in basement. They also love cat trees for climbing and they usually have ropes on them for clawing.

Please, please, please don't have him declawed. It can cause him pain forever. It would be kinder to give him away to someone who wants him. It sounds like you really don't want the cat.

I have three cats all are now over 15 years old. They are all indoor cats but I could never have declawed them. It's terribly painful. If they accidentally get out and something chases them, they'd have no way to either claw and protect themselves or even climb a tree to get away. If you're not happy with the cat, just give it away.

I just read this again. Are you letting the dog torture the kitten? No wonder it is acting up. Please give him to someone who will love him.

Definitely get the kitten neutered. That will mellow him some. Part of the issue between the dog and cat is territory. They will sort it out. If not, give the kitten up for adoption.

Check the law in Wisconsin, since some states or cities have outlawed declawing as mutilation. When I first had cats, I did have a couple of cats that I had the fronts declawed, but one cat ended up having persistent infections in one toe and had to be redone, because the bone had not been completely removed.

Since then, I have always trained my cats to allow me to clip their nails instead of declawing them (much kinder), especially important since mine were indoor cats (another issue to consider due to safety). I also made sure they had clawing posts. I was able to train my cats to allow this, even though they were adult cats. You can buy different types of nail clippers at the pet store. I agree with getting a climbing tree for the cat - you could probably even make one. There is a guy in my area that makes cat trees out of reclaimed materials, like carpet, plywood, and tree roots.