considering declawing my cats -- Montgomery County

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. None of those suggestions work, I have had one of the cats for 4 years and one for 2.5 years. They do not calm down when you play with the paws. I know all the tricks and alternatives; its not like I have never had a cat before.

Several of my friends have cats who are declawed and they do not bite, nor exhibit any kind of anti-social behavior. Our cats were declawed when i was growing up.

I would not be doing this if it were not necessary.

I will just start calling various vet practices.

Do what you want but don't be surprised when your insecure aggressive cats become more insecure and aggressive.

Not to mention craps and pees everywhere besides the litter box. But you'll deserve it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. None of those suggestions work, I have had one of the cats for 4 years and one for 2.5 years. They do not calm down when you play with the paws. I know all the tricks and alternatives; its not like I have never had a cat before.

Several of my friends have cats who are declawed and they do not bite, nor exhibit any kind of anti-social behavior. Our cats were declawed when i was growing up.

I would not be doing this if it were not necessary.

I will just start calling various vet practices.

Do what you want but don't be surprised when your insecure aggressive cats become more insecure and aggressive.

+1,000! They will piss on your bed and poop in your shoes.

If the choice is getting clawed to bits, poop in shoes, or getting rid of them (rehoming, becoming outdoor cats, euthanasia), I'll pick option 3.

At some point, the question becomes, why even have these cats?

It was suggested that the OP try medication for the cats' anxiety. She did not seem willing to try that option. But it seems better than the other 3 you listed.

[Anonymous]

You can't call yourself a cat lover and do that sh*t !!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. None of those suggestions work, I have had one of the cats for 4 years and one for 2.5 years. They do not calm down when you play with the paws. I know all the tricks and alternatives; its not like I have never had a cat before.

Several of my friends have cats who are declawed and they do not bite, nor exhibit any kind of anti-social behavior. Our cats were declawed when i was growing up.

I would not be doing this if it were not necessary.

I will just start calling various vet practices.

Do what you want but don't be surprised when your insecure aggressive cats become more insecure and aggressive.

+1,000! They will piss on your bed and poop in your shoes.

If the choice is getting clawed to bits, poop in shoes, or getting rid of them (rehoming, becoming outdoor cats, euthanasia), I'll pick option 3.

At some point, the question becomes, why even have these cats?

It was suggested that the OP try medication for the cats' anxiety. She did not seem willing to try that option. But it seems better than the other 3 you listed.

That's an interesting point. OP would rather maim her cats than try the medication.

I still think the cats would be better off euthanized than to undergo a painful and crippling declawing procedure as adults. There is a reason that countries have made declawing illegal.

[Anonymous]

I have a skittish scratchy cat and found a great video showing how to clip nails of a aggressive cat, it involved wrapping their bodies, head exposed, in a small rug, and exposing one paw at a time for trimming. Quite a racket of meOWing but I tried it and it works great! At first I had to pretty much lay over her to keep her immobilized, and I spend half the time petting her and the other half clipping, followed by a treat. After doing this twice weekly for a few months, she has stopped writhing and trying to escape, and she seems almost to enjoy it. I use a towel, tightly wound, rather than a rug.

[Anonymous]

I have a skittish scratchy cat and found a great video showing how to clip nails of a aggressive cat, it involved wrapping their bodies, head exposed, in a small rug, and exposing one paw at a time for trimming. Quite a racket of meOWing but I tried it and it works great! At first I had to pretty much lay over her to keep her immobilized, and I spend half the time petting her and the other half clipping, followed by a treat. After doing this twice weekly for a few months, she has stopped writhing and trying to escape, and she seems almost to enjoy it. I use a towel, tightly wound, rather than a rug.

[Anonymous]

I was always very against declawing - and then I brought my lessThan 5 lb preemie baby Home after weeks in the hospital and in a rush of pregnancy hormones sent the cats out to Friendship Heights Animal Hospital to get it done because I was so scared of them
Clawing him. They have a lot of vets working there and some Will and some Won’t do they surgery but you just call and they figure it out. This was almost 10 years ago so I’m not sure if it has changed there re declawing. That laser options sounds interesting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have a skittish scratchy cat and found a great video showing how to clip nails of a aggressive cat, it involved wrapping their bodies, head exposed, in a small rug, and exposing one paw at a time for trimming. Quite a racket of meOWing but I tried it and it works great! At first I had to pretty much lay over her to keep her immobilized, and I spend half the time petting her and the other half clipping, followed by a treat. After doing this twice weekly for a few months, she has stopped writhing and trying to escape, and she seems almost to enjoy it. I use a towel, tightly wound, rather than a rug.

