alternatives to declawing cat?

[cheri222]

We have a male cat Mr Oreo who likes to jump at the dividing wall between 2 rooms and rake his nails down both sides of the wall. 2 or 3 times a day I have to vac up all the little white chunks of drywall. He is only 3months old. He is damaging the wall and yes he has scratching posts but prefers the wall. I have trimmed his nails but that seems to encourage more scratching. I nailed up carpet rems today, sure hubby will love that designer look! We will have him neutered at 6 months. I hate to have him declawed but is there any way to stop this? He will be an indoor cat but I just wanted to know if there are other options.

 

[annaraven]

The carpet scraps may help. But if you haven't figured out something by the time he's getting fixed, I suspect you'll want to get him declawed. I don't do it to my cats normally, but have had one that just wouldn't learn. He was getting declawed or going to the pound because no one would put up with him destroying things. After he was declawed, he was a great cat.

Check with your vet or with a good pet shop. Hope others here come up with ideas too. But if you do end up having to get him declawed, don't feel bad. My parents' cat when I was growing up was declawed - he used to bring home gophers. Didn't seem to bother him at all. Sure saved the furniture though.

 

[LindsayB]

I have a 5 month old male indoor cat and I use the Soft Claw Nail Caps. You can get them at petco or petsmart. They stay on pretty good, I usually have to replace 1 or 2 caps a week. We were thinking about getting him declawed but this is working so well for us.

 

[bagendhens]

http://www.softpaws.com/

 

[LindsayB]

Quote:
thats them! petsmart even has a knock off brand thats half the price. About $8. I just get which ever brand has the boy colors in his size, they're exactly the same.

 

[ChickenWisperer]

Quote:
I agree, I would try these. The only time we used them was for our deceased Manx cat - but they didn't stay on him too well

Also, put out enrichment for them - cat scratching posts, etc and trim their claws.

I agree, if absolutely nothing works that is the only time I would resort to declawing. Both of our cats are indoor-outdoor, so they cannot have their claws removed for their safety. Not that it matters, we never had a problem with them.

 

[Stacykins]

In addition to soft paws, I'd suggest keeping his nails not just trimmed, but also filed. Trimmed nails still have jagged edges, they are just shorter and less hooked. If you file the nail so the end is smooth and rounded, he won't be able to scratch anything deeply.

Thank you for looking into alternatives first. One of my two cats came to me declawed from a woman who couldn't keep her. She is ultra sensitive about her front paws and cannot balance or jump. I suspect she has serious nerve damage in her paws from her declawing.

 

[LindsayB]

heres the best pic I could get of Milo's claws, hes a wild man! I highly recommend getting these though

 

[WhiteMountainsRanch]

Softpaws, more scratching areas, catnip, water squirt bottle... ANYTHING but declawing... Take it from an ex Vet tech... there is a whole heck of a lot they don't tell you about declawing a cat and it is AWFUL. The first time I ever saw it done in surgery I went outside and puked. And I am NOT a sensitive person. It is an AWFUL AWFUL thing to do to a cat. I'll spare you the details, but PLEASE don't EVER declaw a cat.

 

[CarrieW]

I have to chime in here about the Soft Paws! I have a Ragdoll that is declawed in the front, but he has awful allergies, scratches himself bloody with his back claws, so I use the Soft Paws on the back. I love them! The only advice I can give you about them though, is that the tube of glue that comes with them is a pain in the butt. I am also a manicurist, so I get nail glue that has a brush in it and use that. The brush fits all the way down to the bottom of the Soft Paw and works so much better! Just my 2 cents.