This is my method too. I wrap her in a blanket with her head exposed and take one paw out at a time. I do this about once a month. SHE ABSOLUTELY HATES IT. She growls and meows but for some reasons doesn’t try to bite me. I don’t think she’ll ever get used to it but it’s one of those things I just have to do. If she’s exceptionally pissy, I skip her back claws til next time.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a skittish scratchy cat and found a great video showing how to clip nails of a aggressive cat, it involved wrapping their bodies, head exposed, in a small rug, and exposing one paw at a time for trimming. Quite a racket of meOWing but I tried it and it works great! At first I had to pretty much lay over her to keep her immobilized, and I spend half the time petting her and the other half clipping, followed by a treat. After doing this twice weekly for a few months, she has stopped writhing and trying to escape, and she seems almost to enjoy it. I use a towel, tightly wound, rather than a rug.

This is my method too. I wrap her in a blanket with her head exposed and take one paw out at a time. I do this about once a month. SHE ABSOLUTELY HATES IT. She growls and meows but for some reasons doesn’t try to bite me. I don’t think she’ll ever get used to it but it’s one of those things I just have to do. If she’s exceptionally pissy, I skip her back claws til next time.

Me again. I actually never clipped her claws for the first year I had her. She did a TON of scratching on her cardboard scratcher and her claws never seemed to bother her. But she loves to play, which includes using her claws, so it’s better if they’re trimmed.
Dumb question but can you get away with just not clipping a cats nails? I would never neglect to do so if it was a health / physical concern but I’ve never really asked that.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was always very against declawing - and then I brought my lessThan 5 lb preemie baby Home after weeks in the hospital and in a rush of pregnancy hormones sent the cats out to Friendship Heights Animal Hospital to get it done because I was so scared of them
Clawing him. They have a lot of vets working there and some Will and some Won’t do they surgery but you just call and they figure it out. This was almost 10 years ago so I’m not sure if it has changed there re declawing. That laser options sounds interesting.

You are a horrible person, and you shouldn't be allowed to own animals.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was always very against declawing - and then I brought my lessThan 5 lb preemie baby Home after weeks in the hospital and in a rush of pregnancy hormones sent the cats out to Friendship Heights Animal Hospital to get it done because I was so scared of them
Clawing him. They have a lot of vets working there and some Will and some Won’t do they surgery but you just call and they figure it out. This was almost 10 years ago so I’m not sure if it has changed there re declawing. That laser options sounds interesting.

You are a horrible person, and you shouldn't be allowed to own animals.

Do you feel better after posting that?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was always very against declawing - and then I brought my lessThan 5 lb preemie baby Home after weeks in the hospital and in a rush of pregnancy hormones sent the cats out to Friendship Heights Animal Hospital to get it done because I was so scared of them
Clawing him. They have a lot of vets working there and some Will and some Won’t do they surgery but you just call and they figure it out. This was almost 10 years ago so I’m not sure if it has changed there re declawing. That laser options sounds interesting.

You are a horrible person, and you shouldn't be allowed to own animals.

Do you feel better after posting that?

Dp. I felt better after reading that!

[Anonymous]

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

[Anonymous]

I second the rehoming idea. You shouldn't declaw you cats. Not sure if vets even do this anymore.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I was always very against declawing - and then I brought my lessThan 5 lb preemie baby Home after weeks in the hospital and in a rush of pregnancy hormones sent the cats out to Friendship Heights Animal Hospital to get it done because I was so scared of them
Clawing him. They have a lot of vets working there and some Will and some Won’t do they surgery but you just call and they figure it out. This was almost 10 years ago so I’m not sure if it has changed there re declawing. That laser options sounds interesting.

You are a horrible person, and you shouldn't be allowed to own animals.

Do you feel better after posting that?

No. No, I don't. I'm still disgusted with OP's selfishness and cruelty. But the takeaway message from this thread that might persuade OP not to declaw is that many people think she's horrible for doing it, and she will be silently judged by friends after doing this to her cats. OP strikes me as the kind of person who wouldn't care about her pet being in pain, but she would care very much about how her friends viewed her.

Hey, the reason that declawed cats often stop using their little boxes is that their paws hurt so badly post surgery that it doesn't feel good to dig in the litter. And they often have residual pain long after surgery, plus developing arthritis